Kyoto

Temples, gardens and geisha districts in Japan’s ancient capital.

Kyoto is Japan at its most graceful: golden pavilions reflected in still ponds, tunnels of vermilion torii gates, bamboo groves and lantern-lit wooden streets where geiko still walk to evening appointments.

Best time to visit: Late March to April for cherry blossom, November for autumn leaves. Language: Japanese. Currency: Japanese yen (JPY).

Did you know?

Kyoto was Japan’s imperial capital for more than a thousand years, from 794 to 1868.
Seventeen of the region’s temples, shrines and castles share a single UNESCO World Heritage listing.
Fushimi Inari Taisha has thousands of torii gates winding up its sacred mountain.

Things to do in Kyoto

Kiyomizu-dera (Buddhist temple, free): Kiyomizu-dera is a Buddhist temple located in eastern Kyoto, Japan.
Kinkaku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kinkaku-ji , officially named Rokuon-ji , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan and a tourist attraction.
Fushimi Inari-taisha (Shinto shrine, free): Fushimi Inari-taisha is the head shrine of the kami Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Ginkaku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Ginkaku-ji , officially named Jishō-ji , is a Zen temple in the Sakyo ward of Kyoto, Japan.
Ryōan-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Ryōan-ji is a Zen temple located in northwest Kyoto, Japan.
Enryaku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Enryaku-ji is a Tendai monastery located on Mount Hiei in Ōtsu, overlooking Kyoto.
Tō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Tō-ji Temple , a.k.a.
Heian Jingū (Shinto shrine, free): The Heian Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Kamigamo Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Kamigamo Shrine is an important Shinto sanctuary on the banks of the Kamo River in north Kyoto, first founded in 678.
Ninna-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Ninna-ji is the head temple of the Omuro school of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism.
Yasaka Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Yasaka Shrine , once called Gion Shrine , is a Shinto shrine in the Gion District of Kyoto, Japan.
Tōfuku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Tōfuku-ji is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan.
Daigo-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Daigo-ji is a Buddhist temple located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Nanzen-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Nanzen-ji , or Zuiryusan Nanzen-ji, formerly Zenrin-ji , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan.
Shimogamo Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Shimogamo Shrine is an important Shinto sanctuary in the Shimogamo district of Kyoto city's Sakyō ward.
Saihō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Saihō-ji is a Buddhist temple located in Matsuo, Nishikyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Kyoto Tower (Observation tower): Kyoto Tower , now officially renamed Nidec Kyoto Tower, is an observation tower located in Kyoto, Japan.
Sanjūsangen-dō Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Sanjūsangen-dō is a Buddhist temple of the Tendai sect in the Higashiyama district of Kyoto, Japan.
Honnō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Honnō-ji is a temple of the Nichiren branch of Buddhism located in Kyoto, Japan.
Chion-in Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Chion-in in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan is the headquarters of the Jōdo-shū founded by Hōnen, who proclaimed that sentient beings are reborn in Amida Buddha's Western Paradise by reciting the nembutsu, Amida Buddha's n
Kōzan-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kōzan-ji, officially Toganōsan Kōsan-ji, is a Buddhist temple of the Omuro sect of Shingon Buddhism in Umegahata Toganōchō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan.
Tenryū-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Tenryū-ji, formally known as Tenryū Shiseizen-ji, is the head temple of the Tenryū-ji branch of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism, located in Susukinobaba-chō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan.
Sanjō Ōhashi Bridge (Bridge, free): Sanjō Ōhashi is a bridge in Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.
Kitano Tenmangū (Shinto shrine, free): Kitano Tenmangū is a Shinto shrine in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Mii-dera Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Nagara-san Onjo-ji , also known as just Onjo-ji, or Mii-dera, is a Buddhist temple in Japan located at the foot of Mount Hiei, in the city of Ōtsu in Shiga Prefecture.
Kamo Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Kamo Shrine is a general term for an important Shinto sanctuary complex on both banks of the Kamo River in northeast Kyoto.
Myōshin-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Myōshin-ji is a temple complex in Kyoto, Japan, which serves as the head temple of the associated branch of Rinzai Zen Buddhism.
Kōdai-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kōdai-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Shimogawara neighborhood of Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Shōkoku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Shōkoku-ji, formally identified as Mannen-zan Shōkoku Shōten Zenji, is a Buddhist temple in northern Kyoto, first founded in 1382 by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, with the existing temple complex having undergone several periods
Hōkō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Hōkō-ji is a temple in Kyoto, Japan, dating from the 16th century.
Yoshida Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Yoshida Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Sakyō-ku in Kyoto, Japan.
Manpuku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Manpuku-ji is a Buddhist temple located in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, approximately a 5-minute walk from JR Ōbaku Station・Keihan Ōbaku Station.
Kennin-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kennin-ji is a historic Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan, and head temple of its associated branch of Rinzai Buddhism.
Sennyū-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Sennyū-ji, formerly written as Sen-yū-ji, is a Shingon Buddhist temple and head of the Sennyū-ji sect in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan.
Kyoto Botanical Garden (Botanic garden): The Kyoto Botanical Garden , also known as the Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden, is a major botanical garden with conservatory located next to the Kamo River, Hangi-cho Simogamo, Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Hiyoshi Taisha (Shinto shrine, free): Hiyoshi Taisha is a Shinto shrine located in the city of Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture Japan.
Daikaku-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Daikaku-ji is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Ukyō-ku, a western ward in the city of Kyoto, Japan.
Maruyama Park (Park, free): Maruyama Park is a park in Kyoto, Japan.
Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art (Art museum): The Kyoto City Kyocera Museum of Art is located in Okazaki Park in Sakyō-ku Kyoto.
Rokuharamitsu-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Rokuharamitsu-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Rokkaku-dori Matsubara-dori Yamato-oji Higashiiru neighborhood of Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Hōkan-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): The Yasaka Pagoda, also known as the Tower of Yasaka, is a Buddhist pagoda located in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Hōjū-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): The Hōjūjidono was a Buddhist temple in Kyoto which was, for a time, the home of the Cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa.
Hirano Shrine (Shinto shrine, free): Hirano Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Kyoto.
Tōji-in Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Tōji-in is a Buddhist temple of the Rinzai Tenryū sect located in Kita Ward, Kyoto, Japan, and one of two funeral temples dedicated to Ashikaga Takauji, first shōgun of the Ashikaga dynasty.
Kajū-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kajū-ji , also sometimes spelled "Kwajū-ji" or "Kanshu-ji, is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Yamashina-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Rokkaku-dō Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Chōhō-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Rokkaku-dori Higashinotoin Nishinido-mae-chō neighborhood of Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Bukkō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Bukkō-ji , also known as the "Temple of the Buddha's Light", was originally named Kōshō-ji, a Jōdo Shinshū temple in the Yamashina ward of Kyoto, which later moved to the heart of Kyoto.
Yasaka Kōshin-dō Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Yasaka Kōshin-dō, or in its full name Daikoku-san Kongō-ji Kōshin-dō is a small temple located in Higashiyama, Kyoto, Japan.
Kyoto City Zoo (Zoo, hidden gem): Kyoto City Zoo is a zoo located in Sakyō ward, Kyoto and was established in 1903, making it the second oldest zoo in the country after Ueno Zoo in Tokyo.
Shiramine Jingū (Shinto shrine, free, hidden gem): Shiramine Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto
Sai-ji (Historic site, hidden gem): Sai-ji or the West Temple was a Buddhist temple located in the Karahashi neighborhood of the Minami ward of the city of Kyoto, Japan.
Gangyō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Gankei-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Kitakazan Kawaramachi, neighborhood of Yamashina-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Shisen-dō Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Shisen-dō is a Buddhist temple located in Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
Ōmi Jingū (Shinto shrine, free, hidden gem): Omi Jingu or Omi Shrine is a Jingū Shinto shrine in Ōtsu, a city in Shiga Prefecture, Japan.
Iwatayama Monkey Park (Park, hidden gem): Iwatayama Monkey Park is a commercial park located in Arashiyama in Kyoto, Japan.
Matsunoo Taisha (Shinto shrine, free, hidden gem): Matsunoo Taisha , formerly Matsunoo Jinja, is a Shinto shrine located at the far western end of Shijō Street, approximately 1.3 kilometers south of the Arashiyama district of Kyoto.
Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Otagi Nenbutsu-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the hillside of the Arashiyama neighborhood of Kyoto, Japan.
Museum of Kyoto (Museum, hidden gem): The Museum of Kyoto is a museum of the history and culture of Kyoto.
Rozan-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Rozan-ji is a Tendai Buddhist temple in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto, and the head temple of the Enjo sect.
Konkaikōmyō-ji Temple (Buddhist temple, free, hidden gem): Konkaikōmyōji, also the Kurodani Temple, is a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan.
Nagaoka-kyō (Archaeological site): Nagaoka-kyō was the capital of Japan from 784 to 794.
Kyoto National Museum (History museum): The Kyoto National Museum is one of the major art museums in Japan.
National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto (History museum): The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto is an art museum in Kyoto, Japan.
Kurama-dera Temple (Buddhist temple, free): Kurama-dera is a temple in the far north of Kyoto, Japan which houses some National Treasures of Japan.
Ōharano Shrine (Shinto shrine, free, hidden gem): Ōharano Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Nishikyō-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.

Where to eat and drink in Kyoto

Nishiki Market, Downtown: “Kyoto’s kitchen”: pickles, tofu and sweets.
Kikunoi, Higashiyama: Celebrated kaiseki dining in a traditional house.
Pontocho Alley, Pontocho: Narrow lane of restaurants with riverside terraces in summer.
Omen Ginkaku-ji, Sakyo: Thick udon dipped in broth, near the Philosopher’s Path.

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Plan a trip to Kyoto