Kyoto - Afternoon Tour

We will arrive Kyoto on 6 Dec noon time and leave on 10 Dec, hence we have 3.5 days in Kyoto.
For the afternoon of 6 Dec, I need advice whether to visit Fushimi Inari Shrine or Kiyomizudera + Gion area?

What time the sunset during early Dec?

Thanks and regards.

About 4.30pm.
Personally if I had to choose I would do Kiyomizudera+ Gion. In my opinion Fushimi Inari has been spoilt by mass tourism, plus you will be able to walk down from Kiyomizudera into Gion at dusk which could be very atmospheric.
But that�fs just my personal opinion.

From the lookout point where you can see the temple, you can also watch the sunset at Kiyomizu Temple, so that could be a very memorable sunset experience if the weather is good. A sunset in Sannenzaka can also be nice if you are out of Kiyomizu Temple before sunset. Even if you don't care about the sunset, there is more to do in this area in the evening.

I don't see much benefit in going to Fushimi Inari at or around sunset. It doesn't really have open vistas like Kiyomizu Temple and there is not much else in the area. In fact, I would not want to be on the mountain when it starts to get dark. If you can finish the shrine before dark, it's fine, but Fushimi Inari is more of a morning/midday destination in my opinion.

In terms of crowds, both Fushimi Inari and Kiyomizu Temple are at the top of most Kyoto itineraries, so I would consider that a moot point. Kiyomizu Temple and the surrounding Sannen-zaka/Ninen-zaka area is extremely crowded. I would say though that both of these sights have points about them that allow you to still enjoy them:

With Kiyomizu Temple, the vista allows you to get good pictures in spite of the crowds, because no matter how many people there are, no one will be in front of you if you take pictures from the lookout point.
With Fushimi Inari Shrine, most of the crowds stay towards the bottom, so you can escape them simply by going further up the mountain. The torii gates also go further, so you can still get good pictures and potentially take pictures without other people in them.

Rabbityama - nice points re: sunset, and true on crowds, although in my view crowds on the street add a vibe (yet occasionally annoyance!) whereas crowds in a shrine, especially one with such good �etorii vistas�f, detract from the experience.

Thanks so much for the advices.

We are at Gion at the moment and Kiyomizudera has been absolutely choking with people for the past few days, if you hate crowds I wouldn't bother. It might have settled down in a few weeks, it is as busy as I have ever seen it, lots of Chinese and Philippine visitors as well as heaps of Japanese

@Lazy Pious I don't know if you are Japanese, but I don't believe that a Japanese person would have anything against Filipinos and/or Chinese, much less against Japanese people....
Remember that it is YOU who is in the Japanese house and not them in yours !!!!
Enjoy Japanese hospitality.

Why not do both? From Gion station you can take Keihan line to Fushimi Inari station and have a night walk in Fushimi Inari Taisha. I have read that Fushimi Inari at night is also really nice experience and as a bonus it should be less crowded. There should be enough lights everywhere so its not like you would have to worry about walking around in the dark.