Arashiyama– category –
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Adashino Nenbutsuji: Kyoto’s Temple of 8,000 Silent Stones
Temple fatigue is real. Ask anyone on day four of a Kyoto itinerary. The gold of Kinkakuji, the raked gravel of Ryoanji, the wooden stage of Kiyomizu. All beautiful, and after a while the beauty starts sliding off you like rain off a goo... -
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove: A Local’s Guide to Seeing It Empty
Why do people photograph bamboo? I ask myself this every time I come to the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove. I grew up in Shizuoka, where my parents' land holds more bamboo than anyone knows what to do with. For me, photographing bamboo is rough... -
Otagi Nenbutsuji: 1,200 Moss-Covered Statues and the Secret Carved on Their Backs
The grand vermilion torii of Mount Atago stands about five minutes on foot below the temple gate, at the top of the Saga Toriimoto preserved street. On this particular morning, for the first time in all my visits, there was not a single ... -
Ryoanji: Kyoto’s Famous Rock Garden and the Fifteen Stones You Can’t See
I wasn't trying to eavesdrop. The guide's voice simply carried. "Queen Elizabeth once praised the rock garden at Ryoanji," he was telling a cluster of students. "Before that, nobody paid this temple any attention. Then, overnight, it was... -
Nison-in Temple: The Twin Buddha Sanctuary of Arashiyama
Nisonin Temple sits at the foot of Mount Ogura, and most visitors walk right past it. They come to Arashiyama for the Bamboo Grove, for Togetsukyo Bridge, for the crush of selfie sticks and rickshaws. But keep walking north through the q... -
Daikakuji Temple: A Local’s Guide to Kyoto’s Imperial Saga
Most visitors to Arashiyama never make it this far north. They turn left at the bamboo grove, loop past Tenryuji, cross the Togetsukyo Bridge, and call it a day. Their loss. Daikakuji sits twenty minutes on foot from the crowds — far eno... -
Gioji Temple Kyoto: The Moss Garden Guide | Arashiyama
Gioji Temple is a small nunnery tucked into the far reaches of Sagano, in the northwest of Arashiyama. It is best known for two things: its connection to the Tale of the Heike, and a garden carpeted almost entirely in moss. Few places in... -
Jojakkoji: Arashiyama’s Quiet Temple of Eternal Light
I first came to Jojakkoji in the autumn of 2025, on a photographers-only early-entry program — a limited number of visitors allowed onto the grounds before 9 a.m. The photographer next to me told me he'd been waiting years for something ... -
Saihō-ji (Kokedera): Why I Visited Kyoto’s Moss Temple on the Rainiest Day I Could Find
On Thursday, June 4, 2026, Kyoto's rainy season officially began. The first Sunday after the announcement called for rain from morning until night. That was the Sunday I booked my visit to Saihō-ji. No reasonable person deliberately choo... -
Hogonin Temple: Arashiyama’s Spring and Autumn Garden
Most temples in Kyoto keep their gates open year-round. Hogonin does not. This sub-temple of Tenryu-ji opens to the public only twice a year — once in spring, once in autumn. The rest of the year, you can walk past its gate without reali...
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