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Kyoto itinerary 2010/10/3 15:54
hey im attempting to get the finer points of my iten organised for my 4-5 days in kyoto to start with so here it is

part day arivalcoming from kanazawa
Honganji Temples
kyoto tower
hostel check in

day ? eastern
Sanjusangendo
Kiyomizudera
Heian Shrine
Nanzenji Temple
Ginkakuji
buss 5 or 100 how frequent are these buses

day ? northern
Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion
Ryoanji Temple
Ninnaji Temple
Daitokuji Temple
Kamo Shrines maybe

day ? southern
Tofukuji
Fushimi Inari Shrine might walk a bit
Byodoin maybe

day ? central
Nijo Castle (Nijojo)
Kyoto Imperial Palace (Kyoto Gosho)
Pontocho

gion on some night

i am after a some what slow pace dont want it to be hectic
whats the best option for transport im thinking of getting the Kyoto Sightseeing Card for 2 days twice or should i go with just the Surutto Kansai Card ?
by sephorz  

Crikey. 2010/10/4 21:55
Unless you like to run around attractions at high speed, that's a pretty ambitious itinerary. I think you may have to accept one of two things:

1 - You may have to miss some sights, or
2 - You may not have any option other than to proceed at a hectic pace.

Check the opening and closing times of each place you want to visit, and schedule accordingly. You may find one temple closes half an hour earlier than another, so switching the order in which you do them will save you getting booted out at 16:30.

You can save yourself a lot of time by getting up early and going to a bakery to buy lunch. Take a backpack or bag and carry lunch with you each day so that all you need to do is stop off in a garden wherever you are at to eat it, then continue.

The Kyoto City website has excellent information in English about bus routes, costs, and usage here: http://www.city.kyoto.jp/koho/eng/access/transport.html

Their bus map is here: http://www.city.kyoto.lg.jp/kotsu/cmsfiles/contents/0000019/19770/bus_...

If you visit the bus station outside Kyoto train station you can get a free copy of the bus map, buy day passes for only 500en, AND get breakfast and lunch from the bakery that forms part of the bus station office :)

I'd really allow a bare minimum of 90 minutes for almost all the locations you've listed. Buses are frequent, and if you take the map with you you know which ones make excellent substitutes for the one you were looking out for.

Some locations I'd really allow much more time for. Ginkakuji has one of my absolute favourite gardens, and walking around it is a pleasure best taken slowly - I usually take about 2.5 hours. Nijo-jo is an easy half-day if you don't rush it. Sanjusangendo can be a couple of hours if you stop to look at each and every statue, and read all the information about the archery tournaments and the temple's history. The walk around Ginkakuji's mirror pond is a decent one, and again best if not rushed.

The Fushimi Inari shrine is as long a a piece of string. You can nip around the shrine, or go on the two hour walk along the full torii-lined path. And the Kyoto Imperial Palace requires that you attend the Imperial Household Agency office in the gardens and book a tour - which may not be available on the day that you attend, so you might need to go back later in the week to visit the Palace.

You have a limited daily window, so picking destinations within walking distance of one-another is best. Most attractions open around 09:00 and close by 17:00 with last entry half an hour before closing time. There are seasonal variations to these times, so check first.

I'd also do my best to include Ryoanji in your list. It is the perfect antithesis to a hectic itinerary, and the Zen rock garden is second to none.

Good luck!
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