What Is A Geisha?

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If there’s one thing Kyoto is famous for, it’s geisha (or geiko – which is the Kyoto dialect for geisha). If you’ve seen any pictures promoting Kyoto, you’ll undoubtedly have seen a woman wearing beautiful kimono, traditional hairstyles and her face painted in unique oshiroi make-up.Geisha roughly translates to “woman of the arts”. Their job includes performing traditional tea ceremonies while entertaining their guests by singing, playing traditional instruments (like the samisen), having conversations with them or even playing drinking games together. Becoming a geisha takes a lot of dedication and practice.

The training of a maiko (apprentice geisha) usually starts when they’re 15 years old, and can last around five years. While they were much more popular in the past, there are still geishas in Japan today. Most of them live and work in Kyoto. The Kyoto districts Gion and Higashiyama are particularly famous for hosting geishas, especially since many okiya (geisha houses) are still there.

Official geisha dinners are traditionally set aside for the rich and powerful. They’re surely not a cheap experience (reaching into the hundreds of, and often you’ll need to be recommended by an existing guest. Luckily, there are other ways to book an experience with a geisha or maiko. There are group dinners where you can get a cheaper seat at the table or tea ceremonies with maiko and geisha dances.

It’s also possible to randomly spot a geisha in Kyoto, especially in Gion or Southern Higashiyama. But keep in mind that you shouldn’t take pictures without asking first.

We walked through Gion very early in the morning, before the crowds.

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