Walking routes in Kyoto

Self-guided routes through Kyoto — every stop timed, mapped and in the order that works on the ground.

3h Budget

Arashiyama in three hours

The bamboo grove, the Zen garden behind it and the bridge over the Katsura.

Togetsukyo Bridge · Tenryu-ji · Arashiyama Bamboo Grove · Okochi Sanso Garden

0.8 km on foot 4 stops 2h 31m total

3h Mid-range

Nishiki, Pontochō and the Kamo River in three hours

Kyoto's kitchen, a shrine whose gate runs into the walls, the covered arcades, the riverbank at dusk and the lantern-lit lane of tea houses.

Nishiki Market · Nishiki Tenmangū · Shinkyōgoku · Kamo River · Pontochō

1.3 km on foot 5 stops 2h 37m total

3h Budget

The Philosopher's Path in three hours

The Silver Pavilion, the canal path a philosopher walked every day, a temple behind a moss-thatched gate, the Buddha who looks back, and the brick aqueduct at Nanzen-ji.

Ginkaku-ji · Philosopher's Path · Hōnen-in · Eikan-dō · Nanzen-ji

2.2 km on foot 5 stops 2h 55m total

3h Budget

Tō-ji and the temples by Kyoto Station in three hours

The tallest wooden pagoda in Japan, the halls of the two Hongan-ji temples, a rope made of women's hair, a hidden pond garden and the tower over the station.

Tō-ji · Nishi Hongan-ji · Higashi Hongan-ji · Shōsei-en · Kyoto Tower

2.8 km on foot 5 stops 2h 52m total

6h Mid-range

Fushimi Inari to Gion in six hours

Ten thousand torii gates at dawn, the temple on stilts, the preserved lanes below it and the geisha quarter at dusk.

Fushimi Inari Taisha · Kiyomizu-dera · Sannenzaka · Yasaka Shrine · Gion

1.3 km on foot 5 stops 4h 23m total

6h Mid-range

Kinkaku-ji and the northern temples in six hours

The Golden Pavilion, the rock garden of Ryōan-ji, Ninna-ji's late cherries, the shrine of scholars at Kitano, and the Zen gardens of Daitoku-ji with grilled rice cakes at its gate.

Kinkaku-ji · Ryōan-ji · Ninna-ji · Kitano Tenmangū · Daitoku-ji · Imamiya Shrine

2.3 km on foot 6 stops 4h 31m total

6h Budget

Nijō Castle and the Imperial Palace in six hours

The shogun's castle with its nightingale floors, the old imperial palace in its park, the turtle stepping stones where two rivers meet and the ancient forest of the Shimogamo Shrine.

Nijō Castle · Kyoto Imperial Palace · Kyoto Gyoen · Kamogawa Delta · Shimogamo Shrine

3.9 km on foot 5 stops 4h 21m total

12h Mid-range

Kyoto in a day: bamboo to Gion

The bamboo grove at dawn, Tenryū-ji, the Golden Pavilion and the rock garden, the shoguns' castle, lunch in Nishiki and the eastern hills into Gion at dusk.

Arashiyama Bamboo Grove · Tenryu-ji · Kinkaku-ji · Ryōan-ji · Nijō Castle · Nishiki Market · Yasaka Shrine · Kiyomizu-dera · Gion

6.9 km on foot 9 stops 9h 07m total

Planning the rest of the trip

These routes cover the walking. The Kyoto guide has where to stay, what a day costs at each tier, and what to book before you go.