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The lane at dusk in Higashiyama, Kyoto, the machiya fronts lit along it
Live in old Kyoto

Machiya living in historic Kyoto, on a lane the crowds never find.

Two restored two-storey machiya — Kyoto's traditional wooden townhouses — stand side by side in old Higashiyama. Take one for you, or both for a group of up to eleven.

  • BenTen East House
  • 3 bedrooms for up to six
  • 2 toilets
  • 1 shower
  • 1 bath & shower
  • BenTen West House
  • 3 bedrooms for up to five
  • 2 toilets
  • 1 shower
  • 1 bath & shower
Two houses, one lane

Two Restored Machiya. Your Own Private Machiya in Kyoto

Enjoy exclusive use of the entire house — with one of two beautifully restored machiya reserved entirely for you and your travelling group, offering exceptional privacy, generous space and the rare experience of having your own private retreat in Kyoto.

Cutaway illustration titled Anatomy of a Kyoto Machiya, showing a traditional townhouse in section over two storeys: the koshi lattice front and doma earth-floored entrance at the street, the tooriniwa passage running the depth of the house, the daidokoro kitchen, a zashiki tatami room with a low table, the tsubo-niwa courtyard garden bringing light into the middle of the plan, and two nema sleeping rooms upstairs reached by the kaidan stairs

What It Feels Like to Stay in a Machiya

A machiya is Kyoto's traditional townhouse — long and narrow, quietly elegant, and shaped by light, flow and craftsmanship.

Traditional character
Enter through the doma, leave your shoes at the door, and move through rooms that unfold one after another. Tatami floors, paper screens and glimpses of the garden create a softer, quieter rhythm of living.
Modern comfort
BenTen preserves the character of a historic machiya while adding insulation, underfloor heating, air conditioning, a fitted kitchen, washer-dryer, fast Wi-Fi and bathroom facilities on both storeys.
Quiet and privacy
Set on a peaceful lane in Higashiyama, BenTen offers the rare experience of staying in a traditional Kyoto house, with the privacy of having it entirely to yourselves.

That sense of space, privacy and quiet is something a hotel cannot easily match.

A tatami sitting room in a Kyoto machiya, paper screens open to the garden
The Two Houses

Life behind the lattice.
Two machiya, side by side.

BenTen Residences — BenTen West and BenTen East

Floor layouts of both BenTen houses. BenTen East, 80 m² (about 860 sqft): ground floor with family and dining room, laundry room and a toilet with powder room; upper floor with a bedroom, a Western-style bedroom, a toilet with shower, a dresser and study, and a reflection space at the stair landing. BenTen West, 70 m² (about 750 sqft): ground floor with entrance hallway, a Japanese-style living room and bedroom, family and dining room, kitchenette and laundry room, a toilet with powder room, a bath and the garden; upper floor with a Japanese-style bedroom, a Western-style bedroom, a toilet with shower, a dresser and study, and an air well overlooking the hallway. Layouts are not to scale and are for approximate reference only.

Old Kyoto, thoughtfully adapted for today.

The architecture and rhythm of the original machiya remain — timber, tatami, sliding screens, intimate gardens and rooms that unfold through the house — while discreet modern upgrades provide warmth, cooling, convenience and privacy throughout your stay.

  • Underfloor
    heating
  • Air
    conditioning
  • Fully equipped
    kitchen
  • Integrated
    washer-dryer
  • Fast
    Wi-Fi
  • 1 bath with shower,
    1 shower and 2 toilets
  • Private
    keypad access

BenTen East

弁天 東 ・ 東館
Sleeps up to six
80 m² (about 860 sqft)
East ・ 東

The larger and brighter of the two houses — a full machiya for up to six, with a maple-framed courtyard at its centre and the temples of Higashiyama outside the door.

  • Sleeps 6
  • 3 bedrooms
  • 2 semi-double beds
  • 4 futons
  • 2 toilets
  • 1 shower
  • 1 bath
  • 80 m²

A bedroom, a toilet, the bath, the kitchen and the living room are all on the lower storey, so guests who would rather skip the stairs have everything they need on the lower storey. Tell us when you book and we will make up the lower-storey bedroom for you.

A personal welcome at the house, at a time that suits you. Leave a phone number when you book and we arrange it around your arrival; alternative check-in is available for late or delayed flights.

BenTen West

弁天 西 ・ 西館
Sleeps up to five
70 m² (about 750 sqft)
西
West ・ 西

The quieter, more intimate of the two houses — a broadly similar layout to the East, with a private garden at the rear and the bath looking straight out onto it from the lower storey.

  • Sleeps 5
  • 3 bedrooms
  • 2 semi-double beds
  • 3 futons
  • 2 toilets
  • 1 shower
  • 1 bath
  • 70 m²

A bedroom, a toilet, the bath, the kitchen and the living room are all on the lower storey, so guests who would rather skip the stairs have everything they need on the lower storey. Taking both houses puts a group of up to eleven on the same lane, two front doors apart.

A personal welcome at the house, at a time that suits you. Leave a phone number when you book and we arrange it around your arrival; alternative check-in is available for late or delayed flights.

Check availability ›
Private stay, personal service

The privacy of your own house,
with boutique-hotel service.

Enjoy the independence of having an entire machiya to yourselves, with thoughtful support when you need it. Our bilingual concierge can assist before and during your stay, while personal check-in and discreet housekeeping make your time in Kyoto effortless and comfortable.

01

Before you arrive

Our bilingual concierge can assist with restaurant reservations, itineraries and transport arrangements in English and Japanese before your arrival.

02

A personal welcome

A personal welcome is arranged for arrivals within a reasonable, pre-agreed check-in window. Your host will meet you at the house and introduce the property. Alternative check-in arrangements are available for late or significantly delayed arrivals.

03

Housekeeping every other day

Bathrooms and living areas are refreshed, amenities replenished and used towels replaced every other day. Fresh towels are provided for each day of your stay and replenished at every housekeeping visit.

04

Your house, your privacy

Between housekeeping visits, the entire house is yours to enjoy in complete privacy. Your private keypad access also gives you the freedom to come and go entirely on your own schedule.

The neighbourhood

Wake up in Higashiyama

Step outside BenTen Residences and you are already in one of Kyoto's most atmospheric historic neighbourhoods. Tucked away on a quiet lane, the house is surrounded by preserved streets, temples, gardens and the unmistakable character of old Kyoto.

Ishibe-koji, Kodai-ji, Kennin-ji and Yasaka Pagoda are just minutes away on foot, while Yasaka Shrine, Gion and Kiyomizu-dera are also within easy reach.

And because you are staying here — rather than simply visiting — you can experience Higashiyama in the quiet of the early morning and again in the evening, after the daytime crowds have faded.

The wooden lattice of the front, backlit from the lane
Heritage

Meticulously restored, preserved as machiya.

The two machiya had belonged to a local Japanese owner, who lived in one house and ran a café in the other. After his death in 2013, the buildings were at risk of demolition for a car park.

In 2014 the restoration owners bought both houses outright and commissioned a careful restoration by Kyoto specialists — Asami Architects and Associates, with the timber workshop Tsuji Komuten. The work was completed at the end of 2015.

The current owners later acquired the restored houses and continue that stewardship today, keeping both machiya maintained, inhabited and shared with guests.

The full chronology →
予約
Your own machiya in Higashiyama

Check dates for BenTen East or BenTen West, or write to the concierge about reserving both houses, longer stays or special arrangements.

弁天
Address

431-3 & 431-4 Kamibenten-cho
Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto 605-0822

京都市東山区

Contact

+81 75-771-0898
hello@benten-residences.com

Check-in from 15:00 / Check-out by 11:00

Reserve

Reservations open eighteen months ahead.

Write to us
Letters from BenTen
BENTEN 弁天
© MMXXVI · 京都