Takao (Kyoto)

Takao is where the bus from Kyoto Station drops you into a narrow valley of cedar and maple, with the Kiyotaki River running below the road. It is the first of the sanbi, the "three o": Takao, Makinoo and Toganoo, three spots a short way apart up the valley, each with a temple. Jingo-ji sits above Takao at the top of a long flight of stone steps. Saimyo-ji at Makinoo was founded between 824 and 834 by Chisen, a disciple of Kukai, as a branch of Jingo-ji. Kozan-ji stands in the cedars at Toganoo. All three are within walking distance of each other, and many visitors walk the whole stretch.

Down at the river, the inns build kawadoko, wooden dining platforms over the water, from spring into autumn. Momiji-ya, an inn here since 1907, reaches its riverside annex, Kawa-no-Iori, across its own small suspension footbridge over the Kiyotaki, marked on maps as Momiji-bashi. The bridge belongs to the inn.

The maples are why most people come. Kyoto's tourist association gives the usual peak as around 10 November at Saimyo-ji, early to late November at Jingo-ji and mid to late November at Kozan-ji. On autumn weekends JR Bus may add extra buses, outbound in the morning and back to the city in the afternoon. Buses are the only public transport, so check the times back before you set off.

With more time, follow the river downstream on the Tokai Nature Trail to the village of Kiyotaki, 4 km and about 80 minutes on Kyoto Prefecture's trail map, and on to Ochiai near JR Hozukyo Station. Buses run from Kiyotaki to Arashiyama. The prefecture warns that its printed trail maps are about ten years old, so check the route first. On the ride out, Hiraoka Hachimangu shrine by the Hiraoka Hachimanmae stop opens its painted flower ceiling in autumn; in 2026 the viewing runs from 18 September to 30 November.