Kiyomizu-dera

🛕 Temple

📍

Prefecture

Kyoto

🛕

Type

Temple

⭐

N/A

1 review

🗣️ English Staff 🚃 Train Access ☕ Cafe 🥗 Vegetarian

About This Destination

A hillside temple where a vast wooden stage, supported by 139 pillars without a single nail, offers sweeping views across Kyoto's eastern mountains.

Kiyomizu-dera traces its founding to 778, making it one of Kyoto's oldest temples. The main hall's most famous feature is its wooden stage, a feat of eighth-century engineering that juts out over the hillside supported by 139 interlocking pillars, assembled entirely without nails. From this veranda, views sweep across Kyoto's forested eastern mountains, a panorama that becomes truly spectacular during cherry blossom season and autumn foliage, when special evening illuminations transform the temple grounds. Below the main hall, Otowa Waterfall divides into three streams, each believed to grant a different blessing: longevity, success in studies, or fortune in love. Visitors queue to drink from one, though local tradition holds that choosing all three reveals excessive greed. The approach through the Higashiyama district is part of the experience, a fifteen-minute climb along atmospheric lanes lined with tea houses, pottery shops, and traditional storefronts that have served pilgrims for centuries.

Location

Prefecture: Kyoto

Address: 1-294 Kiyomizu, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto, 605-0862

Nearest Station: Kiyomizu-gojo Station

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Visitor Information

Credit Cards: Unknown

Food Options: Tea houses along the approach streets serve matcha with wagashi sweets. Yatsuhashi (cinnamon rice crackers) are a popular souvenir snack.

Official Website

Access

1-294 Kiyomizu, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto, 605-0862

Get Directions

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best way to get to Kiyomizu-dera?

From Kyoto Station, take bus #100 or #206 to Gojo-zaka or Kiyomizu-michi bus stop (about 15 minutes). Then walk uphill for 10-15 minutes through the charming Higashiyama shopping streets. Alternatively, walk from Kiyomizu-gojo Station (Keihan Line) in about 20 minutes.

When is the best time to visit Kiyomizu-dera?

Cherry blossom season (late March to early April) and autumn foliage (mid-November to early December) are most spectacular, with special evening illuminations. Early morning visits avoid the biggest crowds year-round.

What are the opening hours and admission fee?

Open daily from 6:00 AM. Closing time varies by season (5:00-6:30 PM, later during illumination periods). Admission is 400 yen for adults. The special night illuminations in spring and autumn require a separate ticket.