The Ultimate Design-Led Escape in Kyoto

Tucked away in a secret garden at the foothills of Mount Hidari Daimonji, Aman Kyoto is less a hotel and more a meditation on architecture, nature, and restraint. Designed by Kerry Hill Architects, the retreat balances raw materiality with poetic minimalism, creating a sanctuary where each line, surface, and shadow has been composed with almost monastic precision.

A Hidden Landscape

The site itself is remarkable. Originally planned as a private textile garden, the grounds are an unfolding sequence of moss-covered stone pathways, meditative streams, and carefully placed lanterns. Unlike the ornamental gardens of classical Kyoto, this landscape is untamed in feeling – a woodland allowed to breathe. Within it, Aman has introduced a series of pavilions that appear as if they have always belonged, their geometry softened by trees and filtered light.

The Architecture

The buildings are a study in contrasts: monumental slabs of concrete paired with delicate timber lattices; vast panes of glass opening onto cedar forests; interiors where silence is the ultimate luxury. The architectural language is rooted in the Japanese principle of wabi-sabi – beauty in imperfection, harmony in restraint – yet it feels unapologetically contemporary.

Inside, muted tones dominate: charcoal walls, pale woods, handmade ceramics. Each suite is pared back, free of ornament, so that the real theatre is the shifting seasons outside – fiery maples in autumn, camellias in winter, cherry blossoms in spring.

Experiencing Stillness

At Aman Kyoto, design is not decoration but atmosphere. The spaces are choreographed to slow you down: wide corridors that invite wandering, low-slung furniture that grounds you, baths carved from hinoki wood that frame views of stone and water. Even dining follows the same philosophy – Kaiseki-inspired cuisine presented in interiors that feel closer to an art gallery than a restaurant.

Why It Matters

In a city famed for its temples and shrines, Aman Kyoto offers another kind of pilgrimage: one to contemporary architecture in dialogue with landscape. It demonstrates how concrete and glass, in the right hands, can express the same serenity once reserved for ancient pavilions and tea houses.

Aman Kyoto is not simply a hotel stay – it is a reminder of what happens when design aspires to silence.

Photos by Aman Kyoto