Travel Edit: 48 Hours in Kyoto

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For travelers who want to explore Japan beyond Tokyo’s neon lights, Kyoto is the perfect destination. The old capital has distinct rhythm and beauty. I did not have much time in Kyoto, so I tried to squeeze in as much as possible!

 

When to go:

Kyoto is well known for its cherry blossoms, which bloom each year towards the end of March or early April. The city is transformed by the gorgeous white and pink flowers! Precisely for this reason, that’s the best time of year to visit. Cherry blossoms are very delicate, however, falling easily with the wind or rain, which makes cherry blossom season very short—that means there will be many tourists visiting the city in the span of a couple weeks. It’s very important to book hotels, guided tours, and other activities well in advance.

 

Getting there and back:

It’s much easier to get to Japan via Tokyo. Kyoto doesn’t have its own international airport—the closest one is in Osaka. From Tokyo, it’s two and a half hours to Kyoto through the bullet train (Shinkansen). The Shinkansen in and of itself is a really cool experience! It moves up to 200 mph and is very comfortable. Besides, if you ride it on a sunny day, you can see Mt. Fuji from the window! Tip: to see Mt. Fuji, sit on the right side of the Shinkansen on the way to Kyoto or on the left side on the way back.

It’s definitely not cheap, each leg costs ¥13,600, which is around $120. Depending on the time of year, it may be cheaper to get a train to Osaka, but it’s much more inconvenient since you’d have to be at the airport early, check your luggage, and take a bus, train, or taxi to Kyoto from Osaka.

 

Where to stay:

One of Kyoto’s signature experiences is a stay at a Ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn. The ryokan is exactly what comes to mind when you think about Japan: tatami mats, futon beds on the floor, yukata robes, low tables, elaborate meals, Japanese gardens, etc. Kyoto has ryokans in every price range, so it’s worth researching to see what fits our budget. Some of the cheaper ryokans aren’t that authentic, so do your research! My husband and I stayed at the Ryokan Motonago, which is in the heart of Gion, the old Geisha district.

As soon as we walked in, the staff were incredibly welcoming. Our nakai-san greeted us, exchanged our shoes for slippers, and guided us to our room, where she served us a delicious green tea! During our stay, we wore the cotton yukata robes and the socks that were in our room. When we left for dinner, the room consisted only of the low table where the tea had been served. When we returned, the room had been completely transformed! The two futon beds had been neatly made, and the low table was off to the side. We asked for more tea (why not?!) and enjoyed a lovely spring evening.

In the morning, we used the private bath (onsen) which we had booked the night before. There’s a whole process to use it. In the entryway, you remove your robe, socks, etc. Before getting into the bath, you must take a shower and be 100% squeaky clean. The bath itself is very hot, but wonderful. I confess it was so relaxing we both fell asleep!

When we returned, the room had been transformed once again. The futons were nowhere to be seen, and the table was back in the center of the room. With a truly Japanese punctuality, our nakai-san knocked on the door to serve us a Japanese-style breakfast: tofu, omelette, smoked salmon, rice, and some sides. It was such an enjoyable experience! One of the things I really appreciate about japan is the reduced portion size, which is complemented by the variety of sides. I’ve lived in the U.S. for several years now, but the portion sizes still scare me, haha!

It’s definitely a worthwhile investment to stay at a ryokan. If you’ll be in Kyoto for two nights, I recommend spending one night at a ryokan and another in a regular hotel. That way, you get to experience two different parts of the city! This guide describes the different parts of town and the pros and cons of staying in each one.

 

Where to go & What to do

Before I share idea on where to go and what to do, I’ll share an important tip. As with any other tourist city during peak travel times, it’s important to remember that there will be A. LOT. OF. PEOPLE. We knew that before we chose to go to Kyoto, but when we arrived on a sunny Sunday afternoon, we were surprised by the sheer concentration of people in the tiny streets of Gion. You couldn’t really see anything! So, we decided to wake up at 6:30 a.m. the next day to go for a run and see some of the main temples before they filled up with people. It was hands down the best decision we made—it was like the whole complex has opened just for us! I recommend waking up very early to see the main attractions. It’s much better to wake up early and go to bed early than to arrive at all these temples and barely be able to explore.

Temples & Shrines

It’s practically impossible to walk for five minutes without running into at least one temple or shrine. Why the distinction? It’s simple: temples are Buddhist places of worship, while shrines are Shinto places of worship. Each location is more beautiful than the last! Some are UNESCO World Heritage sites, and are definitely worth a visit:

• Maruyama Park
  • A Buddhist temple and Shinto shrine complex in a beautiful park! It’s where my husband and I went for a run early in the morning, and we wouldn’t change that experience in the slightest. It’s fascinating to see how Buddhism and Shintoism coexist so peacefully here.
• Kinkaku-ji
  • Unfortunately we didn’t have time to explore this one, but it’s one of the most famous temples in the city!

• Fushimi Inari Taisha
  • This shrine is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and one of the main reasons I wanted to visit Kyoto. Established in 711 AD, it covers an entire mount (Mount Inari) and was built to be a pilgrimage to the top. It’s the main shrine dedicated to Inari, god of rice, sake, and business. Along the 2.5 mile path are thousands of Tori, these giant orange-y red structures. Each one was given by a different person or company, whose name is inscribed in black, in the hopes of attracting more blessings. The visuals are simply breathtaking—metaphorically and literally! It’s much more of a hike than we had anticipated, but it was so worth it. It was a perfect day, crisp but sunny. The sun made its way through the leaves and bathed the Tori with an almost ethereal light. As you make your way past thousands of Tori, its impossible to not be enveloped in the positive and introspective energy of this place. Along the hike, I reflected on this incredible trip, the opportunities that guided me there, and was thankful for everyone and everything.
  • This shrine is actually half an hour south of Kyoto, but is very easy to get to via the subway. The trip to the shrine (including transit to and from) will last at least four hours, so be prepared! Have a good breakfast and don’t forget to bring water! As with all other activities and sites on this list, it’s worth waking up early and getting there before it fills up with tourists. After all, it’s not just a beautiful place for photos, but also an environment to be felt. We woke up around 6:00 am and got there around 7:00 a.m. When we got there, it was practically empty. By the time we hiked down the mount to leave, it was so packed! It’s impossible to feel the serenity and beauty of the shrine with that many people. Even for tourists who don’t care about that and just want good photos, it’s worth going early!
• Rokkakudo
  • As was the case with so many other wonderful surprises on this trip, we kind of stumbled onto this temple. We went in because the outside said it was the home of traditional Japanese flower arrangements. Each time we thought we had seen it all, we would discover another gorgeous part!

Nishiki Market

The famous Nishiki market lies outside of the normal tourist area and is definitely worth a visit! It’s a giant structure, consisting of little stores selling everything from customizes chopsticks to fresh seafood. Even my American husband said it reminded him of the Mercadão in São Paulo!

Watch the cherry blossoms

Cherry blossoms are an integral part of Japanese culture. They announce the beginning of spring, and disappear just as quickly as they bloom. In Japanese culture, they are a metaphor for the transient nature of all things. But just because they don’t last long doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy them while they’re here! It’s like the whole country stops when the cherry blossoms bloom, if only for a minute. Hanami is the tradition of doing picnics in parks to watch the cherry blossoms. Tokyo and Kyoto both have amazing spots for hanami!

Matcha Matcha Matcha!

Matcha consumption is an ancient practice. Unlike normal green tea, matcha consists of pulverized green tea leaves. The suspension of the powder in hot water makes for a delicious, frothy drink! I started drinking matcha last year, when I tried (for the millionth time) to reduce my coffee intake. A cup of matcha has approximately half the caffeine of a cup of coffee. It also contains L-theanine, a chemical compound that reduces anxiety and eliminates the inevitable crash we get after drinking coffee. As if that weren’t enough, it also contains over 100 times the antioxidants of regular green tea, since you consume the whole leaf.

Kyoto is known for its high quality matcha, and has tea houses that specialize in matcha for over 400 years. It’s easy o find matcha flavored anything there. The matcha soft serve at Marukyu Koyamaen was such a delight after a long walk! It’s also worth buying matcha powder to take home. Each container seems small, but each 30 g can lasts a long time even with daily consumption.

 

Indulge yourself in traditional art

Another happy discovery was a print shop in downtown Kyoto. They work with kimono artisans to create incredible prints and paintings at very reasonable prices. There’s a wide selection, from very small prints to massive paintings. We loved the style and their story so much we ended up buying gifts for all our friends there! The owner is very attentive, and explained all the different styles and production methods. We told him we were taking all of the pieces back to the U.S. as gifts, and he and his mom gave us gorgeous rice paper envelopes to wrap each print in! We loved finding gorgeous, traditional gifts that were light and easy to transport back home.

 

What to eat

My husband decided he wanted to eat as much ramen as possible while we were in Japan. At first I thought he was kidding, but I soon found out he was serious—very serious. So we began our quest for the best ramen! And I must say… I think I found it in Kyoto.

I follow a certain philosophy for eating out when I travel. As picky of an eater as I am, I want to eat authentic dishes and to eat where the locals go. To that end, I follow a few rules to choose a restaurant:

• If the restaurant has an English menu, it’s better to skip it! These are generally focused on attracting tourists and their food is not as authentic or high quality.
• The same is true if a menu has photos of the different dishes.
• If you’re looking for reviews on TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc, choose a restaurant with good reviews in that country’s language. The best restaurants we visited on this trip had few reviews, but most had been written by Japanese reviewers.
• Look inside: if there are more locals that tourists, it’s probably a good pick.

 

Kyoto was no different! We found a ramen shop with fantastic reviews, but since it was in Gion, the most touristy part of town, the line was out the door and going around the block. No thank you! The best restaurants we found were outside of the traditionally touristy areas. I had the best ramen of my life at a restaurant called Gouriki, tucked away behind giant ramen vending machines. After placing our order, the waiter sat us at a table with a hot plate in the middle and told us to not eat all of our ramen. We were supposed to let him know when we had 10-20% left, but we had no idea why. Little did we know that he would return with a cast iron bowl with fresh rice, put the remainder of our toppings and sauce in it, and mix it all up with an egg! The result was a deliciously creamy and mouthwatering surprise second meal, and it was by far one of the best dishes I’ve ever had.

 

I hope these tips are useful to you if you’re planning a trip to Kyoto! Have you been? What did you think? Share your tips in the comments!

 

Stay curious,

Nati