We are not even going until November, lol but I am obsessed with planning anytime we go on a trip. I totally understand that some of my plans won’t end up happening but it’s how I roll. My husband is the one who will convince me to go off script when necessary lol.
ANYWAY that being said I could use some help determining if this makes sense for the Kyoto portion of my trip. I’m about 99% sure that there are more shrines than are feasible here, but I’m having trouble figuring out which ones will take how long and which I should prioritize so I’d appreciate insight. (By the way, I am not holding myself to the exact amount of time spent at each but it helps me to estimate lol) Also whether my walking paths make any sense or not and thoughts on Option 1 and Option 2 (or something else, lol) on day 3.
**Day** 1
Checkout Tokyo, Head to Kyoto Shinkansen
* Check in at Sotetsu Fresa Inn Kyoto-Kiyomizu Gojo
* Wander through historic & shopping areas in central Kyoto Gion Geisha district, visit Yakata Antiques Hanami-koji Street & side alleys Shirakawa Area along the canal Shijo Avenue
* Try to catch cultural show at Gion corner Higashiyama District
* Kodaiji Temple Lightscape (600Y/$5-6) at night (5-9:30 PM)
**Day 2**
* 6 AM, depart for Fushimi Inari Shrine (free) (**spend about 3 hours?)**
* On the way out, check out vendor stalls and get some street food.
* Train to Philosophers Path area WALKING PATH MAP https://goo.gl/maps/eL8ueTnLF1bY5BRt6
* Yasaka Shrine (Free) **(15-20 min)**
* Heian Temple (Free) **(time?)**
* Kurodani Temple or Konkaikomyo-ji Temple (Free) (45-1 hour)
* Beautiful temples, graveyard and pagoda Less popular w/ tourists
* Shinshō Gokuraku-ji (Shinnyo-dō) Temple (Grounds Free, Inner $550Y/$4-5) **(2ish hrs??)**
* Lesser known temple with great fall scenery
* Ornate inner chamber with gold leaf canopy
* Stop for shaved ice at Komichi
* Okazaki-jinja Shrine (Free) **(might skip)**
* Quick stop, devoted to rabbits
* Otoya-Jinja (Free) **Quick stop**, mouse guardians
* Honen-in Temple (Free) Small, **quick stop**
* Higashiyama Jisho-ji (Silver Pavilion) (500Y/$4-5) **(45 min?)**
* Beautiful grounds Sand garden
* 30ish min bus Back to Hotel
**Day 3**
***Option 1***
* Take Karasuma line to below Kyoto Botanical Gardens (200y $1-2) **(1-2 hours)**
* Most comprehensive botanical garden in Japan with 12k plant species
* Walk to nearby Kamigano-Jinja Shrine (free) (**Time**?)
* 30ish minute walk to Shoden-ji Temple ($400Y/$3-4) (**Time**?)
* Beloved by David Bowie
* Bamboo
* Back to Hotel
* 8:30 PM, 20-30 min walk to Kiyumizu-Dera shrine (400Y/$3) to see it lit up at night
* (may need to check the time for this closer to the date).
* Arriving closer to closing time is better for less people
***Option 2***
* Kyoto Imperial Palace & Gardens (free) (**1hr**)
* One of the few imperial palaces that don’t require an application for admission
* Seimei Shrine (free) (Quick stop)
* Nijo Castle (800 yen/$6, additional 500/$4 to go inside\* (**Possibly skip**) (**Time**?)
* Explore Nagayo Ward (lots of shopping and eating and drinking) Kawaramachi Dori and Shijo Dori and Teramachi and Shin-kyogoku covered shopping arcades
Day 4 Arashiyama
* About 1 hr to Saga Arashiyama Station Tenryuji Temple (**20 min**)
* Beautiful landscape garden 500 yen (an extra 300 yen for entrance into the temple buildings)
* Nonomiya-jinja Shrine & Arashiyama Bamboo Grove (Free) (**45 min**)
* will judge based on crowd, if too busy skip it and see bamboo at other temple mentioned below
* **Maybe should just skip anyway if make sure to go to Adashino to make time for Hogon-in??**
* Hogon-in Temple & Garden (500Y/$4-5) (**1 hr)**
* (kind of out of the wayish, may depend on time spent at above)
* Okochi Sanso Garden (1000 yen/$7-8) to train station **(1 – 1 ½ hour)**
* Okochi-Sanso Villa is the former estate of actor Okochi Denjiro (1898-1962)
* Admission fee includes a cup of matcha and a sweet Hilltop view of entire city
* Take the Sagano Romantic Train Get off train at Kameoka Station and take to Saga Arashiyama Station
* Walking map to below 3 temples: [https://goo.gl/maps/hJMMQPkye3nzjEA5A](https://goo.gl/maps/hJMMQPkye3nzjEA5A)
* Gioji Temple (300Y/$2-3) (**Time**?)
* Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple (500Y/$4-5) **(Time?)**
* Bamboo grove
* Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple (300Y/$2-3) (**Time?)**
* 1200 statues
**Day 5**
* Check out Kyoto
* Train to Daigo-ji Temple (1500 yen to see whole thing) **(time??2 hours??)**
* Bentendo Hall, especially beautiful in Nov, most photographed building
* Landscape garden
* Nara Park DEER.
* Kasuga Taisha Shrine & Garden (Free grounds, 500Y/4-$5 inner area) **(1 hour)**
* Famous for its many stone lanterns
* Get some Sake at Harushika Sake Brewery
* Train to Osaka
4 comments
I admire your ambition in setting up this detailed schedule. My first reaction is – that is a LOT of temples for one trip. Are you a big fan of temples, or just feel that is what you should focus on in Kyoto? If the latter, I might diversify activities a bit.
I am a planner (planning my May/Aug 2024 trip currently) and even I am not this detailed. I am not sure if there’s someone else who can plan this “better” than you.
Day 2 seems a bit jam-packed with vastly underestimated times for travel as well as sight-seeing. Heian is not a short distance from Yasaka, and giving yourself only 20 minutes to soak in Yasaka is…rushing it tbh. There could be some really cool festival or performance there and lingering to watch or wait in line for some takoyaki would throw your whole schedule off. Taking taxis between all of these locations can add up even if it cuts time a little, and that’s if you can find one quickly.
On the one hand, I found that maps were hard to gauge actual distances between sights, especially in Osaka and Tokyo, but on the other hand some of them *aren’t* in easy strolling distance, and with hills and stairs you’re adding time to every walk, never minding the fact you’d have to tell yourself not to stop and glance into a cute shop or a delicious-smelling food stall. Strongly suggest you decide which sights are the most interesting to you (be it for history, beauty, or other personal reasons) and then map based on location. The imperial palace and Nijo are very close by so those make sense, but trying to hit Fushimi Inari AND upper Higashiyama (Yasaka, Philosopher’s Path, etc) is already a lot without 6 additional stops. With high tourist traffic it can take upwards of half an hour to walk from Kiyomizudera to Yasaka, and that’s if you blitz through without looking at any shops. Now you’re tired and annoyed and have you really actually SEEN Kyoto?
A few thoughts on the Nara day.
Daigo-ji is a bit out of the way to Nara. You could get off at Rokujizo Station and walk/take the metro, but it’s still out of the way. This transfer will take you longer that you expect, consider if it’s worth it. (haven’t been to that temple, speaking from general exp.). You also need to make sure you get into a train that stops there (express trains might not, I am not sure)
You see deer as soon as you walk into the part (everything in green on Google Maps on the eastern side of Nara is basically one sprawling park). There’s most deer in that area (Kofuku-ji, Nara national Museum area broadly speaking), but that’s also where everyone wants to take a photo. But there’s more deer! They are EVERYWHERE! My best deer experience was a little deeper into the park where people spread out between the temples, but the interactions are just as fun. You can always get some deer cookies on the way back.
Important to know about Nara (also Kyoto largely speaking) it’s ALL uphill from the station. Not in a major way, but you keep walking uphill until you reach Kasuga Taisha (or even further if you want to). I had a slightly different schedule (Kyoto -> Osaka for a nights in a capsule -> Tokyo) and I forwarded my main luggage straight to Tokyo. Consider doing that or at least leave it in a locker in the train station. You don’t want to be dragging it on an unpaved path all the way to Kasuga Taisha.