My husband and I are going to Kyoto for 3 days in July. Does anyone have any suggestions that we should ensure we do whilst staying there?
Reply to this Hello Paula and welcome to the Forum!
Lucky you, three days in Kyoto, one of the most amazing cities in the world. To give you an idea of the wealth of sites in Kyoto, there are 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in that city alone - that is more than be found in many entire countries!
Okay, now for my favourites. Ensure you are at Kinkaku-ji (Golden Temple) when gates open in the morning. It is the best time to catch the stillness of Kyokochi Pond and before the hoards of tour groups arrive. The site is not my favourite, but definitely worth visiting for the photographs alone.
Best site goes to Gingaku-ji (Silver Pavilion) - beautiful landscaped gardens and a lovely feel to the place. Nearby is the much larger Kiyomizu-dera complex, which many people prefer - but I favoured the intimacy of the Silver Pavilion. Both these sites should be visited in the afternoon as they face west.
I particularly liked the Sanjusangen-do that contains 1001 life-sized gold plated statues of Kannon (the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy).
Also visit the street called Hanami-koji in the Gion area - it still contains much traditional architecture - worth spending time at.
If you had more time I would suggest you visit nearby Nara, as there are other great places to see there, but you don't want to push yourself too much and getting around Kyoto can be time consuming.
[Edited: 2012 Jul 06 00:29 - The Travel Camel:11053 ]
Reply to this Great tips Shane!
I'd also add the Fushimi Inari Shrine, with the thousands of tori gates.
This photo was one of our
Photo Of The Week winners.
July is also when the
Gion Festival is on, so make sure you book accommodation ahead of time.
[Edited: 2012 Jul 06 08:29 - Jo Trouble:16935 ]
Reply to this You can also go for a wander through the grounds of Kyoto Imperial Palace (free).
Reply to this Thanks Shane that is some really good tips for us to follow.
Reply to this It's over the whole month, but the main festival days are mid-July.
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In response to: Msg #158434 Hi Shane we are staying at Nara in a Ryokan. Thanks for your advice - what a fab place so glad we never missed it. I think it is even better at night when a lot of the tourists go home.
Reply to this I particularly loved the Kasuga Taisha in Nara, though it was not the most beautiful place in the region, I loved the serenity of the place - when I arrived, there were only a handful of other people visiting.
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