nijo or himeji castle for 1 day in kyoto

I will be going to kyoto for a day, reaching there at 10am, staying overnight and then leaving the next day at 12pm.

Would himeji castle be worth a visit? Or should I just stay in castle and visit nijo castle.

If I should go to himeji, my plan is to leave kyoto at 1pm (check in at my hotel is only at 12pm), purchase the JR west pass and take the local JR train to himeji, reach there at 2.30pm and explore himeji till 4pm (closing time). Is this too rushed to see himeji castle?

Is this the best way to go to himeji from kyoto? The only faster way is to take the bullet train but I understand I can't take the bullet train with the JR west pass and it's quite costly to purchase on its own.

Himeji is much more interesting than Nijo, but I wouldn't travel all the way to Himeji by local train for only one hour at the castle. You need at least two hours and don't forget it's a 15 minutes walk from the station.
The shinkansen from Kyoto to Himeji is less than an hour, but yes, it is expensive (4620 yen).

thanks zavo!
Hmmm..so would you think himeji's worth visiting if I have more than 2 hours? Then I might just go straight to himeji from kyoto at 10am and check in at my hotel much later. Himeji does seem much more interesting than nijo!

Yes, if you have 2 or 3 hours you can see the castle without having to rush your way through. If you really want to see a castle I can recommend Himeji, but there are also many other interesting places in Kyoto. I was there for 3 days and only saw about half of the sights. Personally I liked Chionin temple and the Gion district best. I found Nijo castle a bit disappointing.

I really want to see a nice castle so I guess I'll be going to himeji instead of nijo! Thanks for your help!

Yeah, it's a pity i'll miss some of the interesting places in Kyoto though, but I read that the Gion district is quite active at night too right? So I'm hoping to be able to explore it after I come back from himeji.

Nijo castle is a completly different castle than Himeji, and Nijo is (as far as I know) unique in Japan, I mean, you won't see this style of castle anywhere else, while you can find the Himeji style everywhere in Japan, nevertheless, Himeji is very very beautiful andf since you don't have much time, I would go to Himeji or if you get up early and visit Nijo at 09:00, leave Nijo around 10:30, take the subway to Kyoto station, take the train (if possible, take a Shinkansen, it's much faster and more expensive, but it's worth every penny) and visit Himeji (around 13:00).
Maybe you can make this difficult decision (both castles are a must see in Japan), depending on the weather; if it's raining in Kyoto go to Himeji, and if it's raining in Himeji, visit Nijo (every morning around 07:00 there is a very easy to understand weatherreport on TV)

I second Bert. Both these castles are exceptional and are totally different. There are 2 types of castles in the world. Unfortunately tourists from countries that don't have castles going back for up to 1000 years aren't aware of the differences. One is the fortified castle, built in the days when a country had internal wars for centuries, to protect powerful families (Lords and Kings). These castles are famous for their powerful and intimidating architecture with extremely thick high walls--without windows--at the base and tall towers. The other type is called a leisure castle. These were built,again for Lords and Kings, once the country was finally at peace. They are famous for the richly decorated interiors.They are long low buildings, seldom over 2-3 storeys high, and have lots of windows, even at ground level. Himeji is a fortress and the biggest one in Japan. The interiors are very plain yet fascinating. Nijo is a leisure castle with richly decorated interiors in the traditional Japanese style.

Thanks Beth and Monkey see for telling me the difference between the 2 castles! Yes, I think I do want to see both then, since they're such different styles!

I'm travelling with my boyfriend too, and he wants to travel at a leisurely pace so I don't think I'll be able to persuade him to rush the 2 castles in a day *laugh* I'll probably go to himeji on the first day, and wake up early to go nijo the next day before leaving kyoto. Think this is a good plan? Hopefully there's good weather on both days!

I'm still considering whether to take the Shinkansen because I have quite a tight budget. I've only just graduated and started working and this is my first trip overseas that I'll be paying on my own. But yes Beth, I think it might be worth it for the time saved...hmmmm...

Oh, can I just confirm that both the JR west pass and the shinkasen tickets can be bought at the Kyoto station?

Thanks so much for all your help! It's wonderful how nice the people on this forum are!

oh so sorry, I mean bert not beth :p

Shinkansen is the name of several fast trains (Nozomi, Hikari, Kodoma..check under Japan A-Z /transportation at the top of each page on this site) from the railway company called JR. The main Kyoto station is a JR station so yes you can buy any tickets and the JR West pass at Kyoto station. If you have a limited budget a JR WEST one day pass is saves a lot as it is much cheaper than a return trip to Himeji from Kyoto by regular JR trains. In fact a 4 days pass is just a bit more expensive than a one way trip Shinkansen ticket from Kyoto to Himeji!. A trip by regular train (limited express) with a JR West pass is longer but so much cheaper. And yes I would go to Nijo another day. Within Kyoto you can't use JR. buses are more practical. the tourist office at Kyoto JR station is great.

Another very interesting thing about Nijo castle are the so called 'nightingale floors', these floors make a 'squeek' sound when you walk on them, and was/is a early type of burglar or intruder alarm, very interesting and fun! Outside Nijo castle there is also a explaination of how these floors work, very ingeneous!
Have a lot of fun and nice weather on your trip to Japan!

We went to both in our last trip. In fact we went to Himeji on the day of our flight back to the U.S. But since it was later in the afternoon, we have till 1-2pm in the afternoon. But you definitely need to use the Shinkansen to save the travel time. We spent only a couple hour at Nijo because it is a lot smaller. If you have till noon on your second day, why not travel to Himeji on your arrival day and use the next morning on Nijo? Himeji is my favorite. The castle is magnificient and it offers different sceneries in different seasons (I've seen summer and autumn). Have fun!