Kyoto
About Kyoto
Kyoto was Japan's imperial capital for over a millennium and remains its cultural soul. Seventeen UNESCO World Heritage sites, 1,600 Buddhist temples, and 400 Shinto shrines are compressed into a city that somehow also has buzzing nightlife, cutting-edge cuisine, and the world's most photogenic bamboo grove. The geiko (geisha) of Gion are the last living practitioners of a performing art that dates to the 17th century. In spring, 55,000 cherry trees turn the city pink; in autumn, the maple forests of Arashiyama burst into crimson and gold.
Key Facts
Regions
Gion
Kyoto's famous geisha district — cobbled lanes, wooden machiya townhouses, and the chance to spot a geiko at dusk.
Arashiyama
Bamboo groves, monkey park, the Togetsukyo Bridge, and temple gardens on the western edge of the city.
Higashiyama
The preserved historic district — Kiyomizudera Temple, Sannenzaka stone steps, and craft shops selling matcha everything.