{"id":2438,"date":"2026-10-23T14:52:04","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T14:52:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thejapanpro.com\/blog\/?p=2438"},"modified":"2026-10-23T14:52:19","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T14:52:19","slug":"higashiyama-kyoto-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thejapanpro.com\/blog\/fr\/higashiyama-kyoto-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Higashiyama Kyoto Guide 2026: Kiyomizu-dera to Yasaka in 6 Stops, Without the Crowds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Higashiyama Kyoto<\/strong> is the hillside of old wooden streets that runs from Kiyomizu-dera down to Yasaka Shrine, and the best way to see it is on foot, downhill, starting before 8am. Kyoto City’s own tourism site puts the walking time between the main stops at about 30 minutes in total, so the walk itself is short; the crowds are what eat your day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This guide is built around that problem. It gives you a crowd clock for the day, the fastest way up the hill in autumn 2026 (when Kyoto City is changing bus stops), then each stop in walking order: Kiyomizu-dera, Sannenzaka, the Yasaka Pagoda, Ninenzaka, Kodai-ji and Ishibe-koji. Gion itself is covered in our Gion-Shijo station guide<\/a>, so this one stops at its doorstep.<\/p>\n\n\n

\u00a5500<\/p>

Kiyomizu-dera, adult<\/p><\/div>

6:00<\/p>

Kiyomizu-dera opens daily<\/p><\/div>

21\u201330 Nov<\/p>

Kiyomizu-dera night viewing 2026<\/p><\/div>

23 Oct\u201313 Dec<\/p>

Kodai-ji night viewing 2026<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n

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\"Higashiyama
Yasaka-dori and the Yasaka Pagoda at dawn. Photo: Basile Morin<\/a> \/ Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n\n

When is Higashiyama Kyoto least crowded?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Early morning, by a wide margin. Kiyomizu-dera opens its gates at 6:00 every day of the year, three hours before most of the hillside wakes up. Tour groups and bus crowds arrive mid-morning: for autumn weekends, Kyoto City is running extra buses at 3\u20134 minute intervals in the 9:00\u201311:00 rush from Kyoto Station to this area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use the opening times below to plan the day. They are the official times for autumn 2026 unless marked otherwise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Time<\/th>What opens or closes<\/th>What it means for you<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
6:00<\/td>Kiyomizu-dera gates open<\/td>The stage and Otowa waterfall at their quietest<\/td><\/tr>
About 8:00<\/td>Kiyomizu-dera amulet and goshuin offices<\/td>Collect a temple stamp before the queue forms<\/td><\/tr>
8:00<\/td>Starbucks Ninenzaka Yasaka Chaya<\/td>The first proper coffee on the slopes<\/td><\/tr>
9:00<\/td>Kodai-ji opens (last entry 17:00)<\/td>Head here next while the lanes are still walkable<\/td><\/tr>
9:00\u201311:00<\/td>Peak bus arrivals from Kyoto Station<\/td>Be walking downhill, not queuing uphill<\/td><\/tr>
10:00\u201315:00<\/td>Yasaka Pagoda interior open (irregular closures)<\/td>A short window: plan it around midday<\/td><\/tr>
17:00<\/td>Kodai-ji light-up begins (to 22:00, 23 Oct\u201313 Dec 2026)<\/td>The best evening option in late autumn<\/td><\/tr>
18:00<\/td>Kiyomizu-dera closes (21:30 from 21\u201330 Nov 2026)<\/td>Night viewing only on those ten nights<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kyoto City also publishes a live camera for Nene-no-michi and a congestion forecast for the Gion and Kiyomizu area on its tourism site<\/a>. Check both before you set off on a weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you get to Higashiyama Kyoto: bus, train or walking?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you are staying near Gion or Kawaramachi, walk. From Kyoto Station, take a seat-guaranteed bus or the subway rather than the regular number 206 or 100, which fill up fast in autumn. Here are the realistic options for late 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Option<\/th>Route<\/th>Fare<\/th>When it runs<\/th>Le meilleur pour<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Walk from Keihan Gion-Shijo<\/td>Yasaka Shrine, Nene-no-michi, Ninenzaka, Sannenzaka (the route below, in reverse)<\/td>Free<\/td>Any time<\/td>Staying in Gion or Kawaramachi<\/td><\/tr>
Walk from Keihan Kiyomizu-Gojo<\/td>Gojo-dori, then up Gojozaka or Chawanzaka<\/td>Free<\/td>Any time<\/td>Going straight to Kiyomizu-dera; about 25 minutes<\/td><\/tr>
City bus 207 from Shijo-Kawaramachi or Gion-Shijo<\/td>To Kiyomizu-michi stop, then a 10-minute walk<\/td>\u00a5230<\/td>Daily<\/td>Short hop if you cannot face the hill<\/td><\/tr>
City bus 206 or 100 from Kyoto Station<\/td>To Gojozaka, then a 10-minute walk<\/td>\u00a5230<\/td>Daily<\/td>Off-peak weekdays only<\/td><\/tr>
Tourist express bus EX100 \/ EX101<\/td>Kyoto Station to Gojozaka (EX100 continues to Gion, Heian Shrine and Ginkaku-ji)<\/td>\u00a5500 adult, \u00a5250 child<\/td>Saturdays, Sundays and holidays<\/td>Weekend days from Kyoto Station<\/td><\/tr>
Okoshi Bus “Kiyomizu-dera Line” (Keihan Bus)<\/td>Kyoto Station to Gojozaka, 16 trips a day, every passenger seated<\/td>\u00a5500 adult, \u00a5250 child<\/td>Weekdays, 1 Jul 2026\u201329 Jan 2027 (not 29\u201331 Dec or 4 Jan)<\/td>Weekday days from Kyoto Station<\/td><\/tr>
Subway to Higashiyama Station<\/td>Karasuma Line to Karasuma Oike, change to Tozai Line, exit 2<\/td>\u00a5260<\/td>Daily<\/td>Doing the walk north to south instead<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Fares and routes are from Kiyomizu-dera’s access page<\/a>, Kyoto City Transportation Bureau<\/a>, Keihan<\/a> and Kyoto City’s tourism site<\/a>. City buses and the express buses take IC cards; the express buses also accept the subway and bus one-day pass (\u00a51,100 adult, \u00a5550 child).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What changes on the buses in autumn 2026?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Kyoto City announced its autumn measures on 23 October 2026. They run on Saturdays and holidays from 31 October to 29 November, with the heaviest days on 21\u201323, 28 and 29 November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n