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Ginkaku-ji
Silver Pavilion
A Zen temple famed for its elegant Silver Pavilion and meticulously raked sand garden reflecting ...
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Ryoan-ji
Ryoan-ji Temple
UNESCO World Heritage Zen temple with the famous rock garden of 15 stones on white gravel. From a...
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Sanjusangendo
Hall of 1,001 Statues of Kannon
120-meter-long hall with 1,001 life-size gilded Kannon statues standing in rows. Hard to process ...
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To-ji
Japan's Tallest Wooden Pagoda and Ancient Capital Landmark
A World Heritage Site founded in 796, home to Japan's tallest wooden pagoda at 55 meters and a be...
Kiyomizu-dera
Pure Water Temple
A hillside temple where a vast wooden stage, supported by 139 pillars without a single nail, offe...
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Daitoku-ji
Vast Zen Complex of Exquisite Rock Gardens
A vast Rinzai Zen temple complex in northern Kyoto with over 20 sub-temples, many featuring excep...
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Kennin-ji
Kyoto's Oldest Zen Temple in the Heart of Gion
Kyoto's oldest Zen temple. Founded 1202 by Eisai, who brought Zen and tea to Japan. Twin Dragons ...
Byodo-in
Byodo-in Temple
A UNESCO World Heritage temple famous for its Phoenix Hall, depicted on the Japanese 10-yen coin.
Tenryu-ji
Arashiyama's World Heritage Zen Masterpiece
World Heritage Site, head temple of the Tenryu branch of Rinzai Zen. The Sogenchi garden uses the...
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Kinkaku-ji
Golden Pavilion Temple
Kyoto's golden icon, where a pavilion sheathed in real gold leaf floats above its mirror-still po...
Saihoji (Kokedera)
The Moss Temple Requiring Advance Reservation
A World Heritage Zen temple blanketed in over 120 varieties of moss, creating an ethereal green l...
Ninna-ji
Imperial Palace Temple with Late-Blooming Cherry Blossoms
A World Heritage Site and former imperial palace temple, famed for its late-blooming Omuro cherry...
Otagi Nenbutsu-ji
1,200 Whimsical Stone Buddhas Hidden in the Arashiyama Hills
A hillside temple at the far end of Arashiyama covered in 1,200 stone rakan carved by ordinary vi...
Daikaku-ji
An Imperial Temple with Japan's Oldest Artificial Lake
A former imperial palace turned Shingon temple, famous for Osawa Pond, Japan's oldest artificial ...
Eikan-do
The Temple of Autumn Leaves with a Looking-Back Buddha
A Higashiyama temple known as Momiji no Eikan-do for its roughly 3,000 maples, with an Amida Budd...