One Day in Kyoto – Bamboo Forest, Fushimi Inari and Kiyomizu-dera

Helen Foster
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I need to start this by saying that one day is not enough to do Kyoto justice, but if that’s all you have, here’s how to spend one day in Kyoto – and see the three most famous sights: the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Kiyomizu-Dera, and Fushimi Inari.

I’m starting the day at Arashiyama, and it’s famous bamboo grove, but you could swap the day around and start at Fushimi Inari if that works better for you; I’ll explain how at the end of the post.

The earlier you can start your day, the better. While you might only want to see these three big sights, it would be a shame not to explore the areas around them, especially around Kiyomizu-Dera, which is close to one of the prettiest areas of Kyoto.

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I’d suggest allowing at least nine hours in Kyoto to do all of the following – travel time to and from your hotel would be on top of that, so expect a long day. The least time you need to visit all three sites would be 6-7 hours in Kyoto, maybe less if you use taxis or hire a driver – but you’ll literally be arriving, taking photos and leaving.

This plan is easier to enjoy in summer, as there is more daylight to allow early starts or evening exploring. If you’re coming in winter, when sunset in Kyoto is around 5 p.m., you’ll need to be at Fushimi Inari by 3.30 pm to explore some of it in daylight.

Lastly, I need to warn you that you will be spending a lot of time crisscrossing Kyoto on trains during this day, but there’s no way around that; Arashiyama and Fushimi Inari are on opposite sides of Kyoto!

Right now all the housekeeping is out of the way, let’s get on with planning your day.

Start in Arashiyama

Get here by 9 a.m latest. Allow 2 hours for sightseeing.

Head to Arashiyama on the train. There are a few different routes to get here, but the closest stations to the entrance to the Bamboo Forest are Arashiyama Station on the Randen Line or Saga Arashiyama on the Sanin Line. The Hankyu Line is a little further away, but the walk from the station will take you over Kyoto’s pretty bridge. Only use this station if you have plenty of time, though.

Enter the Bamboo Forest and take all the pictures your heart desires.

At the end of the pathway, you’ll find the Okochi Sanso Garden, one of Kyoto’s highlights, especially in autumn. If you don’t have time to fit it in and the autumn foliage is on display, at least take time to detour through the park to the nearby Arashiyama Park Observation Deck, where you’ll get the most stunning view.

Other things that are easy to visit nearby include Tenryu-ji Shrine and the arty Kimono Forest, both close to Arashiyama Randen Station.

Arashiyama to Kiyomizu-dera

Get here around noon. Allow 2-3 hours for sightseeing

It will take you about 80 minutes to get from Arashiyama to Kiyomizu-dera. You can do it a little under an hour (train times willing) if you get either the Randen Line to Shijo Omiya Station, or the Sanin Line to Kyoto Station and get a taxi to the shrine.

It will be busy by the time you get there, but allow an hour to walk around the temple precinct and enjoy the views from the expansive deck.

The famous decki at Kiyomizudera temple in Kyoto

Then, spend an hour or two exploring the Higashiyama area nearby. The streets lined with wooden buildings in the famous Kyoto photos are called Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka. They will be bustling with shoppers, but if the crowds get to you, take a step off to one of the side streets, and things will be much quieter.

Everywhere around here is atmospheric and beautiful, so you won’t miss out by not being on the main roads. Some of my favorite places hidden around here include the Yasaka Koshindo Temple, which has pretty pom-poms.

You’ll also get a nice view of the pagoda near here. Also, if you decide after reading this that trying to do all three of these sights in one day is a bit much, the bamboo grove in Kodai-ji temple in this area is very similar to Arashiyama. Seeing that instead will free up time and remove a lot of stress from your day.

Higashiyama would be a good place to grab lunch, but don’t expect to linger too long over it!

Wind your way through the streets toward either Kiyomizu-Gojo or Gion Shijo Stations. In winter, you’ll need to reach the station by about 3.30 pm to see some of Fushimi Inari in daylight. If it’s summer, you won’t need to rush as much.

Kiyomizu-dera to Fushimi Inari

Arrive at least one hour before sunset. Allow 1-2 hours, depending on how far you walk into the tunnel of gates.

The train from the stations above takes less than 15 minutes to reach Fushimi Inari Station, and then it’s a 4-minute walk to the start of the shrine complex.

From here, you have the rest of the evening to explore the shrine and its trail of torii gates at your leisure, as Fushimi Inari is open 24 hours a day. But while the gates might not close, note that as darkness falls, it can get a bit spooky up there, and you need to watch out for animals.

If you’re traveling alone or have mobility issues, turn back on the trail at a point where you can walk back to the main shrine area before it gets too dark. Don’t expect to do the whole 5k loop through all the gates on this itinerary—that takes 3-5 hours, depending on your speed and how many photos you take.

Once you’ve seen enough, head back to Fushimi Inari Station or the nearby Inari Station to return to your hotel. It will take about 70-80 minutes to get back to Osaka, and there are many different routes. Google Maps will help you find the best one to get you to your hotel. If you want to grab dinner on the way back, there are a lot of restaurants around Kyoto Station.

Alternative Routes

The disadvantage of trying to do these three incredibly popular sights in one day is that you’re going to encounter crowds in at least one of them, so you might be wondering how you could change things around if you’d prefer to see Kiyomizu-Dera or Fushimi Inari when it’s quiet and not worry too much about beating the crowds at the Bamboo Forest.

If You Want to Start at Kiyomizu-Dera

The temple precinct opens at 6 am, and the crowds start building around 9 am, so aim to get there before then. If you’re coming from Osaka, come on a route that will take you to Kyoto Station and jump in a taxi from there to get here faster.

If you are traveling at the weekend, you can also take the 100 or 101 buses that aim at tourists and go from the station straight to a stop right by Kiyomizu-dera.

If you want to beat the crowds on the slopes, get here before the shops open. However, you’re unlikely to find them deserted unless you are here very early. Everyone is wise to that now, and photographers trying to get the famous pagoda view without crowds can get into position as early as 5 a.m!

From Kyomizu-dera, follow the transport directions above to Fushimi Inari and see the shrine. Then, head to Inari Station to catch the Nara line back to Kyoto Station. Then take the Sanin Line to Saga Arashiyama, where you can walk to the Bamboo Forest. Crowds drop off here around 5 pm, so if it’s a summer day, coming here in the early evening might see fewer people.

Make sure you’re here before dark in winter, though. Unlike Fushimi Inari, which takes on an ethereal vibe at night, the bamboo grove doesn’t benefit from darkness. The exception is during the annual Arashiyama Lantern Festival, when 2500 lamps light Arashiyama, including the Bamboo Forest walkway. This is worth seeing, although expect crowds.

Starting at Fushimi Inari

Arrive here as early as you can; the crowds start to build by 9 a.m. Spend up to 2 hours here.

From here, either head to Inari Station and take the Nara Line to Kyoto Station, then the Sanin Line to Saga Arashiyama and see the Bamboo Forest—the journey will take about an hour. Again, you can spend up to 2 hours here.

Then, head back into town via the Sanin line to visit Higashiyama and Kiyomizu-dera. The shrine closes at 6 p.m., but crowds drop off about an hour before closing.

You could then spend an evening exploring the Gion geisha district or the pretty Pontocho Alley before heading back to your hotel.

Or, after Fushimi Inari, take the Keihan Line to Kiyomizu-Gojo, explore Kiyomizu-dera and spend some time in Higashiyama.

You can wind your way through Gion to Kyoto Kawaramachi Station, then head over to Arashiyama via the Hankyu Line. Or, return to Kyoto Station and take the Sanin Line to Saga Arashiyama to see the Bamboo Forest.

So that’s how to see the big three sights in Kyoto in one day. It will be rushed, you might get indigestion, and you won’t see a tenth of what the city has to offer, but maybe it will tempt you to come back and spend more time here in the future.

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