About Kyoto-note.com

On this page, we introduce Kyoto-note.com. We write about the thoughts behind launching the website and what we aim to achieve in the future. If you are interested, please give it a read.

About Kyoto-note.com

Until December 2019, the operator and administrator K worked as a front desk staff member at a hotel in Kyoto.

Most of the job involved providing tourist information and customer service, and every day, K had the pleasure of talking to many people about their travels and experiences. With a desire to share and spread the charm of Kyoto, in December 2018, K enlisted the help of an IT company acquaintance to start running “Kyoto Mamechō.”

Furthermore, since K had the opportunity to work in Gion for some time, and often heard from acquaintances in the food and beverage industry that they were struggling to attract customers, this motivated K to

• Share access information and recommend tourist spots to those visiting Kyoto for sightseeing
• Help attract customers and introduce stores for those working in Kyoto

These two ideas served as the driving force that enabled the website to operate until today.

Since 2022, K has also been introducing humorous trivia and trend articles with personal opinions that can make people laugh in their daily lives. While some of the topics may not be directly related to Kyoto tourism, there may still be something useful or relevant to daily life, so be sure to check out the “Trivia” category.

Reasons for Launching the Site

On this page, we would like to share our thoughts and ideas behind launching this website.

One of our goals is to promote traditional Japanese culture and crafts. I had the opportunity to learn and practice tea ceremony for about ten years since my university days, and I believe that experience was a crucial part of shaping who I am today.

Although I am no longer active in the tea ceremony world, my passion for contributing to the world of traditional culture and crafts that I have encountered through tea ceremony remains unchanged.

While this applies to all industries, Japanese culture is vast and deep. Some people handle everything from manufacturing to sales, but many others focus solely on manufacturing. Although I had the chance to talk with people involved in manufacturing thanks to my fortunate circumstances, I believe that most of them have not fully encountered the “true charm” of their products or services.

While I don’t know exactly what the “true charm” is, I think that conveying the words of the makers themselves is very valuable.

Promoting Japanese traditional culture may seem like a grand undertaking, but I believe it can serve as a small trigger to revitalize local communities. For example, there is a mascot character called Hikonyan in Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture, which has become nationally famous. Hikonyan’s appearance has increased interest in Hikone City and Hikone Castle.

Local people can now say, “I am from Hikone, the city known for Hikonyan.” When something to be proud of appears in a region, the desire to learn more about the area increases, and I think it can be a catalyst to solve issues such as the shortage of traditional craftspeople.

Although we cannot do big things, we hope to introduce traditional Japanese culture and crafts nationwide in the future. As a first step, I chose to work in Kyoto, where people gather from all over Japan.

As a means of contributing to Japanese culture and traditional crafts, we hope to hear from people involved in manufacturing traditional crafts in Kyoto and convey the charm of their products and services on this website. Although we have not yet put this idea into action, we hold such aspirations.

The second reason for launching this site is to provide useful information about Kyoto tourism and daily life, and to help businesses in Kyoto attract more customers. The site’s creator, K, worked at a hotel in Kyoto until December 2019, where she had the opportunity to interact with local businesses, especially those in the food and beverage industry, that were struggling to attract customers despite the high number of tourists in the city.

In addition to these businesses, there were also many overlooked tourist spots in Kyoto that were not getting the attention they deserved. As K interacted with tourists and locals alike, she realized that there was a need to share more information about the city to help visitors enjoy their time in Kyoto to the fullest.

Having grown up in Kyoto, K also felt a desire to share her personal experiences and recommendations of the city to help those who are new to living there. She realized that by providing information about places, people, and things that she personally found interesting and enjoyable, she could help others have a better experience living in or visiting Kyoto.

Thus, this site aims to share information that will help visitors and locals alike to have a more comfortable, enjoyable, and fulfilling time in Kyoto. From recommended shops and restaurants to overlooked tourist spots, K shares her personal experiences and opinions to help others discover the hidden gems of Kyoto.

About the Site Name

Kyoto Mame Techou was originally named “Kyoto Techou.” However, a few months after launching the website, we discovered that “Kyoto Techou” already existed. Therefore, we decided to rename the site to “Kyoto Mame Techou,” which sounds more compact and smaller in scale. Another candidate for the name was “Kyoto no Oto,” which means “sound of Kyoto” and represents the idea of conveying current information about Kyoto. However, we decided to keep the “Techou” part of the original name, which we liked, and settled on “Kyoto Mame Techou.”

Our Achievements

In November 2021, we achieved 120,000 monthly pageviews.
As of November 2021, our average monthly pageviews are 50,000.
In July 2022, we achieved 240,000 monthly pageviews.

Main contents being shared on our website include:

• Tourist information
• Gourmet information
• Experience information
• Humorous trivia and trend information

Writers Wanted

I am looking to create content that showcases the current events, daily life, and culture of Kyoto. However, as I am currently a salaried worker with limited time to explore the city, I cannot adequately convey the “Kyoto of today” by myself.

Thus, I am seeking writers who can help me with this endeavor. Please note that, at this time, we are unable to pay for articles. However, in exchange for writing, we will provide an author profile for the writer, including information about their activities, initiatives, contact information, and social media accounts.

If you are passionate about sharing the beauty of Kyoto, want to showcase what makes Kyoto unique, or simply wish to share your love for Kyoto with others, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are eagerly awaiting your contributions.

Introduction of stores and tourist spots

We are currently working on a section where we can introduce various places that we have visited such as restaurants (lunch or dinner) and tourist attractions with accompanying photos.

In terms of places we can introduce, we mainly focus on places that we have personally visited, so we cannot introduce places that are extremely expensive or luxurious. However, we would love to occasionally introduce places that are perfect for a date or a special occasion.