Kyoto Itinerary

Hi,

Can someone please let me know if this itinerary is doable in one day? We will be arriving from Tokyo so I would say after check in the itinerary will start at 1130am?

Day 1:
Wear Kimono outfits
Kiyomizu-deral temple (enter subteranean Tainai-Meguri)
Walk down Sannen-zaka and Ninen Zaka (preserved streets)
Nishiki market & food floor at nearby department store for lunch
Take the Keihan line to Fushimi-Inari Station (Fushi Inari Sirine)
Eat dinner downtown and then walk over to Shimbashi in Gion (Geisha)

Day 2:
Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavillion)
Tenryu-Ji Temple (World Heritage - no1 Zen Garden)
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove


Will this be enough time or have we packed the itinerary too full?

Suggestions welcome. Thank you!

day 2 is fine. day 1 is doable as well since fushimi inari is opened 24/7, in the even that you only reach near sunset.

Day 2 seems bare. I can do all that before noon. I doubt you would take much longer.

Day 1, i would do Fushimi Inari last since things in Kyoto closes early. Do your Gion walk about first.

Not enough info. for proper answer.
Where is the hotel you will check in to?
Shinkansen from Tokyo:
0703-0947
0733-1011
0803-1047
0833-1111
How can you arrive by 1130, check in, get Kinmono, walk around Higashiyama - 2 hours? Then have lunch at Nishiki? It's not possible.

Think about it. You have to find the right bus, ride to Higashiyama, then the long walk up to Kiyomizu. That takes a lot of time. You can't get from one place to another instantly.
You will be eating lunch at dinnertime. :)

Day 2 is fine the way you have it �c.

Honestly, you cannot possibly do all of that before noon! Especially not if you want to enjoy each place without rushing through.

Indeed, there is so much to see in Arashiyama (besides the bamboo grove) that one can easily spend a half day there (or more).

Plus, you have to take into account the time it will take you to get from place-to-place (e.g. Arashiyama).

That said, seeing as Day 1 is so rushed, you might consider going to see Fushimi Inari at the end of Day 2.

Hope this helps :)

Hi,

Thank you for your responses.

I was thinking I might swap the days when we arrive to kyoto on day 1:

Day 1:
Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavillion)
Tenryu-Ji Temple (World Heritage - no1 Zen Garden)
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Eat famous Yuba Lunch Set (tofu skin - must eat in Kyoto)
Fushimi Inari
Ren Restaurant - Best Ramen near Fushimi Inari


Day 2:
Wear Kimono outfits
Kiyomizu-dera temple (enter subteranean Tainai-Meguri)
Walk down Sannen-zaka and Ninen Zaka (preserved streets)
Nishiki market & food floor at nearby department store for lunch
Eat dinner downtown and then walk over to Shimbashi in Gion (Geisha)


Do you think this is better itinerary? Or do you think i should keep my original plan but catch the earliest train in from Tokyo at 6am and arrive at 8am then begin the Day 1 originally and swap Fushimi Inari for Day 2?

Your NEW Day 1 is still too packed, especially as you are arriving the same day. Even if you arrive in Kyoto at 8:00 a.m., you still have to check into your hotel and get situated. Plus, you will probably already be tired from the early journey. The places you have selected for this day take a bit of traveling between one another (e.g. getting to Arashiyama)

Day 2 is good, and your chosen destinations are more centrally located (you will spend less time traveling from place-to-place). With that in mind, I would still keep your ORIGINAL Day 2 not switching it to Day 1. And, I would plan your visit to Fushimi Inari on Day 2 as well.

That said, you may well have to omit one place from your itinerary depending on when you arrive in Kyoto.

Hi Ohara,

Thank you for your response.

I think what i might do is keep my original itinerary and maybe omit Nishiki Market. We will checkout on Day 3 and head to Osaka so I might leave luggage at hotel and go to Fushimi Inari before leaving Kyoto. Otherwise if Fushimi Inari can be done in day 2 then it will save us time. Originally Day 3 was left for NARA - but this didn't work out as we would have to head back to Kyoto to collect luggage and travel to Osaka.

Do you think this is better alternative?

Day 1:
Wear Kimono outfits
Kiyomizu-dera temple (enter subteranean Tainai-Meguri)
Walk down Sannen-zaka and Ninen Zaka (preserved streets)
Nishiki market & food floor at nearby department store for lunch
Eat dinner downtown and then walk over to Shimbashi in Gion (Geisha)

Day 2:
Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavillion)
Tenryu-Ji Temple (World Heritage - no1 Zen Garden)
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Eat famous Yuba Lunch Set (tofu skin - must eat in Kyoto)

Day 3:
Fushimi Inari
Ren Restaurant - Best Ramen near Fushimi Inari

Yes, this sounds more doable.

A few things to keep in mind.. it will take some time out of your schedule to do the kimono outfit (time you could spend sightseeing). Personally, I would omit this altogether. However, if you really want to do it then by all means do so.

I do not know what the rest of your itinerary looks like. Are you going to be in Tokyo at all? If so, and you aren't so pressed for time, you can also wear a kimono outfit there.

Also, where the Nishiki Market ends, the Gion district begins ..just food for thought (no pun intended).

Hope this helps :)

Thank you for your help!! I will change my itinerary now.

We will be returning to tokyo for 7 days, maybe I'll reconsider the Kimono. =]]]

If only going to Bamboo grove and Tenryuji that takes about an hour and half tops. Kinkakkuji takes me less than 30 minutes. Rest of time is to get from Kinkakuji to Arashiyama.

There are a number if Tofu places at Arashiyama. But if you have the spare yen you might want to consider to have your lunch inside Tenryuji temple's garden. You sit in a wooden hall and are served monk vegetarian food; aka shojin ryori.

@joshua hugh

Yeah, if you are going at an exceptionally frantic pace!!

Having spent considerable time in Kyoto in the last ten years, my experience is quite different to your style of rushing about. So yes, if you want to frantically visit each place, then by all means give it a short go, but if you want to truly experience the beauty of these areas (which is what Kyoto is all about), then please do not rush.