Studying Japanese at Genki JACS in Kyoto: My Experience

In this post, I am sharing my personal experience of studying Japanese short-term (two weeks) at Genki Japanese and Culture School Kyoto, the booking process, my experience and what I learned. If you are considering learning Japanese in Japan, I hope this is useful for you.

Ever since my first trip to Japan many years ago, I have made feeble attempt to learn Japanese and quickly got scared by three (?!) different new writing systems and the unfamiliar-sounding pronunciation… limiting myself to commonly used phrases as a tourist. This changed when I spent more time in Japan (on a course given in English) and I knew that I would love to return to Japan – when and for how long I did not know, but I loved the Japanese culture in general, cooked Japanese food, did Japanese crafts, and read (translated) Japanese literature… now getting a better knowledge of the Japanese language would be a no-brainer.

Like many casual language learners nowadays, I started on Duolingo, supplemented by Beginner’s Hiragana book and pictorial diaries I brought from Japan to learn common phrases.

Next step, I signed up for online classes at Berlin Community College. They were good, but I am not great at online classes, so when I completed the trimester, I looked for classes to attend in person. Which I found at my local Community College but at a much higher level than I was at – Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) Level B1 instead of the Top End of A1 I was at. I signed up, anyway, because it was convenient to attend – and struggled massively. Texts with a colourful melee of Hiragana, katakana and kanji, grammar rules I had never heard of… I left my first lesson with a big headache and it didn’t get much better after that but I struggled my way through the course but did not feel I had learned a lot.

Then came the opportunity of yet another Japanese holiday, and my perfect opportunity to look for Japanese classes in Japan.

I studied at Genki JACS in Kyoto. Genki JACS has several schools which can be accessed and contacted under https://www.genkijacs.com.

How and Why I chose Genki JACS

Before I even booked anything, I knew I would have two weeks off only. Also, if you are an employee in Germany, you have a legal entitlement to educational leave each year -five days if you work full time. Until now, I had take this leave in some years but always to study on courses with direct relevance to my daily job.

So, first I turned to the Internet. Searched and identified some languages schools in Kyoto. Kyoto was my first choice, because, as you can maybe see from this blog, Kyoto is one of my favourite cities. I asked some people in groups I am in on some social media, for language school recommendations. Several schools were mentioned, including Genki JACS at various locations.

So, I contacted about four schools by email and enquired about two-week beginner course options. Genki JACS was not only among the first who responded, but also sent a thoughtful explanation about how the school works, along with an online test to assess what kind of level I would be studying at. After I submitted the test, I received a formal offer and once I had accepted that, an invoice with clear payment instructions. It was transparent and with no pressure at all.

In Germany, I had the option to book through a language travel operator, but it would have cost at least 50% more, so I chose to book directly -much easier than going through a third party, and significantly cheaper.

Preparations for Japanese Language School

Other than sitting my language test before booking everything, and attending the online interview, I did not do much other than book my flight and accommodation. There is an option to have accommodation arranged through the school but I decided to book my own, since I had a friend visiting midway through my stay.

Since you will be busy with lessons, I really recommend arriving a couple of days before the start of the school week on a Monday to create a comfortable buffer, as well as some days after school. Once you start lessons, there may be relatively little time for sightseeing. May temples close around 16.00, and getting there on public transport is not to be underestimated, plus there is a significant amount of homework every day.

You do not need to buy textbooks. A standard textbook will be given to you by the school and at beginner’s level the teachers primarily work with handout. Just bring a note book, pen, cup or water bottle and slippers.

Once I had made my reservation, I paid my reservation fee, just under 100 Euro, by a service called Flywire. It wasn’t straightforward and I got kicked out of the transaction, but worked in the end. There is a fee as far as I remember. This is why I chose to pay my main payment by bank transfer. I sue Wise and that worked well.

Location of the School

Genki JACS Kyoto is located on the second floor of an office building on Kawaramachi Road, one of the busier roads linking Downtown Kyoto with Kyoto Station. While the road is busy, you don’t hear much noise on the class room. The back route along Takasegawa River is definitely the nicer area to walk.

Nearby you have everything you could need: Two convenience stores, a 100-Yen Store, two supermarkets, bus stops, train station (Hankyu Kyoto Kawaramachi). Lots of cafes and small restaurants. The area is fairly touristy at the same time, but not terribly crowded until you hit the Shijo-Kawaramachi area about 7 minutes walk north.

It’s central and easily reachable by public transport. It’s not the most scenic location, but convenient. And there are good areas to stay nearby – more on that later.

Format of lessons

When I arrived, I was given a formal orientation together with three other new arrivals – who were all at beginner level and placed in my class.

A new school week begins every Monday, which is when new arrivals are accepted and start their classes. Classes are relatively small, about 7-10 people and limited by the size of the class rooms.

My fellow classmates were aged 16-about 60. My class had students from Germany, the Middle East, New Zealand and Canada. Another class I sat in had students from Latin America, the USA and the EU. So, altogether, the classes I experienced were definitely Westerner-biased, with most students at about 20-30 years old, but definitely a fair few outliers, which made for an altogether good mix of students.

I would say about 50-70% of students were at the school on long-term language courses, including university-related preparation courses, or they simply wanted to stay in Japan medium to longer term and become proficient in Japanese. The rest, like me were studying for fun or because they liked Japanese culture. There were a fair few Germans taking advantage of the German “Study Leave” at some stage – I was told.

What’s especially good

Overall, I really loved my experience and felt I made really good progress – especially when it came to writing and grammar.

I actually love the fact that during class, only Japanese is spoken. It is not that hard, and a lot of the instructions are repetitive and easy to learn. I am glad that people in my class, who were friendly but fairly compliant and studious people, stuck to that rule. The format of the 50-minute classes, though a bit old school with all the frontal teaching and “repeat after me”, worked well for me.

Teachers were friendly and enthusiastic, and rotated through the classes. That meant, fair changes to everyone, and sometimes, also slightly different teaching styles.

I liked that on National Holidays, the school would lay on a free trip – since the tuition is per week of study. I compared prices between different schools on the basis of 20 hours standard Japanese tuition, and Genki JACS prices were some of the most competitive, but I felt that the overall quality of teaching was very good.

What could be improved

Honestly, there isn’t a lot. With the school being a very Japanese school in one of the countries oldest cities, you’d expect it to be fairly traditional. So, for example, there was sometimes little leeway in class timings. Too bad if you had plans. With that being said, I had a friend visiting, ad when I raised this with the head teacher, I was allowed to swap classes for one day.

If you have cultural activities booked, you are expected to meet at the school and stay with the class to the very last minute. This often interfered with my sightseeing schedule, at the same time, I had to stay, otherwise I would not have been given credit for 30 lessons per week. The cultural lessons, though quite cool and introducing us t places we may not have found on our own, we did not speak that much Japanese, so while quite cool, they were not that beneficial for learning Japanese. I’s book semi private conversation or revision classes instead next time.

Nice to know

Here are a few bits and bobs that did not make it into the other sections – and that I wished I had known before starting school.

Their accounting is good. If you hear nothing after paying your balance, that’s good new.

Bring slippers, especially during the cooler months. The school has a strict shoes-off policy. Bring a reusable cup for drinks, which are freely available in the students lounge. Bring a small towel for the bathrooms – in Japan, often there are no towels in restrooms. A small tenugui or hand towel from the 100-Yen shop is perfect.

Overall Impression

Genki JACS is a great school for learning general Japanese at a decent pace. Their standard Japanese course moves relatively fast, and, provided you keep track with study and assignments, will give you a solid foundation for your Japanese studies and most likely get you fluent.

Thanks to the great communication from school, it is easy to ask questions, make reservations and pay fees.

You absolutely do no need to worry about learning “Kyoto Dialect” since the majority of teachers are from other parts of Japan, and great care is taken to teach standard Japanese.

Where to Stay

I stayed in various places throughout my course. The school is on Kawaramachi, which is a relatively busy street in central Kyoto, and has several decent looking business hotels less than 5 minutes away on foot, for example the simple but pleasant Washington R&B Hotel overlooking the lovely Takase River.

A hotel I really recommend, especially if you are not travelling alone, would the the Kyomachiya Ryokan Sakura Urushitei, about 10min on foot from the school. A small hotel rather than a ryokan, it has lovely rooms with classic Japanese decor rather than beige business hotel style, and excellent concierge service, and it one of my top overall recommendations for Kyoto hotels.

However, two weeks in Japan need to be paid for, so I chose a relatively cheap accommodation for my first week – and it was fabulous and completely fit for purpose. A new hostel in an older building, RAK Kiyomizu in Gion had small single rooms with daylight, comfortable beds and desks, and was in a lovely residential area, just 10 minutes on foot from the school. Read my full review here.

My second week I spent partially in Saiin, easily reached by Hankyu Railway, but I really didn#t like that accommodation much. Instead, if you are on a budget, consider staying in one of the M’s hotels, a local chain of no frills tourist/ business hotels. I stayed at Hotel M’s Plus Shijo Omiya on a previous trip, having paid 6000JPY 833 Euro) for a full-service really nice hotel room, a minute from Omiya Station ina an area full of shops, restaurants and within easy walking to Downtown. Another one, called Hotel Gran M’s Kyoto, is further up on Kawaramachi Street, next to the City Hall Metro, about 15 minutes on foot from the school.

Last not least, if money is no subject, I recommend the Gate Hotel Takasegawa in Pontocho. Converted from an old school this is a very cool five-star hotel with architectural pedigree – although most guest rooms are on the modern annexe. I stayed here for three nights as a bit of a splurge stay, and loved the location, the breezy modern rooms, complete with some rather fancy desks and a complete PC setup.

The Small Print

I studied at Genki JACS Kyoto for two weeks in February 2026. This trip was entirely self-funded, in terms of course fees, flights and accommodation. I did, however, take part in workplace scheme in Germany that allows employees ten days of paid leave every two years to engage in educational activities, so on the days I was studying, I was on paid leave from my job.

Nothing you see here was sponsored, and I did not receive compensation, discounts, or special treatment in exchange for writing it. All my own honest and unbiased opinion. This post does contain affiliate links to Booking.com to two accommodations I stayed in (RAK Kiyomizu and Gate Hotel Takasegawa) as well as some good accommodations near Genki JACS I would consider staying at. If you book a hotel using my affiliate links, I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please refer to my blog’s Terms and Conditions for further information.

This post reflects my personal opinion and experience and is not a statement of fact about any places or accommodation mentioned in this post. I have decided not to post photos of the interior of the school, since it was impossible to get a photo of the lounge or classrooms without any one in them, but tried to describe them as best as I can.

This post (well, my entire blog, except this) is free from generative Artificial Intelligence.