JR Kyoto Station building is the main gate to Kyoto. Tourists often arrive the station a bit too early to check in at their reserved hotels (usually 3:00pm -), and likewise they have got to check out the hotels at noon while departure times of their trains for the next destinations are seveal hours later. In such cases, walking around JR Kyoto Station building is a perfect option to spend your extra time, rather than endlessly sitting on a bench in a train platform.
JR Kyoto Station is one of the major terminal stations in Japan, where as many as 700k users are in and out daily. It was designed by one of the well-known architects "Hiroshi Hara" and founded in 1997.
Although not many people know, there are lots to see in the building - from hotel to Ramen noodle shop village... There are 4 major elements which are in the building.
- Train station
- Theatre
- Hotel
- Department Store
I especially love one of the roof-top squares where we can just sit and linger, enjoying eating lunch. Also, there is a so-called "SkyWay" which is really cool. The other thing I like is South Promenade stretching from the east all the way to the west.
I think you can spend at least an hour - or maybe you can spend good 2 hours if you want to eat Ramen noodles in one of the shops in "Ramen Village" located at the west-end of the SkyWay (adjacent to Isetan Department Store).
Restaurant arcade on the 1st floor in east wing of Kyoto Station Building - near Shinkansen bullet train gate.
