Kyōto Zen House
Ochaya Hasu お茶屋蓮 (Hasu management)
4-9 people, $1,400-2,800 weekly, $5,200-10,400 monthly
The Ochaya Hasu お茶屋蓮 used to be a "teahouse" (ochaya お茶屋), the name given to geisha houses and brothels. It is part of Kikuhama, a district were prostitution was authorized. This ochaya type of machiya has been fully restored and well insulated, the original room layout (4 guestrooms upstairs) has been kept, and more amenities added, such as 3 bathrooms and 2 WC. With its 5 bedrooms, it can fit up to 12 people.
The district, Kikuhama 菊浜 or Gojō rakuen 五条楽園, is South of Gojō street, located between two rivers, Takasegawa and Kamogawa. It was a yūkaku 遊廓, a brothel area, and has thus kept this atmosphere of being cast away. Now it is a quickly changing neighborhood, with new cafes and hotels, but it remains a kind of place apart in the middle of the city.
The Ochaya is a 100 years-old property (built in 1910) that has been restored by the architects and designers of the Hasu group, based in Kyoto and Luxembourg. Hasu 連 is the Japanese name of the lotus flower; in Buddhism, this flower is the symbol of the life that flourishes even in harsh and muddy conditions.
Please contact us by email if you have any questions about this rental.
The Ochaya Hasu is a licensed hotel business, it can be rented here for a short period of time. We have a 2 nights minimum policy.
Click here for the Google map access.
View from the entrance hall (genkan 玄関) towards the living room, we can see the hole on the floor for the low table, hori-gotatsu 掘炬燵.
View from the living room.
View from the living room towards the entrance, painting from Tomo Uyesugi, girl with blue lotus tattoo.
View from the entrance towards the corridor and the staircase.
The wooden bath seen from the outdoor deck courtyard.
The first floor bedroom.
Second floor corridor, with the rooms on the side.
Second floor bathroom, shower.
View from the second floor bathroom (winter).
View from the second floor bathroom (spring).
The bedroom on the West side.
One of the two interior bedrooms.
The bedroom on the East side, with double bed and tatami.
The Ochaya seen from the street.
Floor plans. 1F: entrance, living rooms, kitchen, WC, bedroom, bathroom, courtyard. 2F: 4 bedrooms, 2 showers, WC.
Sketch by Arnaud De Meyer (Steinmetz De Meyer).
