THE 10 BEST Kyoto Gardens
Gardens in Kyoto
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Travelers' Choice Awards winners (including the "Best of the Best" title) are among the top 10% of listings on Tripadvisor, according to the reviews and opinions of travelers across the globe.
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Historic Walking Areas • Gardens
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Historic Sites • Religious Sites
Northern Kyoto
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Gardens • Scenic Walking Areas
Northern Kyoto
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Gardens • Art Museums
Northern Kyoto
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Southern Kyoto
Religious Sites • Gardens
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Points of Interest & Landmarks • Gardens
Northern Kyoto
Showing results 1-30 of 53
What travelers are saying
- geo3Calgary, Canada1,893 contributionsThe large grounds, with several buildings, make this an interesting temple to visit. I paid the extra money to visit Hojo Hall and the gardens, and it was worthwhile spending the extra time and money for this. The gardens were the highlight of the temple for me. This temple was surprisingly uncrowded in mid-afternoon.
Getting here was quite easy, by taking the subway (Tozai line) to the Keage station. From there it is about a 700 m walk northeast to the entrance to the temple.
This temple is also close to the southern end of the Philosopher's walk (it starts about 700 m northeast of the temple), so if you are already at the temple it may be worthwhile to combine this temple with a walk on the Philosopher's Walk for a nice half-day excursion, with possibly the Eikando temple also added since you will walk right past it.Written August 6, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - ZN9999Mollymook, Australia465 contributionsOne of the best gardens I have seen in Japan. We went in May and expected to see more spring flowers than we did. They were a little early this year. Some Irises were out.
But the spring growth on all the trees was superb and the pines were tortured within an inch of their life. Very impression garden and also quite spacious.
We took the english guided tour which was very informative. While we had to book a fews weeks/months on advance. The process for that was easy and the day we had was bright and sunny.
Getting there was easy a 15-20m flat walk from the nearest rail station. The walk itself was also very interesting. Take a little longer than you need to enjoy that also.Written July 1, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - What We Found TravellingSydney, Australia6,691 contributionsThese peaceful gardens next to the Arashiyama bamboo forest are a great break away from all the crowds. It costs 1000 yen per person to enter which includes a matcha tea, calpis or juice. As the tea & juices were self serve we ended up having multiple. Great value for the 1000 yen. The real bonus is that not many people are willing to pay the 1000 yen to enter, hence it becomes a lovely & quiet place to explore.
Whilst the gardens didn’t have beautiful flowers & colourful plants in early June there are some great views of Kyoto & the Katsura River valley awaiting.Written July 14, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Global715255Tokyo, Japan21,462 contributionsYou have to do advance booking and only 50 people for each tour is allowed in but it is worth it. The view overlooking Kyoto and the surrounded mountains like Mount Hiei was amazing. The autumn foliage was also very beautiful at the beginning of November.Written November 26, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Hiroshi317Yokohama, Japan340 contributionsNow best season for red and yellow leaves.
We visited special night tour.
It’s only 200yen per person and green house is free.
Light up is excellent and not so cloud.
Walk around the pond side beautiful trees and it’s reflected on the surface of water.
In addition green house looks real jungle in the night. It’s worth to visit.
After night garden we went Toyo tei restaurant opposite side of garden, there is famous for local residents.Written November 24, 2022This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - hfot2 🌸🍁🌸Vermont7,576 contributionsIf you want to get away from the crowds at many of Kyoto’s other temples, this is certainly the place to find peace and quiet.
The walls around the large temple grounds are a boundary keeping the external world out and keeping the peace of the Zen world within.
You can easily spend half a day here wandering the paths, looking in the large temple buildings and visiting several of the sub-temples that are open to the public. Because this was sakura season, at least one of the sub-temples, which is usually closed to visitors, had a special exhibition for the season.
We happened to be there on the day of the funeral for one of the head monks. During the ceremony, we could hear the chanting as we walked along the paths, adding to the peaceful nature of the place. Then we came upon rows and rows of monks in full regalia bowing somberly as the ashes were transferred to the hearse which was then driven through the complex. This very special moment added immeasurably to our visit.
Be sure to check the rules before you pay the fee at any of the sub-temples; Daisenin, for example, does not allow photography.
Our visit in March of 2023 was our third time to Daitokuji and I'm certain it won't be our last.Written January 14, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - LolaGo1Washington DC, DC6,632 contributionsLocated across from my hotel, I asked what was behind the fence. Decided to visit it on my last day when I learned that it is a Garden. Entrance fee is 500 yen per person.
Inside are some very old buildings , not available to go inside them. There are also 2 wooden bridges, perfect background for taking photos. The water around here does not appear to be clean, especially the water in the pond. it is greenish, perhaps due to algae.
Except for the toilet facilities, there are no benches here to sit down and relax. No Snack Stores either!Written April 27, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - petertaylor57Auckland Central, New Zealand422 contributionsWhat an oasis after the hoards further down the street around the Kiyomizu temple. This backstreet temple is atmospheric and a great place to relax for a while. Best when the azeleas are out, or in autumn, when the maples are red. It has a walk through garden, as well as a zen stone garden for reflection. A real breath of Kyoto fresh air!Written May 16, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Erkki NFinland884 contributionsRight next to Nanzen-ji San-mon gate the Tenju-an (a subtemple of Nanzen-ji) has a beautiful garden with white gravel field viewed from temple platform and also a stroll garden. The view from temple is characterized by a path of diagonally placed square stepping stones and moss. Japanese maples behind the field were about to enter the autumn colour season when I visited and had individual, slightly off-green hues making a beautiful background. The stroll garden is much like a wild forest – its route goes around a beautiful pond and you get also to walk over it using round stepping stones.Written August 9, 2020This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- United3millionmilerCupertino, CA167 contributionsMy wife and I visited March 31, 2023, just as this private garden cherry blossoms were reaching full bloom as well as other flowering plants. Wow! A few hours here was at the top of our visit to Kyoto. 1,500 yen admission. Shuttle bus offered, but we took a taxi to and from the garden.Written April 4, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Pamela A OSeattle652 contributionsWe were planning to go to the Kyoto Botanical Garden, which is right next door, but the garden was closed due to an electrical problem, so we came here instead. This is an outdoor park, made of mostly concrete and lots and lots of falling water and pools. On some of the concrete walls are painted large and quite well done reproductions of some of the great art pieces of the world by artists such as Michelangelo, van Gogh, Renoir, etc.I particularly enjoyed the reproductions of Chinese screens because you can get right up close to these and see all the details that you really can't see well at all when looking at the original in a regular museum. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this place.Written November 28, 2018This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Erkki NFinland884 contributionsKonchi-in is a temple (a subtemple of Nanzen-ji) with a stroll garden and the “Crane and Turtle Garden”, a karesansui garden viewed from temple balcony. Toshugu shrine on temple grounds has a history connecting to the Tokugawa shogun family. There is lots of moss clad beauty to see here, although to me this garden did not appeal quite as much as some others nearby (Nanzen-ji main temple or Tenju-an). The karesansui here uses the idea of borrowed landscape - there is a display of stones behind teh field of gravel and behind them rise the trees creating nice depth to the picture.Written August 9, 2020This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- carloscharmyBangkok, Thailand780 contributionsCame here on a rainy Tuesday afternoon and we were like 4 people. It was lovely. Cherries were not in full bloom yet but it was totally worth it. Loved spending a few hours here.Written April 22, 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- wanderlust855Austin, TX39 contributionsVery beautiful gardens that unlike many shrines and temples you can actually travel across the stones and bridges. If you go to Kyoto stop here!Written July 20, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- hfot2 🌸🍁🌸Vermont7,576 contributionsSeeking red leaves and few tourists, we found Hakuryuen moss garden.
This is truly a special place. It’s expensive; it’s not that easy to get to; it limits the number of visitors to 100 in the morning; and it is only open for one month in the autumn.
Getting there is an adventure on its own and involves waking early to stand in line at the Eizan Dentetsu's Demachi Yanagi Station to be one of the 100 who can purchase tickets on the train and into the garden. You can only purchase the “Special Viewing” tickets to enter the garden at the station - they are not sold at the garden. The ticket entitles you to a morning visit and you must leave by We read that the tickets go on sale at 9 AM but you need to be there much earlier than that. We arrived at about 6:50 and there were already 18 people in line. We could have arrived about a half hour later and still have been within the 100 person limit for that day. At about 8:30AM a train person started counting people in line and putting up signs and rope barriers along the line. At about this time they set up a table and began selling tickets. For ¥2300 each we get a ticket to the garden and a day pass for the train. We understand that the garden is open only from early October to early December and the entrance charge is higher in November and December.
The train waited until all 100 passengers boarded and others who were not going to the garden board as well. The stop for the garden is Ninose. Once you have exited the train, follow the crowds from the station through a residential area and up the hill to the garden gate.
We walked beyond the entrance since the garden opens at 10:00 and we had almost a half hour to photograph the surroundings. Along with everyone else, we tried to take photos of a train crossing the bridge with the gorgeous red trees beneath it. A few trains passed until we got it right.
One of the people at the entrance ticket tent explained the rules and gave us an information sheet - the conversation was mostly in Japanese with a lot of hand signals. The garden is only open to the public from 10:00 to 12:30 so we needed to spend our time there wisely. After 12:30 more visitors, who paid a higher entrance fee, get to visit the garden with even fewer people.
The 100 person limit protects the moss. The moss covers everything and you are given instructions to step only on the stone paths set in the moss. The red maple leaves are a special treat against the green moss and a few red umbrellas. There are very few people there which is wonderful. However, the garden is small so we still had to wait for some photos until other visitors got out of our frame. You can photograph everything except the shrine at the rear of the garden. Especially lovely and lovely to photo are the tea houses. You can use them in many ways in your shots. In addition, each was lovingly decorated with a few leaves or a small bunch of flowers some of which were placed in water in hollowed stone. The whole place is meticulously tended.
It was a wonderfully serene visit away from the hustle and bustle of the city and the crowds at popular koyo sites.
Since we had paid for a day pass on the train, we took advantage of it and went from here to Kurama dera.
Visitor’s tips
Arrive at the Eizan Dentetsu's Demachi Yanagi Station very early in the morning to get in line for tickets
Rest rooms in the garden are on the lower level behind the tea house
A fancy restaurant is across the street or you can do what we did and go to Kurama for lunchWritten October 27, 2019This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
