There are MANY shrines and temples to choose from in Kyoto, and way too many to see them all.  You and/or your family will become “templed-out.”  Here are two you can easily visit in a half-day each that are very different and have more than just the shrine itself to do when you’re there:

• Kiyomizudera Temple
• Inari Shrine

Note that both of these involve a lot of walking and climbing.

Kiyomizudera Temple

This temple is worth a visit because of the variety of things to see and do here, it’s in a very scenic location, and the surrounding area has some interesting shopping.  You can read more about it in the Japan Guide.

Getting to Kiyomizudera

From Kyoto Station, take the 100 or 206 bus to the Gojozaka stop.  If this is your first time dealing with Kyoto buses:

• The boarding area is on the north side of the station – there are many numbered stations and each lists which bus boards there
• There is a bus information station just west of this area – you can get a day pass for the bus, which is probably worth it vs 2 single tickets

When you get off the bus, cross the street and start heading up the hill.  There are several ways to go, and they all lead up.  I suggest saving any shopping for the return downhill.

Kiyomizudera

The  whole temple area is on the top of a hill, nestled into the trees.  The main temple building, shown at the left, has a deck that provides great views.

The temple has the usual collection of booths selling charms, fortunes, etc.  For example, these charms:

(The charms here are for your child, for conception, and for easy delivery.)

You can also try walking between two stones with your eyes closed – you will be lucky in love if you make it:

And you can catch some water from these streams and sip it – each stream is supposed to deliver a specific benefit:

Shopping

There are many stores on the main paths up to the temple.  Even if it’s mostly the same stuff you’ll see elsewhere in Japan, at least all the shops in Japan feel like nice shops – it’s not like the kind of souvenir stands you see elsewhere near tourist spots.

Head back down the hill, and pick up the same bus (on the other side of the street from where you got off) to return to Kyoto station.

Inari

The Fushimi Inari Shrine is a set of trails and temples on a hill just outside Kyoto.  The trails are covered with several thousand torii gates, plus various shrines, fox statues, and even places to eat.

To get to Inari, take the JR Nara train from Kyoto Station 2 stops to the Inari station (about 5 minutes).  The shrine entrance is about a block from the station – look for the huge torii gate.

There are many different trails – you might want to get a trail map at a booth.

Once you get past the buildings you start to go up the trails and see the wonderful torii gates covering them:

 

 

 

 

Every so often, the trail has a branch that leads to a shrine.

You may also encounter one of the many cats that live around the shrines:

Or one of the fox statues:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the mid point you will find this intersection where you can relax and get something to drink:

You can also enjoy the view of Kyoto from here.  You can continue going up, or turn back down, perhaps on a different path (they all wind up at the bottom).

If you are feeling out of shape, you’ll only feel worse when you notice the senior citizens who seem to be taking this trail like it’s nothing.  We also saw several high-school-aged kids jogging up and down the hill.

Grab the JR Nara train back to Kyoto Station and your hotel for a well-deserved rest.