DUSIT THANI KYOTO, KYOTO, JAPAN

Posted in Projects on 28 March, 2024

Taking inspiration from both Japan and Thailand, this latest big-brand arrival melds two ancient cultures defined by craftsmanship and hospitality.

Words by Kate Crockett

For full dramatic effect, it is worth arriving at the new Dusit Thani Kyoto by night. Tucked away in the peaceful Hongwanji Monzen-machi neighbourhood, conveniently close to Kyoto Station, the hotel has a warm welcoming glow – visible from a block away – with clever lighting illuminating the clean lines and traditional materials of its exterior – a striking, contemporary interpretation of Kyoto vernacular architecture.

Opened in September 2023, the 147-room Dusit Thani Kyoto is a fusion of two ancient cultures defined by craftsmanship and hospitality. Set over six floors – four at ground level and two below, to adhere to Kyoto City’s strict building regulations that restrict buildings over 33m – the hotel occupies half of one city block in Shimogyo ward, a residential neighbourhood whose most famous landmark is Nishi-Hongwanji temple, the headquarters of Shin Buddhism and a Unesco World Heritage Site. Designed and built by Japanese firm Toda Corporation, Dusit Thani Kyoto embraces the rich cultural heritage and architecture of Japan’s ancient capital city alongside Dusit Thani’s own heritage, drawing further inspiration from the ancient Thai capital of Ayutthaya, particularly its magnificent chedis.

Entering the expansive, 5.9metre-high lobby, staff offer a traditional Thai welcome, with hands pressed together. Sawadee kha. One’s eye is immediately drawn to the seasonal ikebana flower arrangement in a large artwork in the shape of a traditional Thai phan tray. Carved in timber by Japanese artisans, it dramatically expresses the fusion of two craft cultures. Overhead, blue ribbons of fabric, that evoke Japanese and Thai indigo dyeing, are draped like traditional Thai garlands, symbolically welcoming guests and inviting them to make this their home from home in Kyoto. Circular marble tables are set with low armchairs and sofas upholstered in grey, blue and deep navy, reflecting shared indigo-dyeing traditions, while a carving inspired by the Thai national flower, ratchaphruek (Golden flower tree), has been masterfully crafted from hinoki cypress in nearby Nara, using the traditional naguri technique. Permeating the space is the scent of lemon, cedarwood and amber – the unmistakable signature fragrance of Dusit Thani.

To one side of the lobby, the hotel boutique is enclosed within a forest of carved pillars, its design inspired by stacked phan, and crafted in bamboo in Northern Thailand, an area famous for bamboo production. It’s a gentle nod to Kyoto’s own famous bamboo groves in Arashiyama and Nishikyo. Elegant conical lighting here and above the adjacent concierge desk resembles Thai tasselled uba garlands, while inside the shop, chasen bamboo whisks and chashaku scoops for tea ceremony sit alongside other hand-crafted Kyoto wares and confections.

A delicate dividing panel, showcasing iron tea kettles, separates the lobby from the Tea Salon, with its cosy orange and blue-grey colour palette and interiors by Japanese studio, Design Post. Here maiko perform on a three-tatami, raised platform every Saturday during afternoon tea, to the delight of the mainly Japanese guests. The delicate, lattice-like design of the panel’s pillars and beams extend upwards into an intricate geometric sculpture, while mounted on the adjacent window is a woven, stainless-steel blind, by artist Akiko Hamatani, that resembles sudare bamboo blinds. The Salon has a mix of seating styles, with those sat at the counter and on lounge chairs at eye level with those in seiza (on their knees) being served tea on the tatami. The tea room’s preparation area, known as mizuya, is deliberately concealed as is the custom, while the traditional alcove displays a seasonal ikebana arrangement and a fabric scroll created by lauded, 400-year-old Kyoto silk artisans, Hosoo. Outside the window is a small garden with a central stone and ‘islands’ of moss and gravel from Kyoto’s Shirakawa river.

The Salon melds into the Gallery, the perfect place to watch the slow pace of neighbourhood life unfold outside the huge picture windows. Here, guests can sip on organic teas from Dusit Thani’s own tea plantation in Wazuka, south-east of Kyoto. Created by Thai designers PIA Interior, the Gallery’s curved ceilings are inspired by the traditional hakama trousers worn by Japanese nobles, while a rattan artwork behind the bar, entitled ‘Reflection of Two Cultures’, captures impressions of a Thai chedi and five-storey pagoda, of the kind seen at To-ji temple, another Unesco World Heritage-listed site closeby.

Reached by descending escalator from the lobby are Dusit Thani Kyoto’s event and dining spaces, including its signature restaurant, Ayatana, which accommodates up to 132 guests for all-day dining and 45 for fine-dining each evening. Ayatana is overseen by Duangporn ‘Bo’ Songvisava and Dylan Jones, celebrated chefs behind (now-closed) Michelin-star restaurant Bo.lan in Bangkok.

The restaurant interior has an atmosphere of elegance and nostalgia, with velvet banquettes and large artworks on fusuma-style screens depicting Kyoto’s famous ‘Nishijin’ kimono silks, the Japanese pottery-repair technique, kintsugi, and motifs from Thai benjarong ceramics. Comprised of an intricate arrangement of repeating circles and flowers, the benjarong pattern used is taken from decorative pillars in the old Dusit Thani Bangkok. Seating and wall coverings are in a rich palette of dark oak, celadon and platinum green, with antique brass and engraved aluminium finishes. Lamps in white onyx complement a mix of tube and pendant lighting, while reclaimed antique oak has been used to divide larger spaces.

The adjacent chef’s table Kōyō (named after Japan’s autumn maple season) is a teppanyaki grill whose omakase menu is guided by 24 Japanese micro seasons. With 41 counter seats, its design features intricate embellishments in the style of Japanese kumihimo knotted braids around the ceiling edges. Beyond is the appropriately named bar, Den Kyoto, a cosy corner of upholstered booths, brass, low lighting, curved edges and fusion cocktails – the Silom Shijo being the signature. It’s sliding doors onto the garden have a tactile hexagonal design created by naguri, a traditional textured carving technique.

Ayatana’s fine-dining concept is based on embracing all of the senses – and so the experience starts with a stroll through the hotel’s contemporary courtyard garden. Enclosed on all sides, in the style of Kyoto’s Heian courtyard havens, its design embraces common landscapes of Thailand and Japan – mountain, rivers, rice terraces and sea – with natural scenery and water expressed in karesansui (dry-landscape). Created by Kyoto’s Hanatoyo Landscaping, the garden uses granite from Kameoka City, in western Kyoto prefecture, which has a unique rust-like patina; stone walls are built using the karasumi method, which eschews mortar. As with most Japanese gardens, thoughtful planting ensures interest throughout the seasons, with mountain cherry and Japanese andromeda in bloom in spring, crepe myrtle and gardenia in summer, Japanese maple in autumn and camellias in winter. The garden theme continues to 14 guest rooms, which have their own private pocket gardens.

Ranging in size from 40sqm to over 80sqm for suites, guest rooms are characterised by tranquil tones, textured finishes and an abundance of shoji screens and rounded corners, with a consistency of design throughout all room categories. Room 403, the 173sqm Imperial Suite features a stunning book-matched marble bathroom with large hinoki cypress soaking tub for two. Characterful details here and there include coat racks inspired by torii gates and wall decorations inspired by sensu folding fans. In-room wall sconces and lamps illuminating room numbers in the corridors are inspired by the overlapping detail of kimono collars. Hemp-leaf designs – a ubiquitous Japanese motif signifying protection – are seen on carpets in the room corridors and on garden-facing exterior cladding.

One final, essential facet of this urban resort is its spa – the 344sqm Devarana Wellness centre – nestled in the basement, all muted fabrics, textured walls, open-grain oak, marble and bronze. Its offering is a fusion of authentic Thai massage alongside holistic Japanese treatments, delivered in four treatment rooms and one ‘Ofuro’ suite with private bathing facilities that acknowledge Japan’s ancient bathing culture. There is also a gym and indoor swimming pool (13m x 4m) with hydro-massage jets and a hydrotherapy fountain.

With its plethora resort amenities and convenient location, Dusit Thani Kyoto is a cossetting refuge in which to relax around a busy sightseeing schedule. But, as tempting as the breakfast may be – and its Thai-Japanese-Western abundance is tempting – don’t be surprised if you find yourself foregoing it in favour of dawn chanting with monks at nearby Nishi-Hongwanji (something the concierge would be delighted to arrange). After all, in Kyoto, the city is always the star!