JAPAN WITH KIDS
KYOTO, APRIL 26
Japan has always been a place I return to. For the past fifteen years, I’ve visited often, sometimes several times a year, but never really with my children. Only once, when Valentina was just seven months old. This trip felt different. We wanted to share our favorite places with them, and at the same time, discover Kyoto together for the first time.
Three years ago, we started traveling with them beyond Europe, and it changed everything. It’s become one of the things I love most, seeing the world through their eyes. We had tried before. When Matteo was three and Valentina six, we took them to New York during one of my work trips. It wasn’t the right moment. The rhythm didn’t work, no one really rested, and it didn’t feel right for them.
But a few years later, we tried again, first just Valentina and me, and it worked. That summer we traveled as a family through the Hamptons, Niagara, and Canada. They still say it was the best trip of their lives. Since then, traveling together has become part of who we are.
There’s no real formula, but I believe in balance. I don’t like overplanning, and I don’t believe in trips designed only for children. We follow a rhythm that feels natural, theirs and ours. Sometimes they resist our plans, the restaurants, the pace… and yet, those are often the moments that surprise them the most. Stepping slightly outside their comfort zone has made them more open, more curious, more aware. And maybe that’s what travel is really about.
Valentina was fascinated by the sense of order, the landscapes, and how, just when she thought she had seen it all, each new street would surprise her again. She loved the temples, discovering a different culture and she tried foods she would have never imagined before.
What Matteo loved the most was the “decoration”, as he calls it, I think he means the overall aesthetic. The landscapes, especially seeing everything during cherry blossom season, the temples, and above all, the food.
Walking through its streets feels like getting lost in a dream, filled with cafés, small shops, and restaurants at every corner.
WHERE TO STAY: Ace Hote
In Kyoto, we stayed at the new Ace Hotel, always my favorite. Wherever there is an Ace, that’s where I go. It’s new, beautifully designed, and perfectly located in a neighborhood full of cool shops and restaurants, yet still close to the traditional areas.
TOP PLACES TO VISIT IN KYOTO
During our time in Kyoto, we explored a mix of old and new. We walked through the quiet streets of Higashiyama, visited Kiyomizu-dera, and wandered around Gion, where everything feels suspended in time.
We also spent time in Arashiyama, surrounded by nature, and got lost in smaller streets and local spots that made the experience feel more personal.
It was a balance between discovering iconic places and simply letting the city unfold in its own rhythm.
YAMACHI- DORI STREET
GION SHIRAKAWA
SANTUARIO YASAKA
NINENZAKA
SANNENZAKA
KANNINJI
FUSHIMI INARI TAISHA
TOP PLACES IN KYOTO
LE LABO CAFE KYOTO MACHIYA
A place to be close to the magic river full of cherry blossom
STUDIO NICHOLSON NEW STORE
One of my favorite brands new store
A PRESSE STORE
Where retail takes another level
KABURA RESTAURANT
Good Italian with natural wines perfect when kids are tired of Japanesse
SOTTAKU TSUKAMOTO
Best Rice with Unagi
TOKYO APRIL 26 VIEWS FROM MIYASHITA PARK HOTEL
We visit all our favorites spots, Shibuya, Harajuku, Daikanyama & Aoyama. They were impresed of the lights and life in Tokyo.
Nakameguro River one of our favorite places for coffees and restaurants, vintage shops, perfect for a Sunday Morning.
TOP RESTAURANTS WITH KIDS
EATALY HARAJUKU
always need pasta restaurant
OKONOMIYAKI YAI YAI
teppanyaki where you can prepare the food they loved the Yakisoba
MAISEN
Best Tonkatsu in a traditional space
HACHIBE AOYAMA HONTEN
Tsukiji New Market
BLUE BOTTLE
Best place for breakfast, with best coffee and occidental breakfast
