Choosing the right hotel, ryokan, or other place to stay in Kyoto is important—not from the perspective of having a comfortable bed and the most high-tech toilet (although having the right temperature of heated seat is important), but primarily due to location. (Last updated July 16, 2019.)

No matter how long you’re staying in Kyoto, you will not have enough time. This is something we’ve stressed in our posts about Kyoto, and it bears reiterating. There are such a high number of compelling temples, shrines, and other points of interest that it’s impossible to see it all during a single visit.

We’ve visited Kyoto multiple times over the last several years, and have stayed at several hotels, ryokan, and Airbnb rentals. In this post, we’ll make specific recommendations concerning where to stay within Kyoto, offer a few specific and generalized hotel recommendations, and offer the pros and cons of staying at a ryokan or Airbnb rental.

Let’s start with location, as this is going to be important regardless of the style of accommodations you choose. If you’re visiting Kyoto for 2 days or less, I’d recommend extending your visit. But seriously, in that case, you should determine which region of the city appeals to you most, and choose a place that is convenient to those points of interest.

In 2 days or less, you are not going to be able to see it all, so it’s best to not even try. Instead of criss-crossing the city, wasting time in the process, pinpoint an area. See as much as humanly possible in that area, and save everything else for a future trip.

In this case, my recommendation is staying near Inari (more on that below), which provides convenient access to Fushimi Inari, and relatively easy access to Higashiyama. If there are other things in Kyoto that pique your interest more, consider a different location. There aren’t any “wrong” answers here.

If you’re staying 3 days or longer, I think choosing a location near a transportation hub makes more sense, as this enables you easy access to all of the regions of Kyoto. The obvious pick here is Kyoto Station, which is Kyoto’s main artery for transportation. Not only is it easy to get anywhere in the city from here, but it’s easy to get to Osaka and Tokyo from here.

We also are really fond of staying just north of Kiyomizu-Gojo Station in the south part of Gion. We’ve done this twice now, in the exact same Airbnb, which is pictured above. We’ll likely return to this Airbnb, as it works perfectly for our needs.

For one, the Gion area is lovely, and being at its southern edge is cheaper and away from the touristy area where the hordes flock. Second, it’s convenient to the Keihan Line, which is our favorite railway line in Kyoto. Finally, it’s an easy walk to the Higashiyama District. As discussed below, we also like staying near Fushimi Inari for similar reasons.

Okay, now let’s break down the various types of places to stay, starting with hotels…

Hotels

Beyond location, one thing you have to consider with regard to hotels is whether they are Japanese or western style accommodations. While this is true no matter where you go in Japan, the two most popular tourist spots in Japan are Tokyo and Kyoto, and the former has far more western chains that offer familiar accommodations to Americans.

In Kyoto, western chains are far less common. There are a few popular hotels, such as the Hyatt Regency Kyoto (pictured above), which earns bonus points from us due to its location in Higashiyama. Another option in this same general (desirable) area is the Westin Miyaka Kyoto.

There’s also the Ritz-Carlton Kyoto in this same area, which is one of the nicest Ritz Carlton hotels in the world. If you’re a real high-roller, Four Seasons Kyoto (pictured at the top of the post) is superlative. Soon, the Park Hyatt Kyoto will open in the best location of all–the heart of Higashiyama. You can see our Park Hyatt Kyoto Photos & Preview for more info on that big addition.

Kyoto Century Hotel, or as I call it “Lamp Shrine Inn,” is one specific hotel at which we’ve stayed that really sticks out to me as being good, both in terms of location and quality (the top photo of the giant lamp is its lobby…hence the moniker). It’s about a 5-minute walk from Kyoto Station, which is about as close as you can get. Like many hotels in Japan, the exterior is fairly nondescript, but the inside is nice and the rooms are a cross between Japanese and western styles.

There are a lot of other hotels in Kyoto that offer western style rooms, and my only general advice beyond the above is to not be tempted by ones that are downtown. In Kyoto, downtown is not the best place to stay. Fortunately, most of the nice hotels that pitch themselves as downtown are actually near Kyoto Station or Higashiyama. (I think they probably realize there’s allure to “downtown” for foreign visitors.) If you’re looking for a hotel beyond what we’ve listed, just consult a map and make sure the location is good.

Ryokan

A ryokan is a traditional style of Japanese accommodation that originated during the Edo period, when such inns served wayward travelers en route from place to place. They exist today as something between a remnant and an homage to the past.

They typically feature tatami-matted rooms, traditional yukata for guests to wear, and common spaces for guests to interact with other patrons and the owner. They also sometimes (but not always) feature communal baths (the idea of this was extremely awkward to me at first, but I’ve come around). Due to the more spacious nature of the ryokan, it’s typically something you’ll only find outside of Tokyo.

Now, it wouldn’t surprise me if some of you took one look at the above photo and instantly ruled out the ryokan. Perhaps the bedding looks uncomfortable or the idea of sleeping on the floor turns you off. Or, maybe you are like me and don’t like the idea of going full frontal in front of a bunch of strangers.

Well, let me “reassure” you: the bedding is about as comfortable as a normal hotel mattress in Japan and…well, at least you won’t get hurt falling out of bed? Also, the public nudity thing is something you get over quickly once you realize no one cares about what you look like naked. (Or perhaps that’s just me…) In any case, many ryokan have private bathroom options for “shy” tourists.

In all seriousness, before you rule out the ryokan, give it serious thought and look at some of the options. We consider the ryokan to be one of the quintessential Japanese experiences, and it’s definitely worth trying to get over some of your hesitations for this. If the idea of a ryokan is a non-starter, you probably should stick to an American chain in Kyoto. Japanese preferences favor firm mattresses, and we’ve had some that make ryokan pads feel like floating in a floor-level cloud by comparison.

Machiya

Machiya are traditional wooden townhouses that are iconic to Kyoto and probably what you picture when thinking of a traditional Japanese townhome. Machiya were popular with Kyotoites in the last century, up until around the post-World War II development boom in Japan that resulted in more ugly concrete towers (to put it charitably).

Many machiya survive today, and there has been a concerted effort in recent years to restore and redevelop machiya, and even build new structures in this classic style. Machiya continue to serve as homes to Kyoto residents, while others have been converted to vacation rentals, shops, and restaurants. There’s even a Starbucks in one converted machiya!

Machiya interior design is quintessentially Japanese. Inside, you’ll find tatami mat floors, minimalist decor, fusuma doors/screens separating rooms (which sometimes serve dual purposes), and exposed wood. The design of machiya is deceptively simple, but like most Japanese design, there are many pleasing details that make the spaces lovely and inviting.

We’ve stayed in a variety of machiya throughout Japan, and highly recommend the experience. In Kyoto, most machiya are found in Gion and Higashiyama, which are great areas of the city. (You’ll also find some in Arashiyama, but we don’t recommend that part of Kyoto quite as enthusiastically.)

Best of all, you can book machiya via Airbnb or your preferred hotel booking site. In both cases, you’ll pay a bit of a premium over non-machiya accommodations, but we’d argue that it’s worth the money for the unique, distinctly Japanese experience. We’d recommend going the Airbnb route over booking a machiya hotel. Speaking of which…

Airbnb Rental

Pretty much whenever we travel internationally, we check out prices on Airbnb–particularly if we are visiting during a busier season. In Japan, we’ve visited during sakura season (cherry blossoms), fall foliage, and Golden Week, and have thus encountered high hotel prices. Instead of paying those rates, we looked to Airbnb. In case you’re unfamiliar with Airbnb, we have a post on our Disney blog that discusses our Tips for Using Airbnb and provides some general background.

We prefer Airbnb to booking hotels because it gives us the option for a much larger room, usually an entire apartment. Japanese hotel rooms (that are not Western chains) tend to be very small, and using Airbnb is the best way to avoid this issue. A lot of Airbnb flats are “ryokan style” in terms of the guest quarters, which also provides a slice of authentic culture. (If this isn’t for you, just made sure to get an Airbnb with proper beds–a variety of styles are available.)

Obviously, the lower price is the biggest selling point of Airbnb. It’s also nice that many rentals can accommodate larger parties without an extra per person charge (as is common in Japan). Plus, Airbnb hosts often include free MiFi so you can use the internet on the go. We’ve had some fun experiences staying at unique Airbnb locations throughout Japan and really cannot recommend it highly enough. You can also use my sign-up link for a free credit your first time using Airbnb!

We’ve had several excellent Airbnb experiences in Kyoto, including two month-long stays (one near Kyoto Station, the other near Fushimi Inari). For a longer trip with side trips elsewhere in the Kansai region, we’d recommend being near Kyoto Station or in Gion. For a short 2-3 day trip, the Fushimi Inari area is absolutely perfect.

I don’t like visiting Kyoto for fewer than 3 days, but if we ever have another short stay in Kyoto, I’d book the Fushimi Inari Airbnb we’ve used in the past once more. (The one we rented is pictured above. If anyone wants more info on this unit, let me know in the comments–I’ll dig up our reservation details.)

Of course, you don’t necessarily need to rent this same unit–the general location is good enough. I like this area because Kiyomizu-Gojo and Inari are both on the Keihan Line (separated by 4 stops), making it convenient to accomplish everything along the spine of the Higashiyama mountains, starting with Philosphers’ Path and ending with Kiyomizu-dera Temple. You can then do Fushimi Inari late at night, or early the next morning.

This works because Fushimi Inari is one of the few spots in Kyoto that is open 24/7. If you have limited time in Kyoto, doing Fushimi Inari early in the morning or late in the night is pretty much a must. Not only does it allow you to extend your day, but the experiences at Fushimi Inari without crowds are second to none. (We have done Fushimi Inari at sunrise and late at night many times.)

I think that about covers the pitfalls and our recommendations for where to stay in Kyoto, and which kind of accommodations might appeal most to you. I’m guessing I made the decision of where to stay in Kyoto slightly more complicated, but hopefully I didn’t overcomplicate the decision for you. I will say that some “complication” is good here, as it’s easy to make a bad choice when it comes to Kyoto (we did on our first visit!) On the plus side, it’s pretty easy to make a good decision once you have a bit more info–and hopefully this post has set you on the right path!

If you’re planning a visit to Kyoto, Japan, please check out my other posts about Kyoto for ideas of things to do (or not do) while there. Kyoto has a lot of things to see and do, so I also highly recommend the Lonely Planet Kyoto Guide to help better develop an efficient plan while there. 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Kyoto? If so, where did you stay? Would you recommend it? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Questions about specific hotels, ryokan, or Airbnb rentals? If you have experience staying in Kyoto, please share in the comments–more viewpoints will help other readers! If you don’t have experience, feel free to ask any questions you might have in the comments!

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Hyatt is months away from opening its third flagship hotel in Japan with Park Hyatt Kyoto, which is slated to debut on December 1, 2019. We have the latest construction photos of this nearly-completed resort and commentary about Park Hyatt Kyoto, which promises to be a great use of points.

As regular visitors to Japan and Hyatt enthusiasts, we’re incredibly excited about Park Hyatt Kyoto. As you can read in our Park Hyatt Tokyo Review, our experience there was superlative–one of our best hotel stays ever. This newer property promises a more interesting ‘traditional meets modern’ style and likely will have even better omotenashi, Japan’s renowned hospitality philosophy. Suffice to say, Park Hyatt Kyoto has the realistic potential to be one of the best hotels in the world.

However, Park Hyatt Kyoto is not for everyone. We want to get this out of the way right off the bat. If it’s your first visit to the historic city, staying in a traditional ryokan or restored machiya is arguably a must-do experience. (We cover this in our Where to Stay in Kyoto, Japan guide.) With that said, if you’re using Kyoto as a Kansai home base for 4 or more days, doing a split stay with a couple of nights at Park Hyatt Kyoto could be a very appealing option…

Next, let’s talk location.

Park Hyatt Kyoto has a great location near Kodaiji Temple (below), which is a short and lovely walk from Kiyomizudera Temple in the historic Higashiyama district. We spend more time in this area of Kyoto than anywhere else, and walked past Park Hyatt Kyoto a half-dozen times on our most recent trip to Japan.

This is far and away the most interesting location of any luxury hotel in Kyoto. How Hyatt managed to score this prime piece of real estate is beyond me, but the views of Yasaka Pagoda (below) and the rest of Higashiyama are incredible.

Stepping out of the resort and right up the steps of Ninenzaka will be an incredible experience, immersed in the heart of Kyoto’s historic side.

That’s the upside. The downside is that Park Hyatt Kyoto is not conveniently located to any subway or rail lines, and the buses that service this area are notoriously crowded (to the point that we actively avoid them).

You’re looking at about a 15 minute walk to Gion-Shijo or Higashiyama Stations. It’s a nice walk, but still far from ideal.

In fairness, the target audience for Park Hyatt Kyoto may be more inclined to take a taxi or private car everywhere (we think that’s a mistake if you want to experience the real Kyoto, but that’s another topic for another day).

In any event, it’s a pleasant walk through a nice area and offers access to both the Keihan Line (our favorite rail line in Kyoto) and the Tozai Subway, so at least there’s that.

The last few years have seen a boom in Kyoto hotel properties, with several noteworthy foreign luxury properties opening hotels. The Ritz Carlton Kyoto opened about 5 years ago (and is one of the nicest Ritz Carltons in the world), Starwood’s Suiran Luxury Collection Hotel opened a year later, and Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto followed that another year later.

One month before Park Hyatt Kyoto opens, Aman Kyoto will open on the exact other side of the city, just north of Golden Pavilion. These new high end properties join the likes of older (yet reliable) favorites such as Westin Miyako Kyoto Hotel and Hyatt Regency Kyoto.

Park Hyatt Kyoto will be a boutique hotel, with 70 guest rooms, including nine suites. Standard rooms at Park Hyatt Kyoto are 485 square feet and standard suites are 732 square feet.

Interiors are being designed by renowned hospitality designer Tony Chi. For such a small hotel, the property looks incredibly large–it’ll be interesting to see how the finished product makes use of its space.

Current rates for Park Hyatt Kyoto are over $700/night, with rates during cherry blossom and fall colors seasons, plus other holidays like Golden Week, expected to go for far more. While Kyoto tends to be cheaper than Tokyo on the low end, this is about par for the course with the city’s higher tier hotels.

Park Hyatt Kyoto is a Category 7 World of Hyatt property, which puts a free night at 30,000 points. Accordingly, this will be an excellent use of points. Between this, the limited number of rooms, and high demand during peak seasons, we’d recommend booking Park Hyatt Kyoto early.

Another interesting thing Hyatt is doing that we haven’t seen from other luxury Western brands is partnering with an established, traditional name in the city.

Park Hyatt Kyoto will be located within the grounds of Higashiyama’s famed Kyo-Yamato Restaurant, which used to be part of a sub-temple.

We’ve yet to dine at Kyo-Yamato (京大和), but the family-run location is hundreds of years old and is renowned in Japan for its kyo-ryori kaiseki cuisine.

This gives Park Hyatt Kyoto instant credibility and gravitas, and should help to make it feel less like a modern luxury chain jarringly plopped into this historic area. The seamless look of the hotel’s exterior design should also help with that.

As we’ve noted elsewhere, tourism to Kyoto has surged in the last 5-plus years, and this trend should only continue with the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics expected to provide another boost in numbers.

While it’s great to see more people enjoying Kyoto, which is our favorite city in the world, the downside of this is that it’s caused prices to surge and overcrowding to occur at popular temples.

Of course, with such a low room count, the Park Hyatt Kyoto is going to be an expensive property regardless of tourism trends. The greater tourism trends are a double-edged sword here.

Park Hyatt Kyoto is a stone’s throw from one of the most congested areas of the city, but it’s sufficiently isolated so that shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

Moreover, the streets of the Higashiyama District totally clear out at night and the place becomes a veritable ghost town, even on busy days. One of our favorite things to do in Kyoto is walk this area at sunrise or late in the evenings, it’s absolutely beautiful and serene. This is difficult to do if you’re staying in other areas of the city, but will be perfect for guests staying at Park Hyatt Kyoto.

Additionally, walking north of Park Hyatt Kyoto leads to Philosopher’s Path and a number of hidden gem temples that are perpetually devoid of crowds, even during peak seasons. In case you can’t tell, we’re pretty excited to stay here, and plan to book something for later this year or early next. We’ll report back with a full review once we do!

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Does staying at Park Hyatt Kyoto appeal to you, or would you prefer to book more traditional accommodations in the city? If you’re a Kyoto veteran, would you recommend Park Hyatt Kyoto to a first-timer visiting Japan? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

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Kyoto is incredibly easy to explore by public transport (trains, subways, buses and taxis) or under your own steam (by bicycle or walking). This is a guide to getting around Kyoto, with information on the best way to get to each part of the city. It covers things like our favorite railway lines in the city, using the Japan Rail Pass in Kyoto (or not), and other random tips for Kyoto transit.

The first thing you need to know is that you don’t need to know most of this. We live in the era of smartphones and Google Maps, so mastering Kyoto’s transportation network is no longer a strict necessary (unless you don’t have a smartphone). It’s definitely a good idea to skim this post to gain a working understanding of how the moving parts of Kyoto’s public transportation interface with one another.

You don’t want to be a dummy staring blankly at your phone and following it anywhere it leads you, pulling a Michael Scott and walking into a lake because the GPS tells you to do it. You also don’t need to study Kyoto transportation maps intensively prior to your trip as if you might have a pop quiz on the topic at any moment. Basically, I’m saying that while other planning resources treat transportation as very important, I view that perspective as antiquated. You can pretty much gloss over this topic…

I love a lot of things about Kyoto and am not shy about sharing them, but its train and subway network is not one of those things. As compared to many other large cities in Japan, Kyoto seems to have far fewer subway and train stations near major points of interest. Rather, it feels like Kyoto’s transportation network is more geared towards its commuters trying to get to and from work (which is totally fine, but as a tourist, you should know that going in).

I swear it seems like almost every major temple or attraction is at least a 15 minute walk from the nearest station, and in some cases, it’s so far that you have to take a bus. It also doesn’t help that there are several different companies that operate the railways and subways, which can complicate the transfer process.

With that said, if you’re coming from the United States or another country with subpar public transportation, Kyoto will blow you away as a beacon of simple, efficient, and clean public transportation. For the most part, this is absolutely true. It just feels inferior to other comparable cities in Japan, which is the paragon of public transportation.

It should also be noted that Kyoto Station notwithstanding, most stations in Kyoto have only a handful of tracks, and are easy to navigate. There is English signage in every station and on every train or subway car, making navigation simple. You still might get lost a time or two (it happens to everyone), but it shouldn’t be too intimidating. With that background set, let’s turn to some basic information and tips about Kyoto transportation…

Kyoto Transportation Info

Above is a map of all the subway and railway lines serving Kyoto so you can visualize how all of the various lines wind through Kyoto. Below are some of the lines you’re most likely to use:

• JR Nara Line: Connecting from Kyoto Station to Nara Station with stops in between at Tofukuji, Inari (Fushimi Inari Shrine), Uji (World Heritage Sites). This line is one reason we love staying near Fushimi Inari.
• JR Sagano Line: Connecting Kyoto Station to Arashiyama with a noteworthy stop in Central Kyoto at Nijo Castle. We think this is the best way to access Arashiyama, particularly if you’re on the Japan Rail Pass.
• JR Tokaido-Sanyo (Main) Line: Not to be confused with the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen, the Tokaido-Sanyo Main Line is a regular train connecting Kyoto to Osaka, Kobe, Himeji, and everywhere in between. We love it for day trips.
• Keihan Main Line: Our most-used train in Kyoto, this runs parallel to the Kamo River, with stops at Fushimi Inari, Kiyomizu-gojo, and Gion. Frustratingly, it does not connect to Kyoto Station, but it does offer access some of the attractions in Southern Kyoto (and connects to Osaka).
• Tozai Line: The subway line we use the most, running south-north on the outskirts of town before turning to run west-east at Higashiyama Station.
• Karasuma Line: Kyoto’s other subway line, which runs south-north along Karasuma-dori and stops at JR Kyoto Station.
• Keifuku Railway: Two tram lines in Northwestern Kyoto that are a fun experience and very useful for getting between Arashiyama and Ryoan-ji, Ninna-ji, and Golden Pavilion.
• Eizan Railway: Two “Sightseeing Trains” in Northern Kyoto that are incredibly popular during fall colors season, and are a joy to experience any time. The Kurama Line passes through the famed “Maple Tunnel” and the Main Line leads to Mount Hieizan.

Obviously, if you compare our list to the map above, you can see this list is not comprehensive. You’ll probably use other lines while getting around Kyoto, but we view these as the most “important” (or potentially worthy of making a special trip, in the last case). Several other lines that primarily service Central and Downtown Kyoto are used more heavily by local commuters.

Kyoto Transportation Tips

Before we dig into these tips for ‘hacking’ Kyoto’s transportation network, we should disclose our biases and personal preferences, all of which inform these tips. First and foremost, we love to walk. It’s a great way to explore and get to know any city you visit, and it’s something we highly recommend if you’re physically able. On an average day touring Kyoto, we log about 20,000 steps.

Second, we have an intense disdain for buses (perhaps irrationally so). Even Japan’s clean and timely buses tend to be an unpleasant experience as compared to the subway and trains, so we go out of our way to avoid them. We would rather walk 25 minutes than endure a 12 minute bus ride. Bus stops can also be confusing to the first-time visitor to Kyoto, making walking less stressful.

We are also biased towards the JR Lines. In part, this is probably because we’ve grown accustomed to using them in other cities throughout Japan, and are now familiar with the company. The other reason is because we’ve often activated our Japan Rail Pass (read our Japan Rail Pass Tips & Info post for more on that) in Tokyo before taking the Shinkansen to Kyoto, stayed in Kyoto, and then taken the Shinkansen back to Tokyo.

An alternative to this is flying into Osaka (Kansai – KIX), taking the shorter train ride to Kyoto for that leg of the trip, using the Shinkansen to Tokyo, and then flying out of Tokyo. This is an attractive option if you don’t want to purchase the Japan Rail Pass, are using miles to fly, or somehow find a good deal flying into Osaka.

If you fly into KIX, you’ll want to take the JR Haruka limited express train to Kyoto Station. The good news here is that foreign visitors can purchase an ICOCA card plus half-price Haruka ticket to Kyoto at the JR Ticket Office in the station at KIX. Getting the ICOCA card is convenient and makes getting around the rails in Kyoto more convenient, so it’s really a win-win.

It should be noted that this strategy is far from ideal. JR Lines operates a small portion of the trains in Kyoto, meaning it might make sense to use your Japan Rail Pass before or after Kyoto if you can. The Japan Rail Pass is not valid on Kyoto’s other railways, subways, or buses.

Unfortunately, most of you are probably in a similar situation–activating your Japan Rail Pass for the Tokyo->Kyoto Shinkansen with a 3-5 day stay in Kyoto followed by a return Shinkansen trip–so you’ll be “forced” to find ways to use the JR Lines in Kyoto as much as possible. As such, we skew towards those lines whenever possible.

Our recommendations are absolutely colored by these biases, so if you either disagree with those opinions or need to rely more on public transportation, these tips may not be the best for you. (Fortunately, there are countless other good resources for getting around Kyoto.)

With that said, here are our tips:

• Not so much a transportation tip as a things to do tip, but Kyoto Station is an attraction unto itself. Lots of good shopping, dining (including our favorite, Kyoto Ramen Street–options pictured above), and quirky things to see. Make some time to wander the station–don’t feel bad if you get lost inside it. There are also underground tunnels that run north and south of Kyoto Station for a decent distance, allowing you to stay dry if it’s raining and you’re heading one of those directions.
• Save yourself the headache and buy an IC Card. We have both PASMO and ICOCA, but a variety of others are available. These refillable cards allow you to tap in and out without calculating your fare, and are incredibly convenient. Between the IC cards and Google Maps, transportation in Japan can be a pretty mindless process.
• If you fly into Kansai International Airport, you’ll want to purchase a combo ICOCA card and JR Haruka limited express train ticket for half off the train ticket.
• Often, walking from temple to temple is as efficient than taking public transportation. We typically recommend using public transit to get to your first point of interest, and then walking along an efficient path for most of your day thereafter.
• A variety of 1-day and multi-day “unlimited” transportation passes are sold at the Kyoto Bus Information Center in front of Kyoto Station. These can save you a lot of money if you’d prefer to use the buses. However, unless you intend upon taking the bus between 3+ temples you visit these passes often don’t offer as much value as you might think.
• Buses are incredibly popular during morning and evening rush hours for commuters, so even if you like buses, consider avoiding them at those times.
• If you want to take a day trip to Osaka, Kobe, Himeji and do not have the Japan Rail Pass, use the Tokaido-Sanyo Main Line, which runs regular trains connecting Kyoto to those cities at a fraction of the cost in an efficient timeframe.
• The JR Nara Line offers convenient access to a host of UNESCO World Heritage Sites south of Kyoto, and a day trip to those, culminating with Nara, is an excellent idea if you have time to spare.
• Always look at the fare estimator on Google Maps (it’s almost always accurate), rather than just choosing the fastest option. Transferring between different railway company lines can be more efficient, but double the cost. Taking an extra 5 minutes for a half-price fare might be worth it.
• If you dislike bus transit, as we do, go into Google Maps “Route Options” and select every form of public transportation other than buses. This will prioritize train and subway routes, even if it means more walking.
• Create multi-stop walking itineraries for Google Maps on your computer, and send them to your phone so you have a complete overview of your day.
• We’ve never used bicycles in Kyoto, but it seems like a mixed bag. On side streets in Arashiyama and Higashiyama, they’d be a nice way to get around. Downtown and in Central Kyoto, it’d be terrifying.
• Japan’s taxis are very expensive by Asia standards, but only slightly expensive by U.S. standards. We tend to avoid them, but for a party of 3-4 trying to get to Golden Pavilion in a hurry, for example, they could be a very attractive option.

While we knocked Kyoto’s public transportation at the outset, it should be noted that Kyoto is a relatively compact city. It’s easier to do a walking tour of Kyoto that hits many popular/good points of interest than it is to do the same in Tokyo. While the train network is not as strong in Kyoto, you’re still rarely more than 20 minutes away from a railway/subway station by foot.

The whole transportation network is not particularly intimidating or overwhelming, and aside from Kyoto Station, the stations are pretty easy to use, smaller, and tough to get lost inside. This is a far cry from some of Tokyo’s sprawling stations that are veritable underground cities capable of confounding even the most seasoned travel. You should have a pretty easy time getting around Kyoto, so don’t stress out about it too much.

If you’re planning a visit to the Japan that includes Kyoto, please check out my other posts about Japan. I also highly recommend the Lonely Planet Kyoto Guide to determine everything you should see and do while there.

Your Thoughts

Do you have any experience getting around Kyoto? Which mode of transportation do you prefer? Any “favorite” subway or railway lines? Is our dislike of Kyoto’s buses irrational? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Questions? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!

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This provides info on my favorite things to do in Joshua Tree National Park, and tips for accomplishing it all. Since it’s the closest National Park to Los Angeles (see our Ultimate LA City Guide for more on visiting), Joshua Tree is an easy stop on a California road trip.

For me, this is the great thing about Joshua Tree–it is relatively easy to hit the major highlights in a few hours if that’s what you want to do, but it offers enough beyond the highlights that you could spend serious time in the park if you so desire. This means that there’s really something for everyone.

I’ve made a few trips to Joshua Tree National Park, and this post covers my favorite things that I’ve done there. This is basically a ‘best of’ Joshua Tree National Park list, that focuses on the must-do highlights. It’s aimed at a broad audience–National Park enthusiasts or casual visitors, but only those with limited time…

If you’re looking to spend a significant amount of time (say, 2+ days) in Joshua Tree National Park, I’d highly recommend picking up the Joshua Tree: The Complete Guide, which is basically the “deep cuts” look at the park. That’s the only guide you’ll need for a longer trip; if you’re doing a day trip, skip that book and stick with blog posts like this one.

So what are my top picks for Joshua Tree National Park? Well, I hear they have some pretty trees!

Arch Rock

As the name implies, Arch Rock is a rock formation in the shape of an arch. I believe it was built hundreds of years ago in a collaboration between dinosaurs and cavemen, but that’s just what I heard (from the guitar hippies–see below).

It’s really easy to access from White Tank Campground, being less than a half-mile hike from the trailhead within the campground. It’s great for photographing under the night sky, and is really just cool to see in general. Joshua Tree National Park actually has a lot of cool rock formations (Skull Rock being another), and is also rising in popularity among free climbers. I think that’s crazy, buy hey, to each their own!

Cholla Cactus Garden

Also known as the infamous “Outlaw California Attack Cactus,” the Chollas are public enemy #1–ahead of even bears and Scientologists–as far as I’m concerned. Seriously, while these cacti are beautiful, and doing the short looping trail through the Cholla Cactus Garden is neat, be sure to heed the numerous warnings that you need to stay on the trail because they are dangerous and hazardous to human health.

The little cactus balls (for lack of a better term) have some sort of charge or kinetic energy (#science) causing them to jump and “attack” humans. Four out of the 5 photographers in our group got attacked one evening, and removing those balls from flesh is not fun. I’m not even kidding here. Enjoy the Cholla from the relative safety of the trail.

Camping

Joshua Tree is a cheap and easy place to camp, with three easy places to set up a tent. I love White Tank Campground, which is conveniently located and is in what I think is the most beautiful part of Joshua Tree. This is one of my favorite spots to photograph (Arch Rock is located here), anyway, so camping here makes for the perfect Joshua Tree National Park experience–just watch for rattlesnakes.

It’s $15/night for primitive camp sites in an area with a quiet area with a great view of the night sky, and you can stay for up to 30 days…making this the cheapest way to live in California if you don’t need fancy conveniences like “running water” or “electricity.”

Bonus tip: in one of the campsites (sorry, don’t remember the number) near the entrance, there’s a really photogenic Joshua Tree all by itself with rocks surrounding it. This is my pick for the best campsite and most photogenic tree in the entire park.

Leaning Juniper

At another nearby campground, Jumbo Rocks, there’s a unique Juniper tree near a lone, monolithic rock a short hike above the camp sites. This Juniper tree is defiantly growing out of the rocks, and it’s amazing that it exists in the first place, let alone just happens to be growing in such an awesome spot making for cool photos.

This is a popular spot among photographers visiting Joshua Tree National Park, so even if you come up here in the middle of the night when seemingly no one else is in the park, don’t be surprised if you encounter others up here. This is a pretty small spot and is basically a “one at a time” photo spot, so make sure to bring your patience.

Psychedelic Sunset

In the summer, there are some areas of Joshua Tree National Park that feel like veritable hippy communes. If perching on a rock, strumming on a guitar, and recreating the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test isn’t for you, well, you can still perch on a rock and enjoy the psychedelic colors painting the desert at sunset as the sky slowly transitions to night.

Any time of year, but especially in the summer, the sunset is a sight for sore eyes, as it offers respite from the heat and a break from the sun. Joshua Tree National Park has very little shade, making the sunset–even a dull one photogenically–welcome relief.

JOSHUA TREES!

It probably comes to the surprise of exactly no one that Joshua Tree National Park has a lot of Joshua Trees. The eponymous tree is plentiful here, and simply wandering around marveling at these unique trees is something you can spend a decent amount of time doing.

I’ll admit that this is probably not all that interesting for the native Californians out there. My first experience with Joshua Trees was just outside the Park before my first visit, and I was in awe. I had never seen anything like them. When I got to Joshua Tree National Park itself, I was flat out blown away.

I had seen the desert before, but this was like an alien landscape, with rock formations and Joshua Trees stretching as far as the eye could see. I regaled my California friends with tales of Joshua Tree National Park and its amazing trees upon returning home, and none of them were all that impressed. To each his own, I suppose.

Night Skies

When I’ve visited Joshua Tree National Park, I’ve timed it so I would be there for the full moon and no moon (separate occasions, obviously). The photo immediately above pictures the full moon rise, and on evenings with a full moon, the park is quite bright. On nights with no moon, it’s quite dark.

Unfortunately, despite being (seemingly) in the middle of nowhere, Joshua Tree National Park is not a “dark sky” park on par with Death Valley. The sky is definitely dark, and you can see plenty of stars, but you will notice light pollution on the horizon in some of your shots, which I assume is coming from Palm Springs. On the plus side, this can make some of your night shots almost resemble a sunrise!

That about covers it for my favorite things to do and see in Joshua Tree National Park. I haven’t done a ton of hiking here, mostly because temperatures have been in the 90 to 100 degree range whenever I’ve visited. Nevertheless, Joshua Tree National Park is a great place to spend an afternoon or evening, and it’s a great escape from the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles.

Like I stated at the outset, this is one National Park you could experience pretty quickly, which makes it a great day trip from LA. However, you could also spend a good chunk of time camping here, enjoying the surreal landscape, and disconnecting (cell service is very limited in the park) from the rest of the world. No matter which approach you choose, hopefully this list helps you plan for a better visit to Joshua Tree National Park!

If you’re planning a California road trip or vacation, check out my California category of posts for other things to see and do. If you enjoyed this post, please use the sharing buttons above to help spread the word via social media. I greatly appreciate it! 

Your Thoughts…

Where are your favorite places and things to do in Joshua Tree National Park? Are you impressed by the alien look of this landscape and these crazy trees, or do they not do anything for you? Which of these would you most like to photograph? Favorite sunrise or sunset spots in Joshua Tree? Any questions? Share any thoughts you have in the comments!

The post Things To Do In Joshua Tree National Park appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Our Kyoto, Japan guide offers planning tips & tricks, hotel recommendations, best temples & shrines, transportation hacks, where to eat, crowd info, and more. Before we get to the basics of planning, we’ll share some updates, and why we love Kyoto so much. (Last updated July 21, 2019.)

If you’re already in Kyoto and are scrambling to figure out what to do, scroll down to our “Things to Do” section for our top 25 temples and points of interest in Kyoto. We also offer a bunch of step-by-step itineraries that cover exactly what you need to know for a perfect day in Kyoto; these will take the stress out of trip planning.

We most recently traveled to Japan in July 2019, and have updated this guide accordingly. For more thorough insight into what’s new and what has changed, we highly recommend reading our What’s New for 2019 in Kyoto, Japan post. A lot of renovations, new things, and redevelopments are occurring ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics (yes, even in Kyoto). That also covers crowd patterns, the new Airbnb law, and more…

Before we get started, we should probably get something out of the way: Kyoto is our favorite city in the world, and a place we fell in love with the first time we visited. While we don’t live in Kyoto full-time, we have spent months there over the course of the last several years.

We now travel to Kyoto several times per year to keep our resources on this site current (although in reality, that’s just the excuse to visit the city we love). If you’re still debating whether you should visit Kyoto during a trip to Japan, you should read our Why We Love Kyoto, Japan post, which is our love letter to our favorite city in the world.

Our opinion that Kyoto is the greatest city in the world is hardly unique, but hopefully our perspective is. While we could be described as unofficial cheerleaders for the city, we don’t think our resources are colored by rose glasses. As strongly as we feel about Kyoto, we strive to ‘keep it real’, and make our planning resources more than just glorified ‘advertorials’ for Japan.

We also aim to provide planning advice beyond the superficial ‘best of’ lists. Although visiting popular temples is fun, Kyoto should not be treated as simply a highlight reel of temples. You’ll get so much more out of a visit to the city with a varied mix of major attractions and hidden gems–and encounter fewer crowds in the process.

If you’ve already made the very sage decision to visit Kyoto, our planning guide will help you fill in the details…

Things to Do in Kyoto

We’re going to go a bit out of order here, but we’ve found that most people reading this guide are already in Japan, so we should probably cut to the chase for those of you trying to figure out what to do during your time in Kyoto.

If you’re planning on visiting Kyoto, hopefully you like temples, because that’s the main draw. With that said, there are plenty of other things to do. Although we don’t believe its museums measure up to Tokyo’s, Kyoto does have a fair number of them, and between its niche art museums and independent galleries, Kyoto has a thriving arts community.

Food is another thing. Few cities in the world have as many Michelin-starred restaurants as Kyoto. Great ramen, udon, tempura, and other inexpensive options also abound in Kyoto. The city is famous for tea ceremonies, but it’s the independent coffee scene that’s truly flourishing.

Wandering aimlessly (let’s call it “exploring” to sound more purpose-driven) is another thing to do. Kyoto is a beautiful, quirky city and discovering what makes it tick is part of the fun. That could be bizarre art featuring the human anatomy (which you’re sure to see when walking from Kiyomizudera to Yasaka Pagoda) or an antique shop down a narrow alley.

In our case, it’s petting or photographing feral cats and dogs, selfies with tanuki statues, marveling at meticulously handcrafted signage, and perusing 100 yen stores. The treasures you’ll discover when aimlessly wandering cannot be planned-for, and having your own unique experience is part of the fun.

Kyoto 1-Day to 1-Week Itineraries

If you’re looking for itineraries that combine a little of everything, we have several different itineraries in our 1-Day to 1-Week Kyoto, Japan Itineraries. These offer multi-day itineraries, including several not listed below that are season-specific, as well as single day options that you can combine to see different sides of the city that interest you the most. Here are some of the best ones:

Multi-Day Kyoto Itineraries

• 2-Day Kyoto Highlights Itinerary
• 3-Day Kyoto Itinerary
• 4-Day Kyoto Itinerary
• 5-Day Kyoto Itinerary

Single Day Itineraries:

• 1-Day ‘Best of’ Kyoto Itinerary
• 1-Day Eastern Kyoto Itinerary
• 1-Day Western Kyoto Itinerary
• 1-Day Central Kyoto Itinerary
• 1-Day “Cool Kyoto” (Northern) Itinerary
• 1-Day Southwestern Kyoto Itinerary

Seasonal Itineraries

• 1-Day Kyoto Cherry Blossom Itinerary
• 1-Day Kyoto Fall Colors Highlights Itinerary

If you have the Japan Rail Pass and are interested in venturing beyond Kyoto during your stay in Kansai, we recommend consulting our Japan Itineraries for Kyoto, Tokyo, and Beyond. Obviously, those cover Kyoto and Tokyo, but we also have ones for Nara, Kobe, Osaka, Nagoya, and more.

Debating other day trips from Kyoto? We cover our top recommendations of cities, big and mall, to visit in our Top 10 Kyoto Day Trips list.

These itineraries are heavy on temples (and walking!), but we feel they’re fairly balanced and offer a good sampling of Kyoto’s most interesting points of interest. Part of this is out of necessity (there are over 1,600 temples in Kyoto) and part of it is out of practicality. Temple fatigue is a real thing, and you should be careful to avoid scheduling too many temples into your itinerary because they’ll all start to blur together.

Unless you’re trying to join the high stakes game of temple blogging (it’s every bit as lucrative and glamorous as you’d expect–which is not at all) you should probably aim to visit around one dozen temples during your time in Kyoto. There’s absolutely no reason to see every single major temple in Kyoto. Take a less is more approach and savor your time at each so they make a distinct impression.

Best Temples & Shrines in Kyoto

As there’s an overwhelming number of temples, shrines, and other things to do in Kyoto, we’ve put together the list below of our top 25 options. If you do one of our multi-day itineraries above, you’ll visit many or most of these (depending upon how many days you have).

If you want to build your itinerary itinerary, this list is a good starting point. Choose about a dozen of those, plus a couple of wildcard temples and other things that appeal to you, you’re going to have a great trip.

For those who have more time in Kyoto, or just want something comprehensive, we have a “Top 100 Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan.” Yes, really. We’ve visited over 200 temples and shrines in Kyoto, and the top 52 are all great. Any one of top 52 on that list could be your ‘surprise favorite’ temple or shrine in Kyoto.

If you’re on a tight budget, we have a list of the Best Free Temples & Shrines in Kyoto. If you’re visiting during a particularly busy time, our Hidden Gem Temples & Shrines in Kyoto is also a great resource for avoiding the crowds. This gives you plenty of choices for experiencing the true serenity of Kyoto, even if you visit during the busiest national holiday of the year! Both of these lists compile the best options that are in the top 52.

Below is a list of our top 25 things to do in Kyoto. It’s mostly temples and shrines, but you’ll notice a few museums and districts that are particularly noteworthy, too. Click on any of these names to open our posts about these points of interest in new windows, where you can see and learn more about them.

25. Eikando Temple
24. Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple
23. Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
22. Kennin-ji Temple
21. Kodai-ji Temple
20. Okochi Sanso Villa
19. Daitokuji Temple
18. Sanjusangendo Temple
17. Ryoanji Temple
16. Ninnaji Temple
15. Kokedera Moss Temple
14. Daikakuji Temple
13. Kyoto Railway Museum
12. Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji Temple)
11. Katsura Imperial Villa
10. Philosopher’s Path
9. Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji Temple)
8. Nanzenji Temple
7. Gion (Geisha District)
6. Kyoto Monkey Park Iwatayama
5. Yoshiminedera Temple
4. Higashiyama District
3. Kiyomizudera Temple
2. Kuramadera Temple
1. Fushimi Inari Shrine

If you’d rather take the word of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization over us, our List of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kyoto, Japan covers all 17 UNESCO-listed locations in Kyoto (and ranks them).

Finally, special events. As we indicated elsewhere in this guide, Kyoto is a city of the seasons. Each is quite distinct, and Kyotoites have a certain reverence for the seasons. This is evident not just in the weather and scenery, but in a lengthy list of special events that occur throughout the year. We’ve done a few posts on seasonal events in Kyoto, starting with the two biggest ones:

• Japan Fall Colors & Autumn Foliage Guide
• Cherry Blossom Season Guide to Kyoto
• Hanatoro Festival: Higashiyama & Arashiyama Tips

Note that within each season, there are numerous special events. While most visitors to Kyoto in fall or spring come for the foliage or sakura, but less realize there are scheduled events, such as the Cherry Blossom Nighttime Illumination at Kiyomizudera Temple. The dates of these events–and sometimes the temples that are open–change annually.

There are sites online that offer calendars of events, but we’ve been burned by these before. Rather than exclusively consulting the internet or travel guidebooks for a special events calendar, we’d recommend making tentative plans before arrival, and then stopping into the city’s many tourist information centers upon arrival. They will have fliers and information for every single event going on during your visit.

When to Visit

The most popular times to visit Kyoto are for sakura (cherry blossom) season in early April and fall colors season in mid to late November. Kyoto is absolutely stunning during these peak seasons, but the crowds are chaotic.

In our When to Visit Kyoto, Japan post we offer suggestions on travel ranges that help avoid peak crowds while still enjoying these absolutely resplendent seasons. It’s possible to enjoy fall colors or sakura season without encountering tons of other tourists, you just need to get the timing right. That’s one thing we break down in our When to Visit post. We also go through each month to assess pros and cons.

If you do opt to go during Kyoto’s peak seasons, our Tips for Beating Kyoto’s Crowds post, will help you avoid the worst congestion. Irrespective of when you visit, it’s imperative that you don’t just show up to popular temples in the middle of the day–that’s the recipe for a bad time.

Outside of the peak seasons, neither summer nor winter are particularly busy, save for holidays and various festivals (Gion Matsuri, in particular) that draw large numbers of domestic tourists. However, we generally avoid both of these seasons unless you have a specific reason to go during them for one simple reason: weather.

The other incredibly important variable to consider is weather. Kyoto has four very distinct seasons. During winter months, it can be cold enough to snow. While a fresh blanket of snow makes for beautiful scenery, you’re more likely to just have freezing weather, and that’s not exactly the most comfortable for touring. By spring, the weather is once again temperate, and it stays pleasant through late May.

At the other end of the spectrum, there’s summer, which is just as bad from a weather perspective both in terms of both precipitation and debilitating humidity. Crowds are only moderate in summer, but not low enough to justify braving the weather in our opinion.

The upside to summer is the festivals, most notably the aforementioned Gion Matsuri, which occurs throughout the month of July, and is the most famous festival in Japan. This celebration of Yasaka Shrine culminates with a grand procession of floats (Yamaboko Junko) on July 17, followed by a smaller second parade on July 24.

An ancillary consideration when it comes to weather is where you’ll be staying. If you plan on renting an Airbnb or staying in anything other than a hotel, you need to be aware that many homes and flats in Kyoto are older and rather spartan. We’ve stayed at units in Kyoto that did not have adequate heat or air conditioning. The former was true on one of our extended stays, and we ended up buying fleece layers, thicker socks, and slippers…to wear to bed. 

How Long to Visit

Between our own first-time experience and feedback we hear from others, we know that the average first visit to Kyoto is 2-3 days. Most people view Kyoto as an add-on to a Tokyo trip, spending the majority of their time in Japan’s largest, more famous city and leaving only a little time to scratch the surface of Kyoto in a rush to see its major temples.

While we love Tokyo, we would strongly encourage you to strike something closer to a 50/50 balance between the two. It’s one thing to explore Tokyo with a chaotic pace, as the city is itself a frenzied place awash with neon and general zaniness. Such an approach only feels natural and fitting.

If Tokyo is the Four Loko (OG style) of cities, Kyoto is the fine wine. It’s meant to be sipped. It’s an experience to relish, and its best points of interest are deserving of drawn-out, deliberate paces. For maximum impact, it’s not the kind of place you do ‘checklist style’ (no judgment there–it’s a mistake we made our first visit!).

To that end, we recommend at least 4 days for your first visit in Kyoto. If you can swing it, more time is always good. This gives you one day in Arashiyama, one day in Higashiyama, one in Central/Downtown Kyoto, and one flexible ‘other’ day.

We would caution those of you planning first time visits to Japan days against trying to see too many cities unless you have a couple of weeks. There’s the temptation to also visit Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Nara, or Himeji in addition to Tokyo and Kyoto, but those should really be reserved for longer stays or second visits.

Those are all wonderful places that we’d strongly recommend you visit…eventually. For your first visit to Japan, allocate more time for Tokyo and Kyoto. Obviously, there’s the downside of missing those other cities entirely if there is no second trip to Japan, but conversely, there’s the downside of barely scratching the surface of Japan’s two greatest cities if you try to do too much.

If you do end up disagreeing with our advice, you can always do day trips from both Kyoto and Tokyo, particularly if you have the Japan Rail Pass, as there are several major cities within an hour or so of both Kyoto and Tokyo. What we’re ultimately cautioning against is changing hotels/accommodations numerous times over the course of a first trip to Japan. It’s exhausting.

Where to Stay

There are a few components to this decision, all of which we cover comprehensively, listing the pros and cons of each and offering specific recommendations, in our Where to Stay in Kyoto, Japan post. Rather than rehashing that, we’ll share some additional thoughts since we wrote that.

First, staying north of Kyoto Station. If you can find a location that’s about a 10 minute walk from the station and a 15 minute walk from Downtown and 20 minutes from Gion, you have fairly convenient train access and convenient restaurant access. (We also like this location because it’s only a ~25 minute walk from the Higashiyama District, which can be frustratingly tough to access via public transit.)

If dining or drinking are important to you, Gion is the place for you. The vast majority of Kyoto’s Michelin-starred restaurants are in Gion, and there are other trendy and inventive options near there on the cheaper end of the spectrum, too.

We also appreciate that Gion is one of the few areas of Kyoto that doesn’t shut down at 6 p.m.; many of the restaurants are open until midnight, meaning you can do a long day of temple-touring, go back to your room and get some rest, and then go out for dinner or a night on the town.

There are a lot of great Airbnb units in all of these areas, and without question, we recommend going that route over staying in a hotel. Not only is Airbnb significantly cheaper, but it provides more spacious accommodations and also allows you to live like a local, whether that means doing some laundry halfway through your trip or getting food to prepare you own meals. (You can use my sign-up link for a free credit your first time using Airbnb!)

We’ve always found hotels, particularly U.S. chains, to be particularly expensive in Kyoto. More recently, we’ve found the gap between hotel prices and Airbnb to be significant. We’re talking spacious units for ~$125/night versus that same price for a matchbox size hotel, and exponentially more for a Western-sized hotel.

Airbnb is a particularly good option for families with kids or anyone wanting more space, but not wanting or being able to splurge on the Four Seasons Kyoto (pictured above), Westin, Ritz-Carlton, or Hyatt Regency. At this point, we don’t even look at hotel prices anymore. We get way more bang for our buck with Airbnb.

During the off-season, spacious Airbnb units can be booked for under $100/night. We’re talking apartments that are double the size of more expensive hotel rooms. Unfortunately, even Airbnb can get expensive during peak tourist times, particularly fall colors and sakura seasons. We recommend pricing out accommodations before booking airfare so you know if you need to adjust travel dates slightly.

Backtracking a bit, when it comes to choosing where to stay within the Kansai region as a “home base,” we highly recommend Kyoto over Osaka. This might sound like bias towards our favorite city, but hear us out. Osaka, Nara, and Kobe–the major destinations for tourists within the Kansai region–are all easily accessible from Kyoto and that’s without taking the Shinkansen.

From Kyoto Station, you can get to any of these destinations in under 60 minutes (again, without taking the Shinkansen). The same would not be true if you stayed in any of the other cities. (As nice and centralized as Osaka is, it’s not as convenient for accessing Nara.)

However, the bigger reason for staying in Kyoto is because it has the most popular points of interest, and beating the crowds to many of these spots is really important. By contrast, the only place in Osaka that it’s important to arrive at super -early is Universal Studios Japan. (Speaking of which, it’s essential to rope drop USJ. Read our Universal Studios Japan Strategy Guide & Tips post for more on that.)

Additionally, we recommend 3+ days in Kyoto, whereas less time is necessary in Osaka, Kobe, or Nara (if you do those cities at all). It’s always better to stay closer to where you’re going to be spending the bulk of your time, which is why we recommend a Kyoto home-base for your visit to the Kansai region of Japan.

Transportation

Flights to Japan from the United States are 10+ hours, which is obviously a lot of time in the air. Fortunately, the larger planes used for these flights are much more comfortable than your normal planes used for domestic flights. Complimentary in-flight entertainment (including the latest movies and television shows) also makes things easier.

If you know your travel dates and have no flexibility as to when you travel, we recommend ITA Software to search for flights. ITA is the best way to find the lowest prices on airfare for set dates of travel. If you’re in the preliminary stages of researching your flight, use fare alerts on Airfarewatchdog.com.

Airfare costs fluctuate dramatically dependent upon city of origin, time of year, etc., with round-trip airfare out of Los Angeles to Japan’s major airports regularly in the <$600 range. Irrespective of your location, your complete airfare package should cost under $1,000/person with some effort. If you’re booking at the last minute or don’t do any work to find deals, the sky is the limit on the upper end of airfare pricing.

Before you even get to that step, you need to determine which airport to fly into and out of. Doing a roundtrip through Tokyo is the most straightforward option, with a Shinkansen (bullet train) ride to and from Kyoto for that leg of the trip. If that’s your plan, either HND or NRT will work as arrival airports.

Flying into Osaka is an easier option, and will save you from having to take the Shinkansen to Kyoto. The downside to flying into Osaka is that it’s usually more expensive, has more layovers, and offers a fairly negligible time-savings in terms of the train commute despite being significantly closer in distance to Kyoto. If you’re using the Japan Rail Pass–and we highly recommend that you do–you’re probably better off just doing a roundtrip through Tokyo. Plus, the Shinkansen is a fun experience that’s worth having twice!

Once you arrive in Kyoto, you’ll use the city’s vast network of city buses, railways, and the subway. We cover this in greater depth in our Getting Around Kyoto, Japan post. Suffice to say, you can get anywhere in Kyoto either by foot or by rail, and although attractive discount passes are available for them, we mostly recommend skipping the buses.

What to Pack

Our What to Pack for Kyoto, Japan guide covers all of the necessities, along with some things that will help improve your trip to Japan. To answer some common questions, no voltage converter is necessary for Japan, and you don’t need things like a neck wallet for the sake of safety like you might want in Europe, since there’s virtually no crime in Japan.

However, there are a few things you might want to pack for the long international flight. Sarah had trouble sleeping on our first couple of flights to Japan, and now she has several things she swears by to help her sleep, all of which are covered in that packing list. I could sleep on a pile of hay during a death metal concert, so I don’t use anything special.

As we’ve stressed multiple times now, Kyoto is a city of four distinct seasons. Spring and fall are both lovely, temperate times of the year, but it gets really hot and humid in the summer, and it snows in the winter. If you’re visiting Japan during the summer, things like Frogg Togg Chilly Pads will also come in handy. If you’re visiting in the winter, you’ll want to pack layers, including outerwear.

Ideally, we’d recommend packing this all in a single roller-bag. Navigating Japan’s public transportation can be stressful, and that’s doubly the case with luggage. We’ve seen the looks of horror in traveler’s eyes while dragging two suitcases and trying to dodge commuters during rush hour at train stations. (We’ll also typically pack a cheap/lightweight duffel bag inside our suitcase that we then for souvenirs purchased at our last stop.)

Where & What to Eat

Dining is a huge wildcard in your Kyoto planning budget. You could eat for under $20 per day by frequenting family-run neighborhood restaurants or quick service chains, or easily spend an upwards of $1,000 on kaiseki. Our Dining Guide to Kyoto, Japan presents our specific restaurant recommendations and generalized advice for eating great meals–and doing so on a budget.

That dining guide contains everything: what not to eat, where to find budget kaiseki, the importance of dining at 7-11 (seriously!), and so much more. Being a traditional city brimming with culture, Kyoto has a multitude of dining options, and they’re all detailed there. We are particularly partial to noodles; our favorite options are covered in Best Ramen Restaurants in Kyoto, which is the result of “research” at over 50 ramen shops in Kyoto.

If you have more time in the city or want to spend more time eating, consider kaiseki. This is a traditional multi-course Japanese meal that is as much about artful presentation and omotenashi as it is about the food itself. Kaiseki options abound in Gion, and typically start at over $100 per person.

Kyoto is also known for its seasonal vegetables, as well as its burgeoning independent coffee scene. There are a number of exceptional coffee shops in Kyoto, so don’t settle for Starbucks…with one exception. See our Best Coffee Shops in Kyoto list for more specific recommendations.

Even if you’re not a vegetarian, we’d recommend trying tofu, which is prepared in a multitude of ways in Kyoto, and is the city’s main specialty dish. There are many dedicated tofu restaurants, and also ones that use tofu plus Kyo-yasai (Kyoto vegetables), which gives you two of the area’s specialty dishes at once.

You can also find plenty of izakaya, tempura, soba, udon, ramen, katsu, unagi, sushi, and okonomiyaki restaurants throughout the city. We’ve started a series compiling some of the city’s best restaurants in Our Favorite Kyoto Restaurants – Part 1 and Part 2 posts. Parts 3 – 17 will be coming soon, and we’ll probably have even more installments after that. We love to eat, and have had dozens of great meals in Kyoto.

One thing we see come up a lot is that “[insert name of restaurant] is too touristy.” Unless you’re visiting some serious hole-in-the-wall in a quiet neighborhood or the suburbs, just about any restaurant in Kyoto has the potential to be touristy. You just may not realize the other patrons are tourists because they’re domestic tourists or aren’t Western tourists.

We’d encourage you to be more receptive to touristy restaurants in Japan. Unlike in the United States where quintessential tourist trap restaurants are Bubba Gump, Rainforest Cafe, Cheesecake Factory, and anything with Guy Fieri–bland offerings that lean heavily on cheese, butter, and salt, that’s not the case in Japan.

Many restaurants you might call touristy in Kyoto are the ones pushing the culinary envelope, trying bold things with flavors. While Kyotoites enjoy these restaurants, many prefer the conservative approaches of lower profile establishments that use tried and true flavors. Just as you’re not going to the fancy French haute cuisine restaurant in your area with regularity, neither are they.

If you remain steadfast in your position as a tourist who is averse to tourists, you will generally find fewer tourists at izakaya (after work pubs), restaurants without English menus outside, and cheap low-key places that aren’t ranked highly on TripAdvisor and aren’t on Michelin’s radar. You can expect plenty of tourists at any kaiseki restaurant, and anywhere in Gion.

Random 12-seat ramen locations down alleyways are great for a local atmosphere. McDonald’s and KFC are also good spots to avoid tourists (this is a glib recommendation, but I’m not kidding), but if you’re so anti-tourist to stoop to that, a reevaluation of priorities might be in order.

Other Tips

Here we’ll offer an assortment of other random tips that aren’t quite deserving of their own headings, but are frequently-asked questions, nonetheless…

Etiquette – “Kyoto-ites are pretty fastidious!” That’s how a flyer is titled that describes etiquette in Kyoto, and use of the somewhat arcane term “fastidious” tells you just about everything you need to know. It’s a quiet city with residents who pay attention to details and are concerned with the cleanliness and culture of their hometown.

Being a cultural outsider gets you a big pass on a lot of explicit and implicit cultural norms and expectations in Japan, but not on everything. Things like taking off your shoes before entering temples or some businesses are strictly enforced, as are no photography rules.

In fact, pretty much any rule you see posted somewhere is zealously enforced. No matter if it makes sense to you, follow it. While the Japanese have a reputation for being polite, that should be modified to “polite but firm.” The culture is unyielding when it comes to rules, and this is probably the most challenging thing for Americans who break rules on a daily basis. (Don’t be offended–everything from jaywalking to requesting a modified entree at a restaurant counts!)

In the last several years, Kyoto has seen a surge in foreign visitors, and many Kyotoites are displeased with how they treat the city. As a result, Kyoto partnered with TripAdvisor to distribute pamphlets to foreign visitors in English and Chinese, that cover a range of topics from tipping (don’t do it–it’s offensive) to how to use toilets (don’t stand on them).

Throughout the city, you’ll also see storefronts with “Kyoto Style” fliers in the window that encourage visitors to talk quietly and throw away their trash. When we stayed near Fushimi Inari, we saw a large banner go up along one road politely encouraging visitors to walk in a single file line and not congest the roads. (This is a big problem in many touristy areas, and one that’s exacerbated by a lack of sidewalks.)

Language Barrier/Comfort Zone – Traveling to Japan is outside comfort zones. From the long international flight to the prospect of navigating a foreign country without speaking its native language, a trip to Japan can be daunting. There are two pieces of good news here.

First, most Kyotoites speak at least a little English (although it’s not to the degree as in Tokyo), and all important signage is in both Japanese and English. Between that and Google Maps, getting around in Kyoto is far easier than you might expect.

Second, Japan is the nicest, most helpful, and hospitable country in the world. “Omotenashi” is the Japanese term for this, which is the guiding principle for wholehearted Japanese hospitality with great attention to detail. These manifests itself in myriad ways, from transactions at 7-11 to getting directions at the train station.

Essentially, if you’re a visitor to Japan, you can expect to cheerful, encounter VIP-caliber service across the board.

Cash/Credit Cards – Currency in Kyoto is the Japanese Yen, and you will most definitely want paper currency for your visit. While Japan is one of the most technically-advanced societies in the world, most people conduct business in cash. Credit cards are widely accepted at major chains, but the vast majority of mom and pop restaurants are cash only.

We pay with credit card whenever possible, but thanks to restaurants, vending machines, and random other transactions, we find ourselves spending a lot per person in cash. This is not something over which we fret; while we recommend bringing some cash (converted to yen) with you on your first trip, we seldom bring more than $20 with us now.

Instead, we withdraw yen as necessary using our debit cards from ATMs in the ubiquitous 7-11 and Lawson convenience stores. Our bank reimburses us for foreign transaction fees and converts at full market rate, so this is the best option for us. Your mileage may vary on this one depending upon your bank’s policies.

7-11/Lawson – Speaking of 7-11 and Lawson, they are your friends. These convenience stores are everywhere and should be utilized. We recommend these two chains over Family Mart and others because both tend to have the best selection of prepared foods and also labels that are in English.

These grab and go foods are actually good, and you should definitely plan on a meal or two coming from 7-11 or Lawson. When we have a busy day planned (or if it’s a tourist season when restaurants have long lines), we’ll skip eating at a sit-down restaurant and just do something on the run from a convenience store. Consider this another “culturally authentic” experience, as many Kyotoites do the same.

Not every 7-11 has English labels yet. They started this initiative last year to prepare for the influx of foreign tourists in advance of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, and are starting the initiative in the most touristy areas of Japan. There are several of these stores already around Kyoto, but I cannot recall where they all are located.

Speaking of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, if you travel to Japan in the near future, you’ll benefit from the nation’s preparations for the event. There has been a significant increase in the amount of English signage and information, and a concerted effort to provide information to tourists.

The downside is that several refurbishment and construction projects (most notably, the main hall at Kiyomizudera–pictured above) that are being undertaken to prepare for 2020 that won’t be done until right before the Olympics.

I know this just begins to scratch the surface of planning for a trip to Kyoto, but we’re already ~6,000 words so I’m thinking maybe it’s time to cut this short before I lose everyone with something that’s overly long. My goal was to provide detailed information for planning a trip, but also have it serve as a jumping off point with more thorough posts elaborating on certain topics to prevent it from being so long that it’s intimidating. I’ll update this guide on a regular basis with links to new posts and new information, so rest assured that the information here is, and will be, current.

If you enjoyed our Kyoto planning guide or found it useful, we’d greatly appreciate it if you’d leave a comment below and/or share this post on social media via the sharing buttons below. This guide has been in draft form for a few months now, and we’ve put a lot of work into it, so we’d love for as many people to be able to use it as possible. Thank you so much for your support!  

Your Thoughts

Have you been to Kyoto? What did you think–do you agree that it’s one of the greatest cities in the world? Planning a trip to Japan and have questions? If you’ve visited or are living in Japan and have tips of your own, please add them in the comments. (I might just borrow them for the guide itself.) Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts!

The post Ultimate 2019 Kyoto, Japan Planning Guide appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

We just got back from our summer trip to Japan, which included nearly two weeks in Kyoto. As we’ve already visited every major temple and shrine in the area, this visit was more about checking in on familiar favorites, eating at new places (for the sake of research!), and seeing seasonal events.

In this update, we’ll share things that have changed in recent months, Kyoto photos, and commentary on what to expect if you’re visiting in 2019 or 2020. Even though Kyoto is the epicenter of traditional Japan, there are plenty of new additions to the city, and plenty more is under transformation.

Essentially, there are two big stories for 2019 in Kyoto: ongoing recovery from Typhoon Jebi and preparation for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. We’ll cover those topics, a bit more on the continued influx of crowds, and more in this two-part Kyoto, Japan 2019 update…

For starters, the trip has left me rejuvenated, even more enthusiastic about Kyoto, and ready to pump up a bunch of new posts. Which is pretty much exactly what happens every single time we leave Japan. I get really hyped about the experience, want to convince everyone else to visit, and plan on writing a 10-part trip report.

Inevitably, the bright-eyed excitement gives way to the reality of real world time constraints. After a single installment of the trip report, I abandon that and refocus on more mundane planning posts. Each time, I say that this time, it’ll be different. Well, this time, it will be different.

I’ve decided from the get-go that there will be no trip report, and instead I’ll use this as a way to offer a quasi-recap along with useful updates. My plan is to also tease a variety of topics here and see what’s of interest to readers, and turn those ideas into full topics later.

Likewise, just as I realized not everyone wants a full post about ~47 different temples (and thus cut back on those), this year I’ve realized not everyone wants to read random Kyoto trip planning content. As such, I plan on attempting a better balance of fun posts and useful posts. We’ll see how that goes!

Next, crowds. In our Tips for Surviving Crowds in Kyoto, Japan post, we caution that some of the most popular trip planning resources for Kyoto were written before Japan’s tourism surge, have been poorly updated since, and do not reflect the reality of current congestion in the city.

This remains true, and the crowds were pronounced in many areas even during the off-season time we visited. In other areas and at certain times, such as the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove (above) and around Yasaka Pagoda one night in the rain (below), crowds were light to moderate.

I truly do not know Kyoto is going to handle the influx of post-Olympics crowds, and fear the worst. I’m not talking about the city’s unique charm and character being overwhelmed by foreigners (it’s probably not my place to comment too much on that).

I’m talking about its infrastructure being stressed to the literal breaking point in places, and visitors having a bad experience or not “seeing” the true Kyoto due to the congestion. Among other things, the city bus routes and tour group situation need to be entirely rethought.

The good news is that it’s still entirely possible, and will be even after the Olympics as only about a dozen places in the city are high profile, to have a great time. You just need to be smart and not follow the hordes.

We have a lot of savvy (in my opinion, at least) planning posts; in terms of “importance” our 1-Day to 1-Week Kyoto, Japan Itineraries and that ‘surviving crowds’ one are probably the most essential.

One way we always avoid crowds is by visiting temples in out of the way locations, and ones that we know are not on the “tour bus circuit.”

Sanzenin Temple is in the former group, and we made a return visit to this superlative temple for its summer Hydrangea Festival. Photos really can’t do this justice, but it’s one of the coolest things we’ve experienced in Japan. (There’s also surprisingly little info about this online in English, so I’m thinking it might by worth a full post.)

Even though it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Diagoji Temple is another less-visited spot in Kyoto due to its remote proximity to other major spots. I have mixed feelings about this temple, but the complex has some definite highlights–I look forward to making a return visit during fall colors season.

With a savvy itinerary, Diagoji is actually pretty easy to visit. Add some other spots in Uji and Kyoto, and you have a solid fifth or sixth day in the area.

Another way to avoid congestion on the city buses is to use the new Sky Hop Bus Kyoto, which is a hop-on/hop-off bus selling 1-day or 2-day passes. Per the Sky Hop Bus Kyoto site, it runs every 30 minutes between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., and covers many of the most popular tourist spots.

It’s not for us, so we did not use it. We also wouldn’t recommend it given the steep price and coverage (or rather, lack thereof). Really, it’s only advantageous in avoiding the packed city buses that run to Golden Pavilion and Kiyomizudera. With that said, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend avoiding it–the open air atmosphere and straightforward route does give it some appeal.

Next, an update on accommodations. Specifically, Airbnb, which is our preferred way to book inexpensive stays in Kyoto. Last summer, new laws were implemented that required Airbnb hosts to register and comply with other procedural requirements. This occurred just before our summer trip, and we ended up rebooking in a hotel.

Per the Japan Tourism Agency, almost 15,000 private lodgings were registered with authorities as of Spring 2019–as compared to only around 2,000 as of last June when the new law was implemented. However, this represents only around 20% of the 62,000 properties listed on Airbnb before the new law hit the market, which removed ~80% of its listings in Japan at that time.

We booked an Airbnb stay last October/November, and again (in the exact same building, actually) this summer. Although anecdotal, we can tell there are definitely fewer options in Kyoto, which actually has more onerous restrictions than most of Japan.

We’ve also noticed an increase in prices, which makes sense given the whole “supply/demand” thing. Nevertheless, Airbnb remains (by far) the cheapest option for booking more spacious accommodations and also allows you to live like a local, whether that means doing some laundry halfway through your trip or getting food to prepare you own meals. (You can use my sign-up link for a free credit your first time using Airbnb.)

On the other end of the accommodations spectrum, construction continues on the Higashiyama District’s newest luxury hotel. We detail this in our Park Hyatt Kyoto Preview & Photos post.

We’re really looking forward to this, and plan on booking a couple nights at Park Hyatt Kyoto as part of a split stay once it opens. It has the potentially to instantly be the top hotel option in Kyoto–impressive for a city with a stellar resort and ryokan lineup!

Next, new restaurants and shopping. The last couple of years, we’ve seen an explosion in the trendy options, particularly downtown and in the chic areas of Higashiyama and Arashiyama.

On this visit, we saw about a half-dozen chic-looking spots that were preparing to open.

Judging solely on their aesthetics, many of these are international or Asia-centric brands that are undoubtedly targeting affluent, social media savvy visitors from China and Korea. Some of them have good food, others don’t.

Kyoto’s burgeoning coffee and ramen scenes also continue to debut great options–more than we can keep up with!

That wraps it up for the first part of this ‘What’s New in Kyoto, Japan for 2019’ post. We’ll be back with Part 2 later this week–and you can rest assured that will actually happen this time, as the post is already written and photos are edited!

Part 2 will offer a photo update from various high profile temples in Kyoto that are currently undergoing renovation projects (or recently completed them!), summer fun in Kurama and Kibune, plus a look at new drinks and ruminations on vending machines. Oh, and another wild boar encounter at Fushimi Inari Shrine!

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Any thoughts about the latest developments in Kyoto? Have you noticed any changes recently? Concerned about the rise in crowds? Any topics you’d like to see us tackle in future posts about Japan? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post What’s New for 2019 in Kyoto, Japan appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

We pick up from Part 1 of our What’s New in Kyoto, Japan post with more on temple construction, soda updates (including new Coke and Pepsi flavors), cool summer fun in northern Kyoto, and more. We’ll also share some ‘just for fun’ photos from this visit to Kyoto.

But first, we encountered a family of boar! If you’ve read our Fushimi Inari Shrine at Night post, you know this is not uncommon (and has happened to me before), but it’s no less surreal. Monkeys and boar sightings are becoming more frequent, or so it would seem based upon warning signs at various temples and other locations around Kyoto, especially in Higashiyama and Arashiyama.

Just before the Senbon Torii loop entrance, we heard a weird sound coming from behind a sub-shrine in a clearing. Upon looking over, we saw that it was a mother boar and 4-5 piglets. We were a pretty safe distance away, so I quickly fumbled for my camera to grab a photo. Unfortunately, it’s awful–and the mother and most piglets had already wandered off…

As much as I was tempted to peek around the corner to grab something better, wild boar in Japan are no joke. The last one I encountered sounded and looked like a monster, and caught me off-guard because it was literally separated only by the torii gates and me.

The mother here was about half the size and seemed comparatively “chill” but it still wasn’t worth risking. We hung back and waited for the remaining boar piglet to clear, gave them a bit of a buffer, and then proceeded up the Senbon Torii path.

On an amusing note, one of Fushimi Inari’s stray cats was in this area, and it was slowly creeping towards the last piglet before arbitrarily stopping to plop on the ground. I’m not sure what this cat planned on doing or why it wasn’t terrified of the boar, but even as a piglet, the boar was much larger than it.

If you’re looking for more “wildlife” photos, you’re in luck, as we saw some cats this trip:

That last one sneakily jumped up to inspect (and sit next to) our bags while we were distracted by the cat pictured above him. This is like the cat version of a group velociraptor attack.

Moving on to construction work happening around Kyoto’s temples…

Not really anything new to report here, but the work on Kiyomizudera Temple that’s slated to be completed in March 2020 remains ongoing.

We can’t wait for this to be finished. Kiyomizudera is a must-do regardless, but it’ll be nice to see the sprawling temple sans a giant warehouse.

On a more upbeat note, nearby Chionin Temple has made great strides in its similar multi-year refurbishment project. Here, the giant warehouse surrounding its main hall has been removed, revealing the finished product–at least, the exterior of it.

The interior is slated to reopen in May 2020, and other smaller-scale projects around the grounds should conclude at the same time. Chionin Temple is much more pleasant now, but there are still construction vehicles, workers, and noise up here. Nevertheless, seeing the main hall was a pleasant surprise and we also can’t wait for this complex to be devoid of construction.

North of Kyoto, Kuramadera Temple has entirely reopened following Typhoon Jebi. This area was hit hard by that storm, which caused the Kurama Fire Festival to be canceled, and took down train lines in the area, while also closing off portions of Kuramadera Temple.

While damage is still visible in the temple (and work is visible on the train ride up…and while walking around Kurama and Kibune), everything is once again accessible. This includes the walking path to Kibune.

This is more or less the story of Typhoon Jebi in and around Kyoto. We’ve noticed several other temples–too many to list–are still attempting to recover and repair damage from the storm. Most don’t have extensive devastation, but they do have some structures that were damaged during the typhoon.

Speaking of Kibune, we had an excellent time here eating at a few restaurants doing kawadoko, over-the-water dining.

In Kibune, ryotei have kawadoko patios lined up one after the other, and many of them serve summer specialties.

I didn’t keep count, but there are about a dozen or more ryotei in all. The best of these incorporate the flowing river, waterfalls, rocks, and other landscape elements into their kawadoko.

These are popular in summer for Kyotoites to escape from the heat.

Above is the most famous of these is Hirobun, which draws a wait measured in hours. We grabbed a reservation here and dined elsewhere while we waited.

Hirobun is well known for its nagashi somen, which are flowing noodles that you grab with chopsticks as they pass. Sarah called this one of her favorite experiences ever in Japan–it was definitely a ton of fun and we’d highly recommend it. (I’ll do a full post on it at some point.)

Another summer delicacy in Kyoto is the ayu sweetfish.

Kyoto anglers fish for these in the Kamo and Katsura Rivers, and the best-tasting (and fattiest) ones are caught this time of year. You eat the entire thing, head and all. If you can’t make it up to Kibune, Nishiki Market’s vendors also have delicious ayu that’ll only cost 400 yen or so.

Heading over to Northwest Kyoto for more temple updates…

Genkoan Temple is a modestly popular spot north of Golden Pavilion. It’s inexplicably closed until 2021, a fact we (and other visitors arriving on the same bus as us) didn’t learn until arriving at the temple.

Genkoan is famous for it two large windows. One is round and is called “The Window of Enlightenment.” Its square counterpart is called “The Window of Confusion,” with corners representing life, old age, illness, and death.

Genkoan is also known for its bloody ceiling of the main hall, which was made using floorboards from the disassembled Fushimi Castle. In 1600, this castle was besieged by enemies of future shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu. The blood of the defenders was shed all over the castle floor, and subsequently installed as ceiling boards of five temples in Kyoto to honor them.

Kotoin is one of the most popular subtemples at the Daitokuji Temple complex, which is one of our top picks for Kyoto. It’s famous for the maple trees on its approach. It has been closed for the last couple of years due to ‘maintenance and seismic retrofit.’ (During which time it has, oddly, appeared in a nationwide advertising campaign for fall colors.)

It was originally supposed to reopen last year in June. That date slipped to October, just in time for the popular autumn travel season. That date was moved forward to this March, and is now slated to reopen in October 2019.

Early readers of the blog might recall our Cool Japanese Vending Machine Beverages and Cool Japanese Vending Machines: Drink 2 posts. In the “sequel” we promised more of these, but haven’t delivered.

In large part, this is because we’ve shifted most of our soda budget from vending machines to convenience and grocery stores.

Nevertheless, sometimes we still partake in the vending machine scene, and stumble upon something that needs to be shared.

In this case, it’s a cautionary tale: the 100 yen coffee pictured above is probably laced with rubbing alcohol, and should not be purchased under any circumstances. That “Best Tasting Coffee” tagline is a bold-faced lie.

At the other end of the spectrum, Pepsi and Coke continue to release interesting new beverages in Japan. At some point, I should do a post rounding up all the unique Coca-Cola and Pepsi options we’ve tried over the last few years.

Finally, some random photos from around Kyoto:

That wraps up our summer updates from Kyoto, Japan. If you’re planning a trip later this year or next, be sure to consult all of our regularly-updated resources (links below) for pretty much everything you need to know!

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Any thoughts about the latest developments in Kyoto? What about our wild boar encounter? Does summer in Kibune intrigue you? Would you try one of the ayu sweetfish? About about the unique flavors of Coke and Pepsi? Any topics you’d like to see us tackle in future posts about Japan? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post What’s New in Kyoto, Japan for 2019 – Part 2 appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

The IT Experience Chapter Two: the Derry Canal Days Festival is a free haunted house that will run August 15 to September 8, 2019, with free tickets that can be booked here. In this post, we preview this new interactive experience with a review & photos of IT Experience: Neibolt House, which we toured prior to the last IT movie two years ago.

As with IT Experience: Neibolt House, IT Experience Chapter Two – The Derry Canal Days Festival will be open daily from 2 pm until 11pm at Hollywood Blvd & Vine St. and will offer free advance ticketing with a standby queue for guests who don’t score tickets. Expect long lines for standby (as you can read below via our experience last time); we’d highly recommend trying to book reservations.

Per the IT Experience Chapter Two – The Derry Canal Days Festival official site, “your cherished memories of the old carnival days will be turned inside out during this 40-minute spine tingling experience. There will be over 10 immersive and terrifying interactive spaces, giving visitors a glimpse into the upcoming film.”

If this description is accurate, the duration of the IT Experience Chapter Two – The Derry Canal Days Festival is significantly longer than its predecessor, which lasted around 12-15 minutes, depending upon how quickly you walked through the IT house.

Aside from this description and the dates, not much else is know about the IT Experience Chapter Two – The Derry Canal Days Festival. We do have the promo poster below, and following that is our review of the original IT Experience from two years ago:

Normally, we wouldn’t cover something with such a short run, but we waited in line roughly two hours for this, so dammit, it’s getting a blog post. Note that after the jump, this IT Experience: Neibolt House Hollywood review is not spoiler-free, as there will be photos. If you want the short answer of whether you should do this, it’s yes.

The IT Experience: Neibolt House Hollywood is somewhat akin to a Halloween Horror Nights maze/house. The key distinction here is that the story isn’t a non-stop ‘flow’ of guests walking through a set path. Instead, small groups of seven guests (dubbed the “Losers Club”) are actively guided by Georgie, with prolonged stops in each room.

The reason for this approach is due to the more active nature of the storytelling here. Georgie interacts with effects that come to life in each room. Almost none of these effects are immediate or on an interval timer; they require Georgie to trigger, and then the show unfolds while guests are in a particular room, actively engaging with a particular scene.

This is really cool, and I definitely prefer this approach to the steady stream of guests that go through a Halloween Horror Nights maze. You get a chance to let things percolate, suspense builds, and the experience becomes more than just being about cheap scares and startling moments.

Not only does this make for a more suspenseful and satisfying experience as tension builds, but you also see more of the details in each room. It also takes more time to snake through the IT Experience, with an average tour duration likely to be around 12 minutes. (The hosts indicated it was 15 minutes, but our tour wasn’t quite that long.)

I would say that this makes it the ‘next generation’ of haunted houses, and that Universal should take note. However, there’s one glaring problem with this approach: capacity is abysmal. Seven guests enter the The IT Experience: Neibolt House every 5 minutes. That amounts to an hourly capacity of less than 100 guests per hour.

As mentioned, we were in line for roughly 2 hours. We had heard that the wait had been around 1-2 hours on weeknights, so we figured it we arrived at 12:30 p.m. on a Monday, we would wait under an hour. This belief was reinforced when we saw a short line in front of us. Unfortunately, due to capacity, that short line was still a two-hour wait.

When we exited the IT Experience: Neibolt House, the line was quite a bit longer than when we got into it. I’m guessing it was about three hours at that point. I cannot imagine what it will be on weekends or evenings, but then again, this is tourist season in Los Angeles, so maybe it’ll actually be shorter after Labor Day.

Circling back to the substance of the IT Experience: Neibolt House, there were a lot of cool details. I would say that, overall, the level of detail was about on par with an average (maybe even slightly below-average) Halloween Horror Nights house. In this regard, it probably hurts the IT Experience: Neibolt House a bit that you’re lingering in these rooms far longer than you’re in each HHN maze.

Where the IT Experience unquestionably trumps Universal’s mazes is in terms of special effects. There are animatronics, reasonably well-executed projections, and a lot happens on cue. Oh, and there are the aforementioned “holographic horrors.” (Something the world truly needs more of.)

Spoiler Alert: Hologram Tupac does not make an appearance, which is of course the biggest letdown of the entire thing. Now I don’t even care about this movie. What’s there in the IT Experience is pretty good, especially for something that only runs a month.

Where it falls short of Halloween Horror Nights is in terms of scares. There are only a handful of startling moments, and none were particularly effective on our tour.

This is a pretty big weakness of the IT Experience. In fact, some of the suspense that it builds ultimately just fizzles out. Those instances aside, the suspenseful execution here is pretty top-notch.

There are some great moments during the experience, and there is also a ton of excellent details and visual effects. As a geek for themed design, perhaps I put too much weight on this element of the IT Experience: Neibolt House. I also have to admit that I find the attempts at startling people as they walk through a haunted house somewhat lame and predictable, so this wasn’t a huge deal for me. To each their own, though.

From my perspective, a potentially bigger problem is that some of these details are going to be lost on literally everyone, since the movie is not out yet. There were things like magazines, toys, and other small touches that I assume feature in the plot of the film–or at least in the background.

I’m sort of used to this by now. Most of the films at Halloween Horror Nights I’ve never seen, so I’m usually oblivious to some of what’s going on and I need it explained to me by friends. I will say that I normally appreciate the houses for films I’ve actually seen (American Werewolf is my all-time favorite house), usually because I “get” some of these things, or the in-jokes that are scattered throughout the sets.

All things considered, I really enjoyed the IT Experience: Neibolt House and would highly recommend it if you’re a local, even with the long wait. In addition to the standby line, there are also tickets available–they’re “currently” sold out, but you can join the waitlist (we probably wouldn’t bank on that). If you’re visiting Southern California, I’m not sure the experience is “worth” several hours of valuable vacation time, but your mileage may vary on that. Be sure to pack sunscreen and a hat (the queue is all outdoors with very little shade), and your camera (photos are allowed!) for the IT Experience: Neibolt House. I’m hopeful that the IT Experience: Neibolt House Hollywood will have its run extended (at least through Halloween!), because this is too well-done to be only a month-long offering that ~1,000 people per day will have a chance to experience.

If you’re planning a trip, check out our Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles or our California category of posts. For even more things to do, The Best Things to Do in Los Angeles: 1001 Ideas is an exceptional resource, which is written by other locals. If you enjoyed this post, help spread the word by sharing it via social media. Thanks for reading!

Your Thoughts

Have you done the IT Experience: Neibolt House Hollywood? If so, what did you think of it? Too scary? Not scary enough? Worth the wait? Any additional tips to add that we didn’t cover? Any questions about the IT Experience? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

101 Things to Do in Southern California

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Kiyomizudera is one of the most popular temples in Japan. Also known as the “Pure Water Temple,” it’s a Kyoto highlight, UNESCO World Heritage Site, and unequivocal must-do. This post features my photos from the temple, plus tips for avoiding crowds, and other assorted info about it. (Last updated July 27, 2019.)

Perched in a beautiful location between one of Kyoto’s most beautiful historic districts and the Higashiyama foothills, Kiyomizudera Temple ranks #3 on our Top 100 Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan. In fact, aside from Fushimi Inari Shrine (#2), it’s the spot we visit most in Kyoto. Since originally writing this post a few years ago, we’ve returned to Kiyomizudera over a dozen times and experienced it in every season.

The two most notable and unique experiences are during autumn foliage and spring cherry blossom seasons. I wrote about the latter in our Visiting Kiyomizudera Temple for Night Illuminations During Sakura Season post and the former in our Kiyomizudera Fall Colors Evening Lighting post. Kiyomizudera is always not to be missed, but during those special events, you will want to visit twice. Additionally, just about all of our 1-Day to 1-Week Itineraries for Kyoto, Japan include a stop at Kiyomizudera…

Before we get into tips for experiencing this temple, let’s start with a bit of background. Kiyomizudera was built in 780 on the site of the Otowa Waterfall and the literal translation of the temple’s name to “Pure Water Temple.”

Since its original founding, most of Kiyomizudera’s buildings have been destroyed numerous times due to fire, and have been rebuilt again and again. Most of the present buildings were reconstructed in 1633. Kiyomizudera Temple was registered on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List as one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto in 1944.

Variety is probably the best way to describe why Kiyomizudera Temple is such a strong attraction in Kyoto. It has a large main hall, pagoda, a shrine, the waterfall, great views into downtown Kyoto, views into the cherry and maple trees, and views into the mountains. It has cultural significance and is visually stunning in a number of ways, making it an easy pick for a must-do in Kyoto.

Also in terms of “variety,” one of the things I like best about Kiyomizudera Temple is actually the walk there. Kyoto is renowned for Philosopher’s Path, the walkway on which Nishida Kitaro (don’t feel bad, I didn’t know who this was either), a Japanese philosopher, used to mediate. The path is a beautiful, intimate stroll that is scattered with temples and other sites, which is why it remains popular today.

Well, as beautiful as that walk is, I think the “path” we make after ending Philosopher’s Path at Nanzenji (where Philosopher’s Path ends) is also very good. I’m going to call it Philosopherz Path 2: Tha Remix, and hope schoolchildren once learn about the contemplative crazy philosopher photographer Tom Bricker and this path someday.

Kidding, of course, as this path is already known, it’s just not promoted as a top “walk” in Kyoto. This is probably because the first section of the path that connects Nanzen-ji Temple to Maruyama Park is just through a plain section of Downtown Kyoto, but everything after that through the park and Higashiyama District is excellent. Some of the prettiest machiya townhouses in Kyoto can be found along these narrow paths.

Basically, once you leave Nanzenji, you head past Shorenin Temple and Chionin Temple before passing through Maruyama Park and entering the Higashiyama District. As you’re walking through this area, you suddenly see Yasaka Pagoda towering above the little shops and houses. Continuing further, you pass Kodaiji Temple before arriving at Kiyomizudera Temple.

It’s a good thing this walk is so lovely, because Kiyomizudera is not all that convenient to any train or subway stations in Kyoto. The nearest option is Kiyomizu-Gojo Station along the Keihan Railway Line, and that’s about a 20 minute walk. Fortunately, most of that walk is through the Higashiyama District, so it’s not too bad. The alternative is taking the bus from Kyoto Station, but that’s a miserably crowded experience, and the lines for the Kiyomizudera buses are often really long.

Even though it’s not part of the temple itself at all, this is a big part of why I think Kiyomizudera Temple is a must-do. That approach is just second to none, and offers a bit of variety and a beautiful historic district, before arriving at the final destination.

Note that once you get up to the steps of Kiyomizudera, you can see a decent area of the temple before entering the paid area that (more or less) begins with the main hall.

Now, we highly recommend paying to enter, but this is worth mentioning because you could return a second time for sunset or sunrise if you’re really into photography and shoot a decent amount without going “inside” the temple.

As for the paid area of Kiyomizudera Temple, there’s a lot to see. From the statue of the eleven faced, thousand armed Kannon in the main hall to Jishu Shrine, a shrine dedicated to the deity of love and matchmaking, to Otowa Waterfall to the three-storied Koyasu Pagoda to another pagoda amongst the trees on the far side of the grounds, there’s a lot to see here.

You can read about each of these structures here on the Temple’s official website. I’m more focused on giving tips for visiting as opposed to giving you the full history (which you’ll learn about at the temple, anyway).

Currently, Kiyomizudera Temple is undergoing a substantial refurbishment project that is slated to be completed right before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. This is a monumental undertaking that has been taking place in phases over the course of the last several years. The final component of this project is a roof replacement of the main hall.

Unfortunately, this has temporarily transformed the view below into the one above. I won’t sugar-coat the visual impact this has at Kiyomizudera, as the wooden stage jutting out from the main hall with Kyoto in the background is the iconic scene at this temple, and the scaffolding around the main hall is visible from pretty much everywhere in Kiyomizudera. It’s a bummer, but it’s necessary, and we still do not hesitate to recommend a visit. Even during the refurbishment, Kiyomizudera remains one of the top spots in Kyoto.

My big tip for visiting would be to go for sunrise, sunset, or night. Which you choose depends upon the season. The temple opens at 6 am and closes at 6 pm daily, so if sunrise is before 6 am or sunset is after 6 pm, seeing these won’t always be possible.

As for night, it’s only open at night (6:30 pm to 9:30 pm) from mid-March to mid-April for the spring bloom, and mid-November to early-December for the fall colors, and is specially illuminated during these times.

Some days of the year, Kiyomizudera Temple is open for sunset. This is my pick for the best time to go if you want stunning photos, due to the orientation of the Temple’s key structures. The downside to a sunset visit is that it definitely will be more crowded than sunrise or early morning, but most visitors have left by this time of day, so it isn’t nearly as busy as the middle of the day.

If you are more concerned about crowds than photos, you might try visiting Kiyomizudera Temple early in the morning, as it is one of the more popular spots in Kyoto. If you can get here before 8 a.m., you will avoid the worst of the tour groups, as well as the congestion in the Higashiyama District, which gets pretty bad.

Moreover, if you do opt to take the bus to Kizomizudera, those early morning ones are by far the best option. Once the morning rush hits, you’re looking at very cramped buses that are standing room only. Coming from Kyoto Station, the line for these buses is often really long, too. Not a fun way to start your day.

Kiyomizudera features prominently in our 1-Day Eastern Kyoto Itinerary and our 2-Day Kyoto Highlights Itinerary, each of which offer strategy for visiting it for sunrise or sunset. If you’re trying to map out a touring plan that avoids crowds and efficiently visits some of Kyoto’s best spots, consult those.

My other big recommendation is to visit a variety of temples in Kyoto. That’s sort of Kyoto’s “thing” so it’s likely you’ll visit several during your stay, but what I mean by that is that you should visit well-known/popular temples like Kiyomizudera, but also under-the-radar ones.

As cool as Kiyomizudera is, it’s a poor representation of the true spirituality of Kyoto’s temples. It’s crowded, the area around it is heavily commercialized, and not conducive to introspection. Again, unless you arrive before 8 a.m.

I’m not sure if this is a controversial thing to say, but I think regardless of your religious beliefs, at the best temples and shrines in Japan, you can have spiritual experiences. For me, a spiritual experience is different from a religious one in that it is internal to oneself and can mean different things to different people. It’s one of those things you can’t really articulate, but you know it when you feel it.

Overall, Kiyomizudera Temple has so much going on and so much variety as compared to other temples in Kyoto, Japan that it makes my list of highly recommended things to do. I’ve found that many of the other temples in Kyoto can sort of blur together, which is not really a knock on any of them individually as they are all stunning. Kiyomizudera Temple is different from the norm. The approach is a beautiful walk, and the grounds of the temple are filled with things and views you won’t find elsewhere. It does have some weaknesses, but these are far overshadowed by its beauty and unique qualities it brings to the table.

If you’re planning a trip to the Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend starting by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Kiyomizudera Temple? Would you recommend it to a first-timer visiting Japan? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Does visiting this temple interest you? Share any other questions or thoughts you have in the comments!

The post Kiyomizudera Temple Photos & Tips appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Our Los Angeles itineraries offer step-by-step 1-day plans for every area of the city, and we also have some itineraries for areas of Southern California outside L.A. These touring plans offer tips and strategy for the best things to do (and skip!), museums to visit, where to eat, and more. (Last updated August 2, 2019.)

The importance of efficiency cannot be understated. We’ve found out the hard way that a lot of California “itineraries” are simply lists of things to do, and clearly were not tested by anyone as none account for one important, stress-inducing variable: traffic. We’ve done these plans ourselves, redone them, and shuffled around various stops to minimize parking costs and drive times. This will help you avoid the headache that is Los Angeles traffic, and spend less money in the process.

One of these Los Angeles itineraries doesn’t even require a car at all, which is a small miracle given the sprawl of Southern California. We also try to avoid paid parking as much as possible, and maybe seem abnormally giddy about that, but traffic and paid parking are two very big deals when it comes to visiting Los Angeles!

Of course, the reduced exposure to traffic and parking fees is immaterial if the stops on the itineraries are garbage. Obviously we’re biased, but we think the places included in these Los Angeles and Southern California touring plans are pretty good.

Our L.A. itineraries balance must-see points of interest with hidden gems, while also encouraging a sense of leisurely exploration and “stopping to smell the roses.” Los Angeles is defined by its rich tapestry of neighborhoods, each one of which has its own distinct character and brings something special to the table. While museums and the like are great, simply spending time being there in Los Angeles is a quintessential part of the experience, and we strive to highlight that in these itineraries.

1-Day Los Angeles Highlights Itinerary – Our first and most popular Los Angeles itinerary, this is for people who only allocate a single day to L.A., and are attempting to see all of the best points of interest. While this is also the foundation and first day for multi-day itineraries, we’d recommend moving a couple stops from this itinerary to another day for those with more time in SoCal.

2-Day Best-of Los Angeles Itinerary – My favorite one of the bunch, this basically takes the Highlights itinerary above, gives it more breathing room, while also adding some things and rearranging stops to increase efficiency. It’s still a pretty packed schedule, with several museums, a couple hiking options, pretty drives, the area’s most beautiful beach, and more.

1-Day Downtown Los Angeles Walking Itinerary  – “There’s nothing to do in downtown Los Angeles” or (worse yet) “Los Angeles doesn’t really have a downtown” is antiquated thinking that really sells DTLA. To the contrary, this is my second-favorite itinerary overall and probably my favorite 1-day itinerary if you set aside the fact that it doesn’t hit as many iconic spots as the ‘Highlights’ itinerary above.

1-Day Hollywood Itinerary  – Parts of Hollywood are the most overrated places in California. Tourists flock to Hollywood Boulevard because it’s iconic, but there’s a lot to dislike about that area of Hollywood. This itinerary starts from that perspective, and focuses on the “real” Hollywood, hidden gems, while also spending a bit of time at the Hollywood Walk of Fame, TCL Chinese Theater, Dolby Theater, El Capitan Theater, and other recognizable points of interest.

1-Day Los Angeles Westside Itinerary – Between Santa Monica and Downtown L.A. are a number of areas on the Westside that have great things to do. While Beverly Hills is the most renowned of these, Culver City, Brentwood, Century City, Bel Air, and Westwood all have great museums and things to do, including the Sony Pictures Studios Tour and great dining in Little Osaka.

1-Day Pasadena Itinerary – Known nationwide for the Rose Bowl, there’s actually a ton more to Pasadena than its famous football game and parade. We highly recommend Pasadena for a change of pace from Los Angeles, a lovely walking tour featuring some of California’s most iconic residential architecture, and a trio of glorious gardens. Being a short drive from Griffith Park certainly doesn’t hurt, either.

1-Day Santa Monica & Venice Beach Itinerary  – The most popular beach cities to visit if you’re staying in Los Angeles. Venice and Santa Monica are famous for their trendy and hip locales, which can make them intimidating places with too much emphasis on “places to see and be seen.” We largely eschew that, highlighting the interesting things to see and do in Venice and Santa Monica via this walking tour, along with excellent places to eat and drink.

1-Day Laguna Beach Itinerary – We are really partial to Laguna, which we think is the best beach city in Southern California. The “problem” with it, which is also an asset, is how far removed it is from Los Angeles. It’s quite the drive, but it’s absolutely worth the effort. This itinerary provides a flexible approach, allowing you to see multiple coves, points of interest, and restaurants…if you want. Or, you can just spend all day lounging at our recommended hidden gem beaches.

1-Day Walt Disney-Inspired Itinerary – This is the lone oddball that doesn’t fit neatly with the others, as it’s more of a niche interest option for Disney fans who want to ‘walk in Walt’s footsteps’ through Los Angeles and beyond. There’s a lot to see, but we don’t recommend this to anyone but the most dedicated Disney enthusiasts.

If you have a full week in Southern California, we’d recommend splitting your time between Los Angeles and the beach cities. Additionally, consider adding on Disneyland, Universal Studios Hollywood, Joshua Tree National Park, San Diego, or one of the many other excellent cities outside of Los Angeles.

Finally, for those who have even more time in California–and are considering some time in Northern California, too–our Pacific Coast Highway Ultimate California Road Trip is a great plan. If you have more time, we’d recommend spending it in both Los Angeles and San Francisco, and perhaps extending that itinerary south to San Diego.

Speaking of which, we currently are still “field-testing” our itineraries for San Diego, Long Beach, Malibu, Santa Barbara, Newport Beach, Palm Springs, and Pasadena, but those should be coming relatively soon. More to the point, we’ve spent extensive time in each, and can make recommendations if anyone has questions in the comments.

If you’re planning a trip, check out our Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles or our California category of posts. For even more things to do, The Best Things to Do in Los Angeles: 1001 Ideas is an exceptional resource, which is written by other locals. If you enjoyed this post, help spread the word by sharing it via social media. Thanks for reading!

Your Thoughts

If you’re planning a trip, how much time are you budgeting for Los Angeles? Need help with any other beach cities or towns near L.A.? Have you done a day in any of these Southern California cities? If so, which do you recommend? Spots we recommend that you do not agree with? Any additional tips to add that we didn’t cover? Any questions? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

101 Things to Do in Southern California

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Our first-timer’s guide to Kyoto covers what you need to know to plan the perfect trip to Japan’s cultural capital, and second most popular destination in the country after Tokyo. Avoid common mistakes and learn everything for the ideal vacation with our top 10 tips & tricks for your first visit to Kyoto, Japan. (Last updated August 4, 2019.)

When planning trips and picturing the traditional side of Japan, Kyoto is what first-timers envision. It’s the quintessential cultural experience filled with temples, shrines, gardens, teahouses, geisha, quaint alleys, wooden homes, etc. While there’s so much more to Kyoto than all of this, it is the notion of Japan that you’ve seen or imagined.

First-timers with romanticized visions of Kyoto are often in for a reality check upon arrival. Not because it doesn’t comport with expectations, but more simply, because our dream-like depictions of a place usually overlook practical realities. As great as Kyoto is–and it’s our favorite city in the world–there are some things you should know as you start planning to set expectations accordingly.

Think of this post as a supplement to our Ultimate Kyoto, Japan Planning Guide. That covers everything you need to know in excruciating detail. This focuses mostly on correcting misconceptions, and highlights the most essential knowledge you should have when planning your trip.

With that in mind, let’s dig into the top 10 Kyoto first-timer tips so you can plan accordingly and avoid some common pitfalls that make for a less-than-magical first visit to Kyoto, Japan…

10. Kyoto is Crowded – We aren’t going to beat around the bush on this one. Kyoto can barely handle the crowds that flock to the city, and this is especially true during the most popular tourist times in the spring and fall. If remedial measures aren’t taken, this is only going to get worse as tourism to Japan continues to climb at a dramatic rate.

Our photos of the torii gates of Fushimi Inari, Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, or Kiyomizudera Temple devoid of people are incredibly misleading. All of those were shot before 8 a.m. (often before 7 a.m.) or late at night. If you arrive to these or other popular Kyoto attractions between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m., that is not even remotely what you’ll experience. The silver lining here is that it is possible to beat the crowds in Kyoto with a couple of our handy resources…

We put months into creating and refining our 1-Day to 1-Week Kyoto, Japan Itineraries. In fact, we continue to tweak these, experiencing these temples at numerous times of day and wandering around in search of more hidden gems. If you want to build your own itinerary, consult our List of Hidden Gem Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan.

Between those resources and our Tips for Beating Kyoto’s Crowds post, you can enjoy some of the tranquility that defines the city and avoid the worst congestion. Even if you don’t follow our specific advice, it’s imperative that you don’t just show up to popular temples in the middle of the day–that’s the recipe for a bad time.

9. Ryokan for Authenticity, Hotels for Familiarity, Airbnb for Value – As we’ve noted in other posts, it’s unlikely we’ll ever book another hotel stay in Kyoto, unless we need something for only a night or two. Hotels simply cannot compete with apartment rentals on size or price. If you’re a bottom line kind of traveler, that’s undoubtedly the right route for you.

However, as experienced Kyoto travelers with little need for hotel amenities or assistance from staff, we are slightly unique. It is worth noting that high-end hotels provide concierge services, access to hard-to-book dining, entertainment, and a variety of amenities.

If you’re looking for an authentic cultural experience, a ryokan is your best option. Traditional ryokan are a staple of the Kyoto experience, and something worth trying for a night or two. Read our Where to Stay in Kyoto, Japan guide for specific recommendations on all three, as well as the best areas of the city for transportation convenience, etc.

8. Dining is Divine – After accommodations, the single biggest variable in your Kyoto budget is dining. You could eat for under $20 per day on udon or okonomiyaki, or easily spend an upwards of $1,000 on kaiseki. In both cases, you could enjoy great and memorable meals.

For the latter, the Michelin Guide to Kyoto, Osaka, and Tottori is your best bet. If you’re throwing around that kind of money on meals, you’ll also want to stay at a high-end hotel with a concierge who can get you into those restaurants. For the former, our Dining Guide to Kyoto, Japan presents our specific restaurant recommendations and generalized advice for eating great meals on a budget.

7. Transportation is Tricky – Japan is known for its efficient, clean, and punctual public transportation. That extends to Kyoto, but with less emphasis on “efficient.” This problem mostly stems from a lack of coverage by the railways and subway to some of the most popular temples, which almost necessitates bus or taxi use.

Unfortunately, some bus routes have more demand than they can handle, leading to some unpleasant experiences there. Accordingly, we try to avoid Kyoto’s popular bus routes at all costs, and recommend walking instead of taking the bus whenever possible.

Another issue is that Kyoto’s railway, subway, and bus lines have several different owners, rendering the Japan Rail Pass far less useful. (We do use and recommend some of the 1-day unlimited passes pictured above.) The upside is that Kyoto is fairly compact, and walking around the city leads to delightful little discoveries. Our Transportation Tips for Getting Around Kyoto offers more time and money-saving hacks.

6. November and April are Best – This is a pretty straightforward one. November brings with it the peak of fall colors season and April offers the heart of cherry blossom or sakura season. In terms of beauty and weather, both are ideal times to visit.

Unfortunately, this is hardly a secret, and these are also–by far–the two most crowded times of the year to visit Kyoto. In our When to Visit Kyoto, Japan post we offer suggestions on travel ranges that help avoid peak crowds while still enjoying these absolutely resplendent seasons.

5. Kyoto Can Be Deceptively Expensive – Japan can be a surprisingly inexpensive country to visit. That’s not its reputation, but there pretty easy ways to slash your travel budget and do ‘Japan on a dime.’

In the planning stages, you might find this to be especially true of Kyoto. However, upon arrival, you can find that costs creep up on you. Temples, transportation, and dining can all be surprises if you’re not careful. Read our Tips for Doing Kyoto on a Budget post for more insight into keeping all of your expenses low.

4. Don’t Do Two Days – Our most popular itinerary is our 2-Day Kyoto, Japan Highlights followed by our 1-Day “Best of” Kyoto, Japan Touring Plan. This is unsurprising and expected, but nonetheless disappointing.

Kyoto is a city that is better slowly savored than quickly devoured. Not only do the temples and shrines require a bit of time to experience and fully absorb, but the districts themselves should be wandered, allowing you to get lost in the soul of this transfixing city.

That might all sound unrealistically romanticized. Time is certainly a luxury that those doing whirlwind tours of Japan do not have the ability to indulge. We understand that time is limited and for most people, a trip to Japan is a once in a lifetime experience. We would encourage you to not to overdo it, choosing quality over quantity of experiences.

You have zero chance of seeing all of Japan, even if you spend an entire year there–don’t try to see the entire country in a week or two; choose a couple of cities and really get to know them. Obviously, we think Kyoto should be one of those cities, and we’d strongly encourage you to spend 5 days there, with one of those perhaps as a day-trip to Nara for a “bonus” city.

3. Pack Your Bags Appropriately – Kyoto has four seasons. (No, not the Four Seasons, although Kyoto has that, too.) Aside from its shrines and temples, this is literally the defining characteristic of the city. Kyotoites are known for their appreciation of the passing seasons, and things about the city change as the seasons pass.

Most appreciably, Kyoto has four distinct seasons of weather. It’s predictably cold in the winter with the possibility of snow, summers are always hot with the potential for torrential downpours, and so on. In addition to the weather, you can expect to walk a ton, use Google Maps heavily, and go out for a nice dinner or two. Our What to Pack for Kyoto, Japan guide covers all of the necessities, along with some things that will help improve your trip.

2. Avoid Temple Fatigue – There are nearly 2,000 temples in Kyoto. There is zero chance you will see them all in your lifetime. Narrowing that down a bit, we have a list of the Top 100 Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan. As we point out on that list, there are 52 that are very good and could ‘wow’ you. On your first trip to Kyoto, you will not see all 52 of those, nor should you try.

There is a tendency to approach travel from a ‘check-list’ style perspective, and this is exacerbated in places with literal lists of easy-to-accomplish things to do like Kyoto and its temples. The problem with such an approach is that many of these temples start to blend together and you become overwhelmed or tired from the repetitive nature of the day.

To put a more succinct point on it, you’re far better off spending an hour at one temple than 30 minutes each at two temples. Slowing down and savoring the experience will allow you to appreciate the subtle nuances and ornate design that define each, and give you a chance to better digest what you’re experiencing. This is a big reason why our itineraries are loaded with so many optional stops–in some cases, you’re better off skipping things and taking a ‘choose your own adventure’ approach.

1. Kyoto is the World’s Greatest City – Kyoto is our favorite city in the world. In our years of providing Japan travel advice, we’ve heard that same sentiment echoed by many others. We’ve also heard an incredibly small number of dissenting voices who had negative experiences (we think) due mostly to self-induced errors.

Mistakes are easy to make as a first-time visitor to any place. Even as frequent visitors, we make gaffes here and there. However, there’s a significant difference between catching the wrong train and deciding 1 p.m. is a reasonable time to catch the bus from Kyoto Station to the Golden Pavilion.

Likewise, opting to stay in a Western hotel, only dining at chain restaurants, using the buses to get everywhere, and only doing the most popular temples when tour groups are descending upon them is a recipe for a tainted perspective of Kyoto.

This might sound incredibly cheesy, but Kyoto is a city that begs to be explored, revealing itself to those who put in the effort to discover its true essence. It’s not merely for sampling its iconic sites and ignoring the rest nor is it for racing from temple to temple (at the other end of the spectrum). We hope this top 10 list coupled with our other resources help you prepare for a truly special experience in Kyoto.

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Are you planning your first visit to Kyoto? Have you traveled elsewhere in Japan? Anything else you’d like to know or unanswered questions? If you’re a seasoned veteran of Japan, anything to add? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!

The post Top 10 First-Time Tips for Kyoto, Japan appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

If you’re visiting Japan for the first time and only have one week to experience the highlights, this day-by-day itinerary is for you. It focuses on Tokyo, Kyoto, and a couple of diversions rather than taking you on a whirlwind and superficial tour of the entire country.

For starters, we’d implore you to visit for longer than 7 days if you’re still in the planning stages of your trip and haven’t committed to travel dates, airfare, or anything else. However, we understand that not everyone has the luxury of unlimited vacation time, and a week in Japan is better than not visiting at all.

You’ll find some week-long Japan itineraries that include Tokyo, Kyoto, Mt. Fuji, Osaka, and sometimes more. To be perfectly blunt, that’s crazy. This frenzied approach doesn’t give you long enough to slow down and appreciate any of those places, and is really only good for a checklist approach to travel that allows you to say you’ve visited certain places. Suffice to say, we don’t recommend it.

Instead, we recommend focusing on Tokyo and Kyoto. These two cities are Japan’s most popular tourist destinations, and for good reason. They’re also excellent companion cities to one another, and are often described as the yin & yang of Japan. We agree wholeheartedly with that; there are a lot of great places to see in Japan if you have more time, but Kyoto and Tokyo are the unequivocal highlights.

A couple of notes from the outset. First, this 7-day Japan Itinerary does not require use of the Japan Rail Pass. While the Japan Rail Pass is normally something that we highly recommend, that’s only for itineraries that are 10 days or longer (we’ll have those soon!).

Second, this is a substantive 7-day Japan itinerary, meaning that neither travel day is taken into account. Including those bumps this up to 9 days, and that’s time you may or may not have. If you don’t have it, eliminate Day 3 followed by Day 7. If you have to eliminate Day 7, plan for a crack-of-dawn Shinkansen ride from Tokyo to Kyoto, and try to accomplish as much from Day 7 as possible the day you arrive in Kyoto…

Arrive Tokyo Narita or Haneda Airport – Arrival day is simply about landing, getting from the airport to your hotel, and crashing. If your flight lands in the morning or midday, you might try to head out to one of the more vibrant neighborhoods like Shinjuku or Akihabara for dinner. Most likely, you’re going to be exhausted and ready to crash the minute you reach the hotel.

Tokyo

Tokyo is home to some a ton of things to do, but there are few points of interest that are so iconic they rise to must-do status. By contrast, the essence of Tokyo is its eclectic neighborhoods, and filling your day by wandering around both halves of the city is the best approach to experiencing Tokyo.

By following our 2-Day Tokyo Highlights Itinerary, you’ll explore the neighborhoods of Harajuku, Shinjuku, Asakusa, Akihabara, and more. You’ll visit the Tsukiji & Toyosu Fish Markets, Sensoji Temple, Robot Restaurant, Tokyo SkyTree, and more…

Day 1: Western Tokyo – For most visitors, our first day in Western Tokyo will tour the familiar side of the city: Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, and Roppongi. These are Tokyo’s biggest neighborhood names, which contain the city’s most recognizable sights and architecture.

These are places you’ve no doubt seen depicted in movies, and this definitely the more popular side of the city for tourists. Even though this is a relatively laid back itinerary, we recommend getting up early (jet lag will likely ensure that, anyway!). There’s a lot to see in Western Tokyo, and you’ll walk and shop your way through some of the city’s most vibrant and eye-catching areas.

Day 2: Eastern Tokyo – For your second day, it’s on to Tokyo’s “low city,” which is also the city’s eastern side. This area is on the delta of the Sumida River and it’s what remains of the historic Tokyo, or old Edo. A lot of Tokyo tourists will spend multiple days in Western Tokyo, and a cursory amount of time in Eastern Tokyo, which is a mistake.

This side of Tokyo includes interesting districts like Kanda, Nihonbashi, Kyobashi, Ueno, Asakusa, Honjo, Fukugawa, and Akihabara. It also has what’s arguably a better-defined list of points of interest (rather than just neighborhoods to wander), with Sensoji Temple, Tsukiji and Toyosu Fish Markets, Ueno Park’s Museum District (and zoo!), and the SkyTree.

Day 3: Tokyo DisneySea – Full disclosure: we are huge Disney and theme park fans, and spend a lot of time here. With that said, we also think Tokyo DisneySea is a compelling option for anyone who is visiting Japan, not just obsessives like us. This is the most lavishly-themed park in the world, and nothing like the familiar castle parks you’ll find at Disneyland or Walt Disney World.

Tokyo DisneySea is also one of the most authentic Japanese places you’ll visit, which might seem like a contradiction given that it’s distinctly American. However, Tokyo DisneySea is incredibly popular with locals, and most tourists skip it due to preconceptions. Consult our 1-Day Tokyo DisneySea Itinerary or Tokyo Disneyland Planning Guide for more info on visiting.

Day 4: Shinkansen to Kyoto – Taking the Shinkansen (colloquially known as the bullet train) is a quintessential experience when visiting Japan, and it’s also extremely painless. Unlike flying, you can arrive to the train station whenever, purchase tickets from a machine, and be on your way all in under 30 minutes.

Once you arrive to Kyoto and get checked into your Airbnb or hotel, we recommend going right out and immediately doing things. Some high profile options our itinerary doesn’t include are Nijo Castle and Kyoto Imperial Palace. If you’re arriving later in the afternoon, instead consider Nishiki Market, Pontocho Alley, or Gion for dinner.

Personally, my favorite thing to do on my first evening in Kyoto is Fushimi Inari Shrine After Dark (pictured below). You’ll visit later in the itinerary, but that’s for sunrise. This is our #1 thing to do in all of Japan, and it’s even better at night!

Kyoto

This 7-Day Japan Itinerary calls for 3 full days in Kyoto, which is less time than we personally like to spend in the city (our favorite in the world), but about perfect for most first-time visitors to Japan. For a step-by-step plan of attack, we highly recommend our 3-Day Best-of Kyoto, Japan Itinerary. That covers literally everything stop to make during your time in Kyoto.

As a general overview, this 3-day touring plan covers the highlights of Kyoto while skipping some (we think) overrated spots that are more difficult to access. It also features a ton of hidden gems and overlooked spots you’ll be able to slow down and appreciate. After all, the point of this itinerary is not simply to race around and do as much as possible. Quality, not quantity.

Day 5: Eastern Kyoto – This is our favorite day of the entire 7-day itinerary, and is essentially just a straight-line path along the foothills of Kyoto’s Higashiyama Mountains from the popular Kiyomizudera Temple in the south to the iconic Silver Pavilion in the north.

In between, you’ll cover a ton of ground, seeing the historic Higashiyama District without crowds (a rarity!), before visiting the underrated Kenninji Temple, strolling the Path of Philosophers, wandering the idyllic Honenin Temple, and making several other stops along the way.

Day 6: Western Kyoto – For this day, you’ll head to the opposite side of Kyoto to Arashiyama and Sagano district. Everyone here visits Tenryuji Temple and the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove (and you will too!), but we recommend superior highlights that are off the beaten path, like Okochi Sanso Villa and Jojakkoji Temple, among others.

You’ll also want to visit Japanese macaque monkeys in their mountainous habitat, have a traditional lunch, and see the area’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites before making your way north to the quirky and bizarre Otagi Nenbutsuji Temple.

Day 7: Central & Miscellaneous Kyoto – While the previous days in Kyoto have been temple and shrine heavy, this one takes a more balanced approach (if you’re feeling temple fatigue after Day 5, do this on Day 6 and Western Kyoto on Day 7).

You’ll still start your day with a couple of shrines and temples, doing a sunrise hike through Fushimi Inari to beat the crowds before enjoying the serenity of Tofukuji’s zen gardens, but this day also includes the Kyoto Railway Museum and Kyoto National Museum, among other things.

Depart Kansai International Airport – If it’s not cost-prohibitive, we’d highly recommend flying out of Kansai International Airport in Osaka rather than Narita or Haneda in Tokyo. Osaka is much closer to Kyoto, plus it’s a cheaper and (most importantly) direct train ride to the airport from Kyoto Station. If this isn’t an option due to cost (KIX can be a more expensive flight), you’ll want to purchase the Japan Rail Pass and use the Shinkansen to return to Tokyo.

If you have a later flight, consider exploring the area in and around Kyoto Station. There’s tons of shopping and dining within the station, so you can save that for your final morning. If you have even more time, consider visiting the nearby Toji Temple and/or Nishi & Higashi Honganji Temples, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. After that, you’ll head to the airport and conclude a whirlwind, but wonderful week in Japan!

If you’re planning a trip to the Japan, check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other things to do! We also recommend consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto and Ultimate Guide to Tokyo to plan.

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Japan? Which cities did you visit, and how much time did you spend in each place? What would you recommend to a first-timer visiting Japan? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? If you’re planning your trip to Japan, what do you think about these itineraries? Any questions? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!

The post 7-Day Japan Itinerary appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens is a 133-acre home to a range of animals, and is located in Griffith Park, one of our favorite places in all of California. In this LA Zoo review, we’ll share photos, cover the good and bad of the L.A. Zoo, how it compares to the San Diego Zoo, and more!

To be entirely honest, it took us a while to visit the LA Zoo. Even after living in California for several years and being members of the San Diego Zoo, we still hadn’t gone. This was despite living closer to the LA Zoo and visiting Griffith Park more times than I can count.

We just always had this perception of the LA Zoo–and I’m not even sure what it was based upon–that it was inferior and second rate as compared to the San Diego Zoo, so why bother? Well, we had that question answered for us when we finally visited the Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens and discovered that our preconceptions were pretty off-base…

Before we dig into the inevitable San Diego Zoo v. LA Zoo comparison, let’s begin with an overview and review of the Los Angeles Zoo…

Today, the Los Angeles Zoo is home to more than 1,400 mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles. These creatures represent more than 270 different species, including 58 that are endangered.

In addition, the LA Zoo’s botanical collection spans several planted gardens that contain over 800 different plant species and roughly 7,000 individual plants.

The City of Los Angeles owns and operates the LA Zoo, its land and facilities, and everything inside. The zoo opened in 1966, replacing the now-defunct Griffith Park Zoo, which is still in existence and home to more urban explorers than animals.

Current photos of the old Griffith Park Zoo circulate with regularity and wow what a difference a few decades makes it terms of zoological standards.

While there’s a stark contrast between today’s Los Angeles Zoo and the Griffith Park Zoo of 50+ years ago, the reality is that some areas of the current LA Zoo still feel like vestiges of the past.

While walking around, you can tell that some aspects of the zoo are a few decades old, but there have been plenty of modernization efforts to keep things looking–and feeling–fresh.

More importantly, the LA Zoo is clearly a modern zoo from the perspective of evolving beliefs about the humane treatment of animals.

The facilities appear, to us at least, to be humane and spacious for the creatures, and we saw nothing that raised any concerns about animal treatment.

Of course, we are hardly experts in this realm, but it’s worth noting that the Los Angeles Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. I do know that the LA Zoo has done extensive work to aid in the recovery of California Condors.

In 1982,  the zoo launched California Condor Recovery Program (CCRP), which then focused on building a captive breeding population. Now that the species has recovered, the LA Zoo assists with monitoring and maintaining the populations of wild condors that have been re-established in California.

One of the most engrossing exhibits is Campo Gorilla Reserve, which is home to six western lowland gorillas. Here you walk along a forested pathway for views of two separate troops of gorillas, a family and a bachelor group, living among waterfalls and lush plants.

The LA Zoo’s latest attraction is the Rainforest of the Americas. This exhibit features detailed sculptures, educational graphics, and architectural elements create an immersive experience for visitors, while animal highlights include piranhas, giant otters, harpy eagles, and cotton top tamarins.

Elephants of Asia is one of the LA Zoo’s main (and newer) draws. This exhibit is aimed at familiarizing visitors with the challenges Asian elephants face in the wild, including their shrinking natural habitat. This is an interesting and illuminating exhibit.

This Elephants of Asia tracks the history and culture of the animal through Cambodia, China, India, and Thailand. There are bathing pools, sandy hills, varied topography, and several different viewing areas offering varied perspectives into the exhibit.

Another favorite area of ours is Australia, which is home to the Zoo’s kangaroo and koalas. These marsupials are displayed in the Australia section of the L.A. Zoo.

This area is also home to the Australia Nocturnal House, which features a rare Southern hairy-nosed wombat, a species that can only be seen in four other Zoos in North America.

The koalas share two separate habitats with kangaroos, wallabies and echidnas. It’s cool to watch the baby koala and kangaroo joeys in this area.

Although tangential, I’d be remiss if I didn’t share one of my favorite stories about P-22, who is suspected in a “koala heist” at the LA Zoo a few years ago.

This was the area of the zoo where we spent most of our time, completely transfixed by those marsupials. With that said, we spent a lot of time at various areas throughout the zoo, finding a number of lower profile exhibits just as compelling as the big name ones we specifically list here.

Time flew by, and before we knew it, we had been at the LA Zoo for roughly 5 hours.

It’s tough to find much to criticize about the Los Angeles Zoo, especially for its relatively inexpensive admission fee. One thing we did notice was that none of the food looked even remotely worthwhile, but this is hardly unique to the LA Zoo.

We anticipated this, eating before arriving and again immediately after leaving. It’s Los Angeles–even with decent zoo food, you’re obviously going to do better dining at a real world restaurant.

The Los Angeles Zoo receives nearly 1.8 million visitors per year, making it one of the most popular attractions in Southern California. Thankfully, the sprawling complex and 100+ acre grounds make it good at absorbing crowds, but it still can get busy.

To avoid crowds, the best option is visiting right at opening on a weekday morning. Weekends are consistently the busiest time to visit, but weekdays can be bad if you choose poorly and visit on a day that multiple school groups have field trips to the LA Zoo. Visiting in the morning also offers the upside of seeing the most animal activity.

No matter when you visit, one of the big upsides to the Los Angeles Zoo is the lush grounds. Throughout the zoo, the pathways are frequently lined with mature trees that provide ample shade and a cool environment.

Likewise, many of the viewing areas offer shade and reprieves from the heat. This is a big deal on a hot day.

As for how the Los Angeles Zoo compares to the San Diego Zoo, the latter still reigns supreme. However, it’s a much closer call than you might expect, especially with the San Diego Zoo being world renowned and receiving all the accolades.

San Diego Zoo is superior thanks mostly to its “other stuff” like the aerial tramway, bus guided tours, and more. The wildlife lineup likewise gives it an edge, but not a pronounced one.

With that said, base 1-day tickets to San Diego Zoo cost nearly triple the price of those to Los Angeles Zoo. Quite simply, it’s not that much better than the LA Zoo. So, if money is an issue, we’d recommend the Los Angeles Zoo.

If money isn’t an issue, it probably comes down to whether you’re planning on visiting San Diego in addition to Los Angeles. (Arguably, the San Diego Zoo is not worth a special trip. The San Diego Safari Park, on the other hand…)

Overall, we were shocked by just how much we enjoyed our time at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens. It’s one of the best zoos we’ve visited, and while not quite on par with its formidable and far more famous counterpart in San Diego, it’s deserving of praise and tourist’s attention, too.

The Los Angeles Zoo is also conveniently located in Griffith Park, making it easy to spend the morning and midday at the zoo before heading Autry Museum of the American West for the afternoon, and then to Griffith Observatory for sunset and dusk (potentially even Hiking to the Hollywood Sign). That’s one great, jam-packed day in L.A., and all without having to fight any freeway traffic!

If you’re planning a trip, check out our Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles or our California category of posts. For even more things to do, The Best Things to Do in Los Angeles: 1001 Ideas is an exceptional resource, which is written by other locals. If you enjoyed this post, help spread the word by sharing it via social media. Thanks for reading!

Your Thoughts

Have you been to the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens? If so, what did you think of experience? If you’ve been to both the LA Zoo and San Diego Zoo, how do you think they stack up to one another? Any additional tips to add that we didn’t cover? Would you visit the LA Zoo again, or do you think it was a ‘one and done’? Was it worth your time and money? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

101 Things to Do in Southern California

The eBook is 51 pages long, featuring 75 photos, and (obviously) 101 things to do in Southern California. If you want a copy of this totally free 101 Things to Do in Southern California eBook, all you need to do is subscribe to our newsletter and you will receive a link to download the eBook.

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Our 2019 Los Angeles visitor’s guide offers tips to plan a vacation, including best things to do, best places to eat in L.A., hotel suggestions, and how to navigate Southern California. LA is one of our favorite cities in the world, and we’ll provide you insider tips to experience both the touristy highlights and hidden gems. (Last updated August 21, 2019.)

Maybe you need convincing that Los Angeles is one of the world’s best cities. After all, L.A. doesn’t exactly have the best reputation among some people. Complaints abound about traffic, smog, and the Hollywood culture. Some people pejoratively refer to Los Angeles as La La Land, thinking that everyone is out of touch or fake.

I prefer to think of Los Angeles as diverse and beautiful–in just about every conceivable way. Frank Lloyd Wright put it best when he stated, “tip the world over on its side and everything loose will land in Los Angeles.” Los Angeles is the ultimate melting pot. A beautiful and sometimes strange amalgamation of different cultures, architecture, geography, and more…

When it comes to architecture, Los Angeles was a blank slate for much of the 20th century. This, coupled with a diverse population and favorable climate led architects to test a variety of styles. As development continued, more designers were drawn to the city, and it became a creative hub. While there are downsides to this (sprawl), for better or worse, Los Angeles is still a creative hub.

It’s also a topographical hub…assuming that’s a thing. Surrounded by mountains on one side, ocean on another side, desert on another side, and…what used to be orange groves on another side (okay, Orange County is obviously more than that now…there’s also Disneyland!), there is natural beauty in virtually every direction. You can surf and ski in the same day, and traverse the arid landscape of the desert the following morning before hiking through the forest that evening.

Then there’s the endless summer of the Los Angeles climate. This makes it a popular place both for locals who enjoy outdoor living, and tourists who flock to Southern California for all of the reasons stated above…but mostly the sunshine (and In-N-Out Burger, probably).

If the prospect of enjoying delicious burgers in sunny weather doesn’t convince you to visit Los Angeles, I’m not entirely sure what will. Let’s get started with out Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles, California…

What’s New in LA for 2019 and Beyond

Given that Los Angeles is a major city, there’s obviously always something new to see or do, whether it be a temporary exhibit at one of LA’s museums, a weekend event, pop-up, or something else entirely. If you’re looking for something to do while you’re in town, check out Discover Los Angeles’ Calendar of Events.

Right now, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is all the rage, and so too is seeking out the many real-world backdrops from the film. The movie was shot on location in Los Angeles, and entire blocks of Hollywood Boulevard (among other places) were transported back in time to 1969 by the filmmakers. Check out this map of locations in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood if you’re a fan of the movie and want to see it ‘in real life.’

The biggest development in traveling to Los Angeles is, quite literally, a boom. This has led to an evolving (read: growing taller and denser) skyline, most notably the OUE Skyspace LA, which is California’s tallest open-air observation attraction. There’s also significant investment in public transportation. For the next couple of years, visitors to Los Angeles will mostly notice this in the form of construction on Metro lines and new stations.

This is all part of the Metro Vision 2028 Plan, which is a comprehensive development approach to projects between now and the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. This includes dozens of infrastructure improvements in a quest to give Angelenos and tourists more public transit options so they don’t have to take the freeway.

Many new museums are also on the horizon. In 2020, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will not open on the Miracle Mile. This is a $400 million project that’s been in development for 8 years, renovating a 1939 L.A. landmark. The architecture is expected to be striking, with a defining spherical structure and 1,500-panel glass dome. In total, the Academy Museum will have 300,000 square feet of public and exhibition space.

Following that in 2021 is the the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art featuring George Lucas’ personal collection of art, which consists of about 10,000 paintings and illustrations. This includes works by Rockwell, N.C. Wyeth and R. Crumb, along with Hollywood memorabilia from films such as Star Wars and Indiana Jones. The planned 275,000-square-foot, $1-billion museum will be located in Downtown’s Exposition Park.

In addition, several new hotels have opened in and around Downtown Los Angeles. Notable names among these include InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, Hotel Indigo Downtown Los Angeles, and Kimpton Everly Hotel Hollywood.

Other hotels on the horizon are Park Hyatt Los Angeles at Oceanwide Plaza, Fairmont Century Plaza, and Hotel Nue Hollywood Hyatt Unbound–along with several other Hyatts at LAX and elsewhere in Los Angeles.

We don’t recommend waiting to visit until any of this debuts, but that’s what’s on the horizon if you’re visiting between now and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics…

When to Visit

The smart-ass answer to this question is whenever. If you’ve ever talk to an Angeleno about California, they are sure to let you know that the weather is usually perfect in Los Angeles. Southern Californians like to compensate for traffic and cost of living shortcomings by referring these problems as the “Sunshine Tax,” which I suppose is a sort of Faustian Bargain for beautiful weather year round.

In reality, it’s not quite as simple as that. Los Angeles does get hot in the summer, and even though “it’s a dry heat” it’s still hot. Perhaps more importantly, summer is tourist season for Southern California, which means higher crowd levels and more expensive hotel costs. If you’re only visiting Los Angeles, this probably is not as big of a deal. Prices don’t spike to the same degree downtown, nor do crowds.

However, it is a bigger problem in the beach cities, to which people flock for summer retreats. In Malibu, Santa Monica, or even places like Newport Beach, you’re going to encounter considerably heavier crowds and significantly higher prices. You’ll also find crippling traffic on Pacific Coast Highway as everyone wants to go for a Sunday drive…every single day of the week. Sure, the weather in the beach cities is picture-perfect in the summer, but it’s more or less perfect whenever.

Then there are places to the east that you might also want to visit. Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park are highly recommended side-trips from Los Angeles, but with temperatures over 100º throughout the summer months, they aren’t worth it in the summer. (If you can tolerate that weather, you’ll find some absolute bargains on hotels in Palm Springs during the summer!)

As with any tourist destination, in addition to the summer months, there are isolated spikes in crowds whenever school is out of session, particularly in California. Thanksgiving and Christmas are popular times, as is Easter, and college spring break season.

In terms of the best times to visit, taking everything into account, I’d recommend September and October or February and March. November through January can also be good (outside of the holidays), particularly in terms of crowds and pricing. The downside to those months is cooler weather. This is also “rainy season” in Los Angeles, but those are most definitely air quotes, as many cities get as much rain in a week as Los Angeles gets in a year.

Transportation

When it comes to transportation, there are two components: getting there and getting around. For most visitors, the gateway to Los Angeles is LAX, one of the largest and busiest airports in the world. Other nearby options include John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, Long Beach Airport, LA/Ontario International Airport (in Ontario), and Bob Hope Airport in Burbank.

To figure out which airport will be the cheapest option, we recommend using ITASoftware, typing in LAX, and selecting all nearby (LAX + SNA, LGB, ONT, and BUR) airports. Sometimes, this will have you flying into one airport and out of another, so be mindful of that.

Unless you’re staying in Orange County or score a random deal elsewhere, you’re almost certainly going to arrive into LAX. It’s the huge, utilitarian airport in Los Angeles. Note that it is not downtown, though. None of these airports are downtown. You get downtown, you’re looking at around a $25-40 Uber ride, depending upon traffic.

Then there’s getting around Los Angeles. In most ‘world cities’, public transportation suffices to explore the city. This is not the case in Los Angeles. Due to the way Los Angeles’ population boomed and sprawled without a sufficient master plan, it is notorious for terrible traffic. To compound matters, the city’s public transportation has not kept up with population growth and visitation.

While there are a lot of persistent, negative myths about Los Angeles, the terrible traffic is no myth. There’s no sugar-coating how awful the gridlock is in and around Los Angeles, and the only real “solution” is to do most of your driving during off-hour windows, which are basically between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and after 8 p.m.

One thing about Los Angeles transportation that is a myth is that public transportation is useless. While it’s definitely true that public transportation is not viable as a comprehensive option, it can be quite useful. In recent years, the expansion of the LA Metro has made it easier to get from downtown to some of the beaches (Santa Monica or Long Beach), and you can also get to North Hollywood and beyond.

The LA Metro is far from a comprehensive solution, but it can be leveraged to get some places, and avoid costly Uber fares or parking in some scenarios. It can also be particularly helpful if you’re staying outside of Los Angeles but want to visit the city for a day. We like using the Metrolink from Orange County, particularly the $10 unlimited weekend pass.

With that said, you have to recognize the limitations of public transportation in and around Los Angeles. If you’re expecting to arrive at LAX and never sit in a car, you are going to be disappointed. It is essential to supplement public transportation with either renting a car or relying on ride-sharing services like Uber or Lyft. Each of those options has its downsides.

The downside with renting a car is potentially paying for parking at your hotel (and all over the city) and being stuck driving in traffic scenarios that are unfamiliar and uncomfortable. If you’re not used to traffic in a major city, driving in Los Angeles may amount to unnecessary stress on what should be a relaxing vacation in Los Angeles.

If you feel comfortable driving in L.A. traffic, we’d recommend renting a car. In that case, you should choose hotels or vacation home rental around this scenario.

A minority of Los Angeles hotels offer free parking–usually those in locations where space is not at a premium. Meanwhile, others charge over $40/night for it. This is a pretty big swing in pricing, so keep parking costs in mind. (Likewise, some Airbnb and other rentals include spots or are in locations with free street parking.)

Then there are ride-sharing services. The downside to this is the potential cost. Even if you use online calculators to determine what your Uber fares might be, those numbers have the potential to be unreliable because traffic and surge pricing could throw a monkey wrench into things.

The upside to Uber or Lyft is that they’re abundant in and around Los Angeles, and hassle-free. If you’re uncomfortable driving yourself around the city, this is the best option. You can even avoid that pricey LAX ride cost by using a shuttle service, such as SuperShuttle. (They’re awful, but hey, at least the price is right!) Public transit is also an option from LAX, but it’s not convenient to most locations.

Oh, and as a courtesy to the locals, please don’t expect your friends and relatives to be your personal chauffeur. (Especially if your goal is to get from Orange County to North Hollywood at 4 p.m. on a weekday. Those places are like 3 hours apart at that time of day; IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW CLOSE THEY LOOK ON THE MAP, MOM.)

Things to Do in Los Angeles

There are thousands of things to do in Los Angeles, and listing them all is well beyond the scope of this post. If that’s what you’re looking for, we highly recommend downloading our free eBook, 101 Things to Do in Southern California. Well over half the things on that list are in Los Angeles, with additional suggestions for the Beach Cities, San Fernando Valley, and even San Diego.

If you’re looking for ideas specific to L.A., check out our Top 10 Things to Do in Los Angeles post. Unlike a lot of “best things in L.A.” lists, this is exclusively points of interest and attractions within the Los Angeles city limits. Meaning you’re not going to find Disneyland (Anaheim) or Santa Monica Pier on the list. Not that there’s anything wrong with either…they’re both just a decently long drive from Los Angeles.

We are also highlighting our favorite attractions and points of interest via individual posts, which you can find by browsing our posts about Los Angeles. Each of those offers our review of the point of interest, photos showing what to expect, and other tips for making the most of your experience. (Mostly, that means when to visit to avoid crowds, where to park, and good nearby dining options. I like to eat. A lot.)

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by all of the possibilities, we have put together an index with numerous Los Angeles & Southern California Itineraries that take the planning work out of the equation. Here are some of the best ones:

• 1-Day Los Angeles Highlights Itinerary
• 2-Day Los Angeles Highlights Itinerary
• 1-Day Downtown Los Angeles Walking Itinerary
• 1-Day Hollywood Itinerary
• 1-Day Westside Itinerary

There are also a lot of totally free things to do in Los Angeles, with the beaches and recreation below being prime examples. Our other top free picks are the Getty Center, the Broad, and Griffith Observatory. That’s just a small sampling, though. You could spend several days doing only free things in L.A.

If you’re building an itinerary of largely paid activities, we recommend reading about the Go Los Angeles Card. It definitely is not for everyone, but if you’re planning on doing theme parks, studio tours, or other costly experiences, you can leverage one of these cards to save some money.

Beyond that, we want to highlight a few broad categories of things to do here…

Beaches – Los Angeles County has 75 miles of coastline that include world-famous beaches in Malibu, Santa Monica, and Venice. You cannot visit Los Angeles without making a trip to the beach. Even if swimming is not for you (which is fine–very few Californians actually swim at the beach), these beaches are popular draws.

In Malibu, you have some of the most beautiful, photogenic coastline in the world. My personal favorite is El Matador State Beach, which I call the “Megastar of Malibu.” This beach features stunning rock formations, tide pools, hidden sea caves, arch rocks, and more, all of which makes El Matador the most naturally beautiful beach in the area.

If you head north or south out of Los Angeles County, you’ll find more serene options in terms of beaches. Santa Barbara is a favorite to the north, but I’m partial to Laguna Beach to the south. Check out our Top 10 Beaches in Laguna, California list for my top picks there.

Closer to Los Angeles is the affluent community of Newport Beach, which is nice, too. I would not bother with the beaches between Venice and Newport–none offer anything that the aforementioned beaches don’t do better; you’re just wasting time with the commute.

Recreation – With weather like this, it should be no surprise that Angelenos spend a lot of time outdoors. Thankfully, Southern California is quite conducive to outdoor living. Of course, there’s the above-mentioned coastline and beaches. This is great not just for sunbathing, but also walking, surfing, skateboarding, and biking.

Thanks to Los Angeles’ topography, there are also some great hiking trails, right inside the city! Skip Runyon Canyon, which is the one hike everyone visiting Los Angeles hears about (and consequently, everyone does) and opt for the miles of footpaths in Griffith Park. They’re also busy, but not as bad. For visitors, the most iconic hikes in Los Angeles are those that offer an up-close perspective of the Hollywood sign.

I’m partial to starting at Griffith Observatory’s parking area a few hours before sunset, hiking out to the Hollywood sign from there, and then returning just in time to catch sunset and dusk fall over the skyline from the Observatory itself. Consult our Tips for Hiking to the Hollywood Sign for step-by-step instructions, and alternative routes.

If that’s not enough, places like Joshua Tree National Park are easily accessible by car during a day trip. While there are several National Parks in California, Joshua Tree is the closest to Los Angeles–and well worth a visit, in my opinion.

Museums – There are a lot of museums in Los Angeles. There are the mainstays, like the plethora of art museums, plus the California Science Center and Los Angeles County Natural History Museum. Los Angeles being a cultural capital with a diverse population, there are also more focused museums, like the Japanese American National Museum and the Museum of Tolerance.

Then…there are the ‘Museums of the Weird.’ Places that stretch the meaning of the word “museum,” like the Museum of Ice Cream and the Museum of Death. The former has turned into a place to be seen thanks to a celebrity-driven marketing campaign, so good luck getting tickets. The latter is incredibly morbid and seems to thrive on shock value (do not even consider taking kids there).

All things considered, Los Angeles has some of the best museums in the world. I always recommend the Getty Center to visitors, and I’m also a big fan of the Getty Villa. The Natural History Museum of LA County is great for dinosaur fans (which should be everyone), and the Broad features beautiful design and free admission. Other museums can be great options, depending upon your interests. These include the ones focused on specific cultures, as well as places like the Petersen Automotive Museum.

Hollywood – In this case, I’m not referring to the geographical location, but rather, the entertainment industry. While most tourists flock to the Hollywood Boulevard to see the Walk of Fame and take selfies with aggressive versions of Mikey Moose and Spider-Dude, I’d recommend three alternatives to the go-to tourist traps.

First, see a movie at an iconic Hollywood theater. If you look past the shenanigans out fron, the TCL Chinese Theater is a really cool place to watch a movie. Same goes for the Egyptian Theater (if you’re noticing a trend, both of these were originally built by Sid Grauman). If you’re a cine-file looking for an arthouse experience, check out New Beverly Cinema, owned by Quentin Tarantino, or the outdoor Cinespia. Everyone in L.A. has their personal favorite, and mine is the ArcLight; specifically the famed Cinerama Dome, which makes the most of its 70mm projection and huge curved screen.

Second, do a studio tour. Most of these are not in Los Angeles, but they’re close enough. These include Universal Studios Hollywood‘s Studio Tour, the Warner Brothers Studio Tour, Sony Pictures Studio Tour, and Paramount Pictures Studio Tour.

For visitors with limited time, I’m a big fan of Universal Studios Hollywood because it offers the Studio Tour, plus traditional theme park attractions like the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. You kill two birds with one stone this way. The Warner Bros. Studio Tour is also really popular, and we highly recommend it. Both of these are slickly produced tours meant to churn through a lot of guests. For a more behind the scenes tour, the Sony Pictures Studio Tour is your best option.

Finally, attend a television show taping. I’d recommend something that airs live. Even if you’re the head of the Sheldon Cooper Fan Club (I’m sorry for you), avoid sitcoms. For the same reasons you probably wouldn’t want to tour a hot dog production factory, you don’t want to do this. Sitcom tapings are long and drawn out, with a lot of reshoots. It becomes tedious after about hour 4.

Theme Parks – Southern California is arguably the theme park capital of the world, being home to the world’s most recognizable theme park, Disneyland, and the world’s first theme park, Knott’s Berry Farm. Despite being the epicenter of fun (feel free to use that as a tag line), there actually is not a single noteworthy theme or amusement park in Los Angeles.

Disneyland and Disney California Adventure are in Anaheim, Knott’s Berry Farm is in Buena Park, and Six Flags Magic Mountain is in Valencia. Farther away still are Legoland and SeaWorld, both of which are in the San Diego area. Universal Studios Hollywood is the only one that’s almost in Los Angeles, and even that is in the San Fernando Valley.

Still, they’re all easy-enough to access from L.A., and should be considered as things to do. Unless you’re a huge theme parks fan, I’d caution against going to too many of these. There are a lot of great things to do in and around Los Angeles, and theme parks can eat a ton of your time–and I offer these words of caution as someone who is a huge Disneyland fan. (I’ve made that mistake on trips back when we didn’t live in California.)

Shopping –  I’m out of my element here. Most of my shopping is done via the internet, or as I am begrudgingly dragged to the local mall. The extent of my shopping in Los Angeles is usually at the various farmer’s markets and specialty grocery stores and eclectic shops in places like Little Tokyo. Other “cool” places to shop (that are more about the place than the actual shopping) are Amoeba Records in Hollywood and the Last Bookstore downtown.

With that said, I realize a lot of people visit Los Angeles to shop. Everyone knows about places like the Miracle Mile, but tony neighborhoods and various promenades also feature high-end boutiques popular with trendsetters and fashionistas. Rather than relying on my ill-informed rambling to choose shopping spots in Los Angeles, check out Vogue’s L.A. Shopping Guide.

Beyond this, a lot of what is happening in Los Angeles depends upon the season, or even the week. For some seasonal recommendations, we like CurbedLA’s Things to Do in Los Angeles Right Now. If you want to know what’s happening in L.A. during your visit, consult the wealth of Los Angeles-centric Twitter accounts.

Finally, there’s our favorite category of things to do: eating. This is so crucial to your experience in Los Angeles that we’ll highlight it with its own section…

Where to Stay in L.A.

Even though we’ve approached experiencing Los Angeles from the perspective of tourists, we are not actually tourists in the city…meaning that we don’t need hotel rooms. As such, this is definitely a knowledge gap for us. It’s one we are working on rectifying in the near future, and we have a couple of hotel and Airbnb stays already booked for the fall, once the off-season starts. (Check back for an update then.)

With that said, there are a number of variables to consider when choosing a hotel in or around Los Angeles. First and foremost, is this a Los Angeles-centric trip or are you simply planning on spending time in the city as part of a larger Southern California vacation, or a California road trip? Let’s address each of the most common scenarios…

Los Angeles Trip – We’ll start with this first, as it’s more or less the operating assumption of this whole guide that you’re spending at least a few days in Los Angeles. In this case, I’d recommend staying at a hotel that is in or north of Downtown Los Angeles, in between the 5 and the 405. Santa Monica might be attractive, but it’s inconvenient unless you’re spending a lot of time at the beach (in which case, see the section below).

Personally, I prefer staying on the north side of the city, and think this will be the best option for most visitors. I think this area provides the easiest access to popular points of interest (especially those you might want to hit early in the morning, like Universal Studios, Hollywood Boulevard, Griffith Observatory, or the Getty Center) as well as some of the best nightlife. This also puts you near the best recreational activities in the

If this is a special trip or you have money to burn, consider one of Los Angeles’ historic hotels, or ones with a unique legacy. The kind of places where celebrities have taken up residence or where Hunter S. Thompson has gotten into mischief. Among these are the Beverly Wilshire, the Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows, Chateau Marmont, the Hollywood Roosevelt, Millennium Biltmore Hotel, Hotel Normandie, Palihouse Santa Monica, the Georgian Hotel, or the Beverly Hilton. We’ve stayed at exactly zero of these, but have visited several, and they are nothing short of posh.

By contrast, our stays in Los Angeles to date have all been low budget hotels in Hollywood, and our motivation for staying at those places was always having a cheap place to crash to rope drop Universal Studios Hollywood, or to get up early and hike around Griffith Park. We like that area, but would not recommend any of the hotels at which we’ve stayed.

As with all locations, we’re big fans of using Airbnb for a stay in Los Angeles. Obviously, the lower price is the biggest selling point of Airbnb. We’ve had some fun experiences staying at unique Airbnb locations throughout world and really cannot recommend it highly enough. You can use my sign-up link for a free credit your first time using Airbnb!

When it comes to Los Angeles, we like Airbnb because it offers the chance to stay in nice residential neighborhoods where there simply are not many hotels–or hotels are otherwise ritzy and expensive. Los Feliz, Hollywood Hills, and Beverly Hills are all good picks in this regard. You’ll pay a bit more for these locations than you would other parts of Los Angeles, but they’ll still cost considerably less than a hotel.

Beach or Disneyland Vacation – In this scenario, you’re primarily focused on the Beach Cities or Disneyland, and just want to spend a day or two exploring Los Angeles. In this case, stick to your hotel in Orange County and just drive to Los Angeles and back. Traffic aside, this is pretty simple. Be mindful that some of these hotels will be 1-2 hours from Los Angeles, in moderate traffic. During rush hour, your commute time could be even worse.

Read our Laguna Beach Vacation Planning Guide for tips and tricks for our top pick in Orange County. Laguna Beach is absolutely gorgeous, and has a charming seaside vibe. That guide covers everything from hotels to things to do to where to eat. (It’s a lot like this post, except for Laguna.)

Southern California Vacation – In this scenario, you’re bouncing around a bunch of spots in Southern California, and are allocating at least 3 days to Los Angeles. If you’re doing this and don’t mind changing hotels once–which is what we recommend–we’d suggest doing (at least) a split stay, having a hotel in San Diego/Orange County/Anaheim for the Disneyland, beach, and whatever else portion of your trip, and then a separate hotel in Los Angeles for that leg of the trip.

Given that you’re looking at ~3 hours per day in traffic (x3) and all of the stress that entails, we think it makes sense to change hotels halfway through your trip to actually stay in Los Angeles. That makes it easier to get things done, and less time in traffic is always a plus.

California Road Trip – In this scenario, you’re doing a road trip down/up the state (let’s say flying into San Diego and flying out of San Francisco with a one-way car rental). So long as you don’t mind frequently changing hotels, we’d recommend spending at least a night in L.A. no matter how much time you plan on seeing the city. It’ll make your time spent in the city more productive, and you’re going to be passing through Los Angeles at some point, anyway.

Where to Eat in L.A.

One of the greatest upsides to the rich diversity of Los Angeles is the culinary scene. Any type of cuisine you can imagine is available in L.A., and at a range of prices. While we consider ourselves foodies, keeping tabs on the ever-changing Los Angeles restaurant scene is a colossal undertaking well beyond the scope of this blog. We do have a series of posts highlighting some of our favorite things we’ve eaten recently in Los Angeles, but these are far from comprehensive:

• Great Food We’ve Eaten in Los Angeles (Part 1)
• Great Food We’ve Eaten in Los Angeles (Part 2)

We’ll also recommend a few resources to help you make your L.A. dining decisions…

The sites we usually consult are Eater L.A. and the Infatuation L.A., and by consult, I mean that I see one of their tweets about a trendy new spot, and we head there. In terms of specific resources, I like their regularly-updated “Hottest Cheap Eats in Los Angeles” map and Infatuation’s Los Angeles posts.

As mentioned above, Los Angeles has a wealth of restaurant choices for every budget, but I skew towards preferring (and recommending) options on the lower end of the spectrum. There are a lot of exceptional ‘fast casual’ options, from street vendors to hole-in-the-wall joints that offer food that will blow you away.

In my opinion, a big part of the fine dining scene is about status. Places where people go to see and be seen. To be sure, there are some truly amazing high end restaurants in Los Angeles, but it can also be a pretty superficial experience. That, coupled with the fact that inexpensive but high-quality, inventive options are available at the cheaper price ranges leads me to recommend sticking with those.

If you do decide that you want something fancy for a date-night (or because you’re hoping to spot Nicolas Cage–can’t say I blame you, he’s a real-life national treasure!), a good resource is Eater L.A.’s Hypothetical Los Angeles Michelin Guide.

If you’ve never been to Southern California, the only specific restaurant I consider a must-do is In-N-Out Burger. This is a California institution, and is deeply ingrained in the culture. From their secret menu to their distinctly California style, In-N-Out Burger is beloved by locals and tourists alike. It may not be the best meal you’ll have in Los Angeles, but it’s the most iconic.

Everything else beyond that is a matter of personal preference. We really like eating in Little Tokyo, K-Town, Chinatown, and Sawtelle/Little Osaka. Speaking of these neighborhoods…

Neighborhoods to Visit

Los Angeles is like New York City in the sense that certain neighborhoods have reputations that precede them. Places like West Hollywood and Beverly Hills need no introduction, but other neighborhoods are not quite as well known outside of Southern California.

In the case of these places, we recommend visiting even without a particular agenda or point of interest you want to see. All of our favorite neighborhoods are worth simply wandering to get a better flavor of the local life and culture. Oh, and you can certainly get a flavor of the cuisine of each, too…

Koreatown – K-Town is usually the place we go to eat after spending some time doing things on Museum Row. Koreatown has some of the best food in all of Los Angeles. Whether you’re looking for great Korean BBQ or traditional fare, Koreatown has it all.

It’s also near DLTA, convenient to public transportation, and is a pleasant place to walk. There are probably other things to do in K-Town aside from stuffing your face, but we are always in such a food coma upon stumbling out of the restaurants that the rest is pretty much a blur.

Chinatown – I’ll spare you the famous, cliched quote from the movie of the same name. The upside to Chinatown is that it’s really convenient to Union Station, making it an easy place to grab a meal when arriving into, or departing from, downtown. The neon-tinted vibe here is cool at night, and the food in Far East Plaza is surprisingly good.

The downside is that proximity to Dodger Stadium and busy freeways take their toll. Looking for a cheap gas station here? Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.

Little Tokyo – If you’re visiting DTLA, Little Tokyo is a must. The outdoor Japanese Village Plaza has some interesting shopping (who does not need a life-sized Totoro plush?!) and some excellent restaurants. Kula Revolving Sushi Bar is an inexpensive, delicious, unique, and approachable place for sushi that I highly recommend. The options in the Plaza for dessert after your meal are pretty much endless. Also nearby are a number of great ramen shops, including Daikokuya, which always has a line. (Go to one of their other locations instead.)

This is also where you’ll find the Japanese American National Museum, the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, and nearby is the Arts District. On any list of Los Angeles’ Most Instrammable Walls (sadly, there are multiple such lists), the Arts District is a popular location. Great news if you want the same ‘unique’ photo as everyone else.

Sawtelle – If you weren’t already convinced Los Angeles is the greatest, how about this fact: it has two ‘Little’ Japans: Little Tokyo and Little Osaka. Official (or is it unofficial?) name aside, most people just call is Sawtelle, because that’s the road that runs through this enclave. Truthfully, I don’t know what there is to “do” in Little Osaka aside from eating and shopping.

This is a common stop for us because it’s conveniently located on the 405, and has some of the best restaurants in all of Los Angeles. In fact, I’d say this is the most restaurant-dense area in L.A. Some seriously good, and mostly inexpensive, dining. Check out my Tsujita v. Daikokuya post for my head-to-head on the two best ramen shops on Sawtelle.

Silver Lake/Echo Park/Los Feliz – Technically, all separate neighborhoods, but they more or less blur together. The former two have an upstart hipster vibe as the beneficiaries of a lot of recent urban renewal. The result of this is a lot of trendy places to eat. That can be a mixed bag, as an unnecessary layer of smugness sometimes enters the fray–but not always. Los Feliz is an older, residential neighborhood.

If I could live anywhere in Los Angeles, Los Feliz would be it. We often detour through its quiet streets on our way up to Griffith Observatory; I absolutely love the vibe and charm of this area. There’s not necessarily much to do in Los Feliz, but it’s a really lovely area, and if you enjoy wandering around neighborhoods (gosh, we sound so old), it’s a good choice.

Santa Monica/Venice – These adjacent cities are the closest beach cities to Los Angeles, and both are less about natural beauty and more about artificial beauty. (In more ways than one!) The big draw here is the iconic Santa Monica Pier, which contains a seaside amusement park. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of Santa Monica’s stretch of coast (or the pier), but there’s certainly something to be said for a sunset ride on the Ferris Wheel overlooking the Pacific Ocean. A short walk from the beach is Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, which consists of three open-air, car-free blocks of shopping and dining.

Continuing south, there’s Venice Beach. This eclectic community of counterculture and artists. Venice is a bit rougher around the edges than Malibu or Santa Monica, but it shouldn’t be overlooked or avoided. The most well-known aspects of Venice are probably Muscle Beach (where Arnold Schwarzenegger famously pumped iron) and the Ocean Walk. If you’re a bit more…sheltered…these places may not appeal to you. In that case, head inland a bit towards the Venice Canal Historic District, which is modeled after the other Venice.

I think that’s as good of a place as any to stop this. We’re already at ~6,000 words, and I feel we’re only scratching the surface. We plan on updating and refining this Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles as readers ask questions and we have additional experiences. For now, hopefully it’s a good jumping off point!

Any Questions?

If you’re planning a trip to Los Angeles and still have unanswered questions or want personalized planning advice based upon your specific interests, needs, desires, and that sort of thing, your best option is leaving a question in the comments below. While I cannot promise to have advice on everything (see the hotels section above), I’ll do my best. Likewise, if you’re an Angeleno or seasoned Los Angeles visitor who can add additional tips, we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

101 Things to Do in Southern California

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Daigoji Temple (醍醐寺) is one of Japan’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and is a complex sprawling an entire mountain southeast of Kyoto. In this review, we’ll share info and our thoughts on visiting, including whether it’s worth the time and money.

The question of time and money when it comes to Daigoji Temple is an important one. Location-wise, it’s about halfway between central Kyoto and Uji, which means you’re looking at a half-day or longer trip just to visit Daigoji Temple. Accordingly, it’s important to have other convenient stops in the area that interest you if you’re looking to incorporate this into your Kyoto itinerary.

Money-wise, a visit to Daigoji Temple is not cheap. During the off-season, admission to the lower grounds is 800 yen, which is pricier than normal, but not terrible. However, from March 20 to May 15 and from October 15 to December 10, admission to Daigoji’s lower grounds is 1,500 yen. If you want to visit the upper grounds, that’s another 500 yen. So…is Daigoji Temple worth the time commitment and up to $20 per person? Let’s take a look…

We’ll start with some background. Daigoji Temple is part of the Shingon sect of Japanese Buddhism and is considered an important temple. Located on Daigo-san Mountain and well-known as the “Temple of Flowers, Daigoji had humble beginnings dating to the year 874.

At that time, Buddhist monk Shobo built a hermitage on the top of the mountain where he discovered a well of the spiritual water and found inspiration from a local god called Yokoo Daimyojin.

From that time until 951, construction of the various buildings continued, beginning with the Kamidaigo (upper) and continuing with the Shimodaigo (lower) temple complex. In 951, the five-story pagoda was constructed at the foot of the mountain.

In the ensuing years, Daigoji Temple suffered from several fires, including those caused by the Onin and Bunmei Wars that destroyed much of Kyoto, including most of the Shimodaigo complex. However, a handful of original buildings remain at Daigoji, including the five-storied pagoda, which is now the oldest surviving building in Kyoto.

In the 16th century, other buildings throughout the temple complex were rebuilt, and many of those still date to this timeframe. And, to be frank, they look it.

Obviously, some wear and age is expected in temple buildings of this age, but our view here is that Daigoji Temple is not particularly well-maintained.

Poor maintenance is forgivable at a lot of the ‘hidden gem’ temples we love throughout Kyoto, especially ones that don’t charge admission or see few visitors.

However, Daigoji Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that has a higher normal admission fee and a particularly inflated one during cherry blossom and fall colors seasons. There’s less of an excuse here.

Fortunately, much of Daigoji Temple still looks great. Upon entering the lower grounds, your first stop will be Sanbō-in subtemple, which remains an exemplar of Momoyama architecture.

This was constructed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1598 when he ordered extensive renewal of Daigo-ji in preparation for a grand cherry blossom viewing party.

Take some time to appreciate the detail and depth of the design here.

The paintings on the walls of the inner rooms are also a delight, featuring wild animals, seasonal plants, and scenes of famous festivals, as well as more modern artwork towards the entrance.

Behind Sanbō-in, you’ll discover a gorgeous landscape garden (it’s actually a strolling pond garden, but you cannot walk through it).

Sanbō-in’s garden features numerous small bridges connecting islands with meticulously pruned pines, thoughtfully placed stones, and raked sand. We love to sit here and enjoy the view or, in my case, take a surplus of photos.

Sanbōin subtemple does not suffer from any maintenance issues. This garden is always pristine, and we’ve observed numerous landscapers working in the garden throughout our visits.

It’s almost as if Daigoji Temple allocates the entirety of its budget towards this subtemple and one other building.

Speaking of which, the other highlight and exquisitely-maintained building is Bentendo or Benten Hall, which is easily Daigoji Temple’s most photographed building.

This small, colorful altar dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten is situated on an island surrounded by a picturesque lake and framed by the mountain maple trees and ginkgo.

The view from across the pond with the fall colors reflected in the frame is one of the most famous images of autumn foliage in Japan.

This is the main scene that draws visitors here, causing Daigoji Temple to see a spike in crowds (and prices!) from October through early December.

Also located on the main temple grounds at the base of the mountain is the Kondo Hall or main hall, which was originally built in 926. The current building was relocated to Daigoji in 1599 and stores the temple’s main object of worship, a seated statue of the Yakushi Buddha.

Reihokan Museum is the temple’s treasure house, which preserves and displays the temple’s large art collection, including statues, historic documents, and paintings. The museum’s garden also includes a number of weeping cherry trees that are particularly beautiful during sakura season.

Behind Bentendo Hall is the trailhead to the Kami-Daigo (Upper Daigo), which leads to the summit of the mountain and the temple’s original grounds.

It’s estimated to take about an hour to climb the steep forest trail. Because we’ve planned our visits to Daigoji Temple to coincide with other convenient stops, we’ve yet to do this.

Daigoji Temple is located a 15 minute walk from Daigo Station along the Tozai Subway Line. Daigoji Temple is also accessible from various buses–consult Google Maps for specific recommendations.

From various points in Kyoto, it’s actually not too difficult to access Daigoji Temple thanks to the Tozai Subway Line, which connects to the Keihan Main Line and JR Nara Line at various points.

If you’re thinking about doing Daigoji Temple, we’d recommend looking at incorporating into a southeast Kyoto day trip.

We really like it as part of a ‘Kyoto Southeastern Outskirts Itinerary’ that includes a visit to Uji and Byodoin Temple (pictured above) plus Ujigami Shrine, Daigoji Temple, Bishamondo Temple, and (potentially) a hike to Nanzenji Temple.

Ultimately, Daigoji Temple is expensive, out of the way, and parts of it leave something to be desired on the maintenance front. However, it’s still easier to visit than you might expect if you’re just looking at a map, and the parts that are good are really good. Sanbōin subtemple is worth the price of admission alone, leaving the photos you take of Bentendo Hall as icing on the cake. If you have 5 or more days in Kyoto, Daigoji Temple is a solid option that we’d recommend. If you have 4 days or fewer, you have better options.

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Daigoji Temple? What did you think of the experience? How would you rate this among Japan’s other UNESCO World Heritage Sites? Would you recommend Daigoji Temple to a first-timer visiting Japan? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post Daigoji Temple Info: Kyoto, Japan Tips appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Nishiki Market is known as Kyoto’s Kitchen or Japan’s Pantry, and is an incredibly popular food spot both with tourists and locals. We have a love-hate relationship with this dining hotspot and bona-fide attraction, and will cover the pros & cons, avoiding the crowds, and more in this guide to Nishiki Market.

For starters, Nishiki Market is located in Central Kyoto, near the city’s downtown commercial and shopping district. Nishiki Market actually starts near the Teramachi and Shinkyogoku Shopping Arcades, which are two twin retail areas (albeit of a less traditional nature) and is one block north of the posh Shijo Dori, which is lined with luxury retailers.

Nishiki Market itself is a narrow corridor with an iconic yellow, red, and green roof that runs five blocks and is lined with over 100 shops and restaurants. Nishiki Market specializes in all things food related, including fresh seafood, pickled vegetables, tea, sweets, tofu, knives, cookware, and even consumer products.

Nishiki Market serves two purposes. There’s the visitor-facing market selling small bites, souvenirs, and specialty items. There’s also the more industrial side with more utilitarian suppliers that provide seafood and seasonal produce to restaurants around Kyoto and as far away as Tokyo.

Both are essential for the visitor experience at Nishiki Market, and this balance prevents it from being overwhelmingly touristy. Visitors are obviously not “consuming” anything from the industrial side of Nishiki Market, but that’s what makes this feel like an authentic market, and that’s all really cool to observe.

Frankly, the touristy side is also quite fun. Here you’ll find Kyoto specialties like as pickles, dried seafood, and seasonal vegetables. My strong recommendation is to try fried ayu (sweetfish), a local specialty. The skewered octopus heads are also good, but there’s nothing distinctly “Kyoto” about those.

These two sides together give Nishiki Market an interesting, quirky, eccentric, and rough-around-the-edges sensibility. At its best, Nishiki Market is a blast, and unquestionably the best food market in Kyoto. However, it is still very much a mixed bag…

As noted above, Nishiki Market is a narrow corridor. In many spots, it’s wide enough only for 3-4 people standing side by side. It’s also incredibly popular, owing in part to its centuries’ old reputation as Kyoto’s Kitchen and another part because it’s an easy topic to cover.

Just search for Nishiki Market on YouTube–you’ll find hundreds of videos that are all, essentially, “LOOK AS THIS WEIRD THING WE ATE!” If you feel that there are not yet enough Nishiki Market vlogs on YouTube, don’t worry, as you’ll undoubtedly observe a dozen or two being recorded while you visit.

“Get off my lawn” attitude aside, Nishiki Market is often packed–and not just with vloggers. I’m just as guilty as the next tourist, snapping photos (wherever they’re allowed–which is not everywhere, so check signs!).

Others inexplicably bring all of the luggage they own with them and aimlessly meander leading to intense congestion and making some areas almost impassable.

In fairness, it’s really easy to aimlessly wander through Nishiki Market. There are so many cool things that’ll grab your attention that this is the default way to explore the shopping street.

There’s so much to see and absorb that perhaps you’ll even appreciate the cramped nature of the area, which forces you to slow down and really take in the bustling marketplace.

Crowds get especially bad on weekends, holidays, and during both cherry blossom & fall colors season. However, even on an off-season weekday, Nishiki Market can feel unreasonably congested.

That’s simply the nature of the beast–Nishiki Market is a really narrow shopping corridor.

This all might sound like us being really ‘down’ on Nishiki Market, and this should not be construed that way. We offer this all only so that you set reasonable expectations.

A lot of other resources gush about Nishiki Market, and fail to mention the realities of suffocating crowds.

It actually took us a while to come around on Nishiki Market. We had heard so many positive things about Nishiki Market, but our initial few experiences were all mind-numbing nightmare of people posing for selfies with food.

Finally, after watching a couple shows on NHK that showed another side of Kyoto’s Kitchen, we returned early in the morning to see the marketplace as it was waking up for the day.

Our new knowledge coupled with that no-crowds experience was what it took to finally win us over. Since then, we’ve returned several times in Nishiki Market’s morning and evening hours, and have had very good experiences.

Nishiki Market’s official hours are from 10 am until 6 pm, but the reality is that some vendors open earlier and some later.

We recommend going no later than 11 am, or right around 5 pm. We often go right at 10 am when it opens, but at that point there are always some stalls that have yet to open for the day.

Alternatively, we go later in the evenings–sometimes after 6 pm. With little time in Kyoto, we’re usually prioritizing temples while they’re open, which means we dedicated the evening hours to shopping, dining, and general wandering. Most of the stores in the nearby shopping arcades are open late, and some Nishiki Market vendors have later hours, too.

In terms of “what to eat” in Nishiki Market, that really will vary depending upon your tastes. If you’re adventurous, try pretty much anything you see (don’t walk and eat). The things we highly recommend are ayu (sweetfish), wagashi (Japanese sweets), kyoyasai (Kyoto vegetables), tsukemono (pickled vegetables), and tofu.

As noted above, I also like the tako tamago (octopus with a quail’s egg inside the head), but that’s definitely more of an acquired taste.

A few shops are also worth mentioning. The most famous is Aritsugu, which is a 400+ year old purveyor of what’s widely considered to be some of the best knives in Japan. There’s also Kidoairaku, a nice ceramics shop, and Ichihara Heibei Shōten, which sells personalized chopsticks.

Even if these things are too pricey for you, it’s fun to window shop and see the wide selection of handmade goods with exquisite attention to detail. (In general, the shopping scene in Kyoto is great for people who appreciate craftsmanship.)

We recommend beginning on Nishiki Market’s west end, near the intersection of Nishikikoji and Takakura Streets. This is about a 5 minute walk from Shijo Station or Karasuma Station. From there, slowly work your way east until you’ve seen and eaten enough.

At this point, you’ll be near Nishiki Tenmangu Shrine and within the twin Teramachi and Shinkyogoku Shopping Arcades. We love these two streets almost as much as Nishiki Market, but as with Kyoto’s Kitchen, these two areas have pitfalls of their own.

Namely, there’s a lot of tacky crap here. Novelty shirts, stereotypical novelty items, and just plain junk. There are also plenty of great stores, selling everything from everyday items to high-end souvenirs and specialty items.

We are particularly big fans of Montbell, a minimalist Japanese outdoor equipment and clothing.

At the other end of the spectrum, Daiso is a solid 100 yen store, with plenty of trinkets and small items you can take home to give as gifts.

Right next door to Daiso is Nishiki-Tenmangu Shrine, which is a small but busy shinto shrine with lanterns and bronze cow. It’s one of the weaker shrines you’ll see in Kyoto, but it’s location makes it interesting.

Overall, Nishiki Market is a lot of fun if you time things right, but at the “wrong” time of day, it’s something that won’t be for everyone. We recommend going and seeing for yourself. At the very least, it’ll give you a chance to see the other two shopping arcades and stroll around Downtown Kyoto before making your way to Gion or wherever else you’re planning on visiting in this part of Kyoto, Japan!

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Nishiki Market in Kyoto, Japan? Did you find it to be too crowded, or was your experience better? What did you think of the shopping arcades in this area? Would you recommend Nishiki Market to a first-timer visiting Japan? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post Guide to Nishiki Market in Kyoto, Japan: Good, Bad & Ugly appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Our 1-day itinerary for Uji & Kyoto is an efficient step-by-step plan of attack for visiting this region of Japan, including green tea spots, four different UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and a variety of temples & shrines. It’s a jam-packed day that takes you to several excellent spots on the southeastern outskirts of Kyoto.

While we think this is a good itinerary, it should not be your top choice if you only have 2-3 days in Kyoto, which is the case for most first-time visitors to Japan. If that describes you, start with our 2-Day Kyoto Highlights Itinerary for a shorter trip or 3-Day Kyoto, Japan Itinerary to experience Western, Central, and Eastern Kyoto on separate days.

If you do have additional time, consult our 1-Day “Cool Kyoto” (Northern Kyoto) Itinerary and 1-Day Southwestern Kyoto Itinerary, or even our 1-Day Nara, Japan Highlights Itinerary, as all of those are solid options for subsequent days in the Kansai region. Basically, this Uji & Kyoto Itinerary is going to be for those spending a week or so in the Kyoto area…

Now that we’ve done our best to convince you not to use this Uji and Kyoto Itinerary, let’s cut to the chase–this is actually a pretty jam-packed and fun-filled day!

Fushimi Inari Shrine – Given that this day is probably going to be your fifth day or later in Kyoto, there’s a strong probability that you’ve already visited Fushimi Inari Shrine during your trip. Nevertheless, we’re including it here because it’s incredibly easy to access Fushimi Inari via the JR Nara Line on your way to Uji, and you might just want to do that.

If you do opt to for Fushimi Inari, you’ll want to do the “truncated” experience, minus the Hike Along Kyoto Trail from Fushimi Inari Shrine to Tofukuji Temple. Nevertheless, we recommend arriving early and bypassing the normal senbon torii loop to see the Secret Bamboo Forest of Fushimi Inari. After you’ve done that, re-join the normal route up to the top of Mt. Inari. This is an awesome no-crowds experience, which is a far cry from what the average tourist experiences at Fushimi Inari. Click here to read and see more in our full post about Fushimi Inari Shrine. 

Uji – Located about halfway between Kyoto and Nara on the JR Nara Line, Uji is a city famous for its green tea. In fact, the city’s prominence as a tourist destination is predicated almost entirely upon Byodoin Temple and the Omotesando shopping street leading up to it.

On Omotesando, you’ll find a variety of shops, kiosks, and assorted vendors selling all things green tea. Whether you want to sample matcha during an authentic tea ceremony or eat a green tea hot dog on the street, you can. Although that might sound “jokey,” we tend to skew towards the latter in Uji.

Despite the city’s reputation for exceptional green tea, Omotesando and the surrounding area is really touristy. There’s not necessarily anything wrong with that (a lot of Kyoto is touristy!), but if you’re looking for authenticity in a tea ceremony, you’re better off finding a quiet option in Kyoto.

We recommend leaning into the touristy nature of Omotesando, trying as many outrageous green tea foods as you can, and perhaps buying some green tea. If you’re truly serious about green tea or matcha, check out our Best Green Tea in Kyoto, Japan post.

Byodoin Temple – From our perspective, Byodoin Temple is the reason to visit Uji. All of the green tea stuff lining the street leading up to it is simply an appetizer. Byodoin Temple is a must-visit UNESCO World Heritage Site with some of Japan’s most eye-catching architecture. (If it were in the city, it’d rank in the top 10 or 15 on our Top 100 Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan List.)

Phoenix Hall is the highlight, and is among the most mesmerizing buildings in all of Japan. It has a certain wow-factor to it, and is distinct from other temple buildings in and around Kyoto. The underground Hoshokan Museum is also exceptional, and like a more focused version of Kyoto National Museum. Even if you opt against doing this itinerary, consider visiting Byodoin Temple.  Click here to read and see more in our full post about Byodoin Temple. 

Ujigami Shrine – From Byodoin Temple, it’s about a 10 minute wait here. Ujigami is the oldest standing shrine in Japan, which has led to it obtaining UNESCO World Heritage Site status. This makes Ujigami Shrine culturally important, but not compelling.

The upsides are that it’s free to visit, and you can be in and out within 10 minutes, allowing you to easily check this UNESCO World Heritage Site off your list on your walk to the next stop. (If you decide to skip both this and Mimurotoji Temple, you’re not really missing much.)

Mimurotoji Temple – Nestled in the northern hills of Uji, the “flower temple” has a variety of lovely gardens with seasonal flowers. Here you’ll find beautiful cherry blossoms in spring, azalea and hydrangea in early summer, lotuses in late summer, and fall colors thereafter.

Those gardens are the main reason to visit Mimurotoji Temple, but we also find the architecture compelling. The main hall is interesting, as is the beautiful, three tiered vermilion pagoda. From here, you’ll walk to Mimurodo Station and take the Keihan-Uji Line to Rokujizō Station, transferring to the Tozai Subway Line to Daigo Station.

Daigoji Temple – You’ll then walk to our fourth and final UNESCO World Heritage Site of the day, Daigoji Temple. This is another solid stop that is normally overlooked by visitors to Kyoto. The highlights here are Sanbōin subtemple and its glorious garden, which is worth the price of admission alone. The view of Bentendo Hall reflected in its pond is likewise beautiful.

From Daigoji Temple, our next stop is an optional ramen break. Whether you opt for that or not, you’re going to take the Tozai Line north, stopping either at Nagitsuji Station for the ramen or Yamashina Station for Bishamondo Temple (or both!). Click here to read and see more in our full post about Daigoji Temple. 

Hiro Ramen – Hiro (known as “Menyahiro” on Google Maps) has an interesting story. Previously located in the Nishijin District near Kyoto Imperial Palace, but it was awarded Michelin’s Bib Gourmand distinction and became too busy, so the owner relocated to a quieter location. Can you imagine that? Being too popular, so you just move to somewhere less busy?!

Despite it being in a quieter location, you still might have to wait, as this ramen is something special. The owner uses Fushimi spring water to make the ramen, which features incredibly tender and delicate bamboo shoots. The most popular menu item is the kanishosoba, which has Japanese blue crab as the base. That’s the #1 ramen on the menu, and you need not look any further.

Bishamondo Temple – From Hiro, you’ll once again take the Tozai Line north, arriving at Yamashina Station. We are big fans of Bishamondo Temple, even if we “only” rank it #38 on our Top 100. The long approach takes you through a lovely Kyoto suburb, and there’s something charming about the area around the temple, as well as the environment itself.

Bishamondo Temple is most well-known for the view at the base of its stone steps leading towards the entrance while ablaze in crimson red from the falling leaves; this is one of the most well-known scenes of fall in Japan. Foliage aside, it packs a powerful punch the rest of the year, with multiple gardens, vibrant buildings, and several nicely-done fusuma and other treasures inside the main hall. Click here to read and see more in our full post about Bishamondo Temple. 

BONUS: Hike to Nazenji Temple – If you’re still full of energy and there’s enough daylight left, consider taking the Higashiyama Course of the Kyoto Trail from Bishamondo to Nanzenji Temple. I detailed my misadventure doing this in our Kyoto Fall & Winter Trip Report, and while I had a fun experience that ultimately worked out, it was a bit intimidating.

Read the hike report if you’re interested. It’s a fairly intense but rewarding hike that you should anticipate taking a little over an hour to complete. There’s not much online info (at least in English) about it, but the trail is marked in Google Maps, which should make wayfinding a bit easier.

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Uji, Japan? What did you think of the experience? Did you enjoy the touristy stretch leading to Byodoin Temple? Would you recommend it to a first-timer visiting Japan? What about the other UNESCO World Heritage Sites on this itinerary? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post 1-Day Uji & Kyoto, Japan Itinerary appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel is an oceanfront 5-star luxury hotel perched on a seaside bluff located along Pacific Coast Highway between Dana Point and Laguna Beach, and 60 miles south of Los Angeles, California. In this resort review, we’ll share room photos, thoughts on our stay here, how the Ritz compares to nearby properties, and whether it’s worth staying here.

Sarah had a couple of free night certificates to redeem. Originally, we were going to use them at the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay. However, flying up there presented too much of a hassle, so we decided at the last minute to do Southern California. Unfortunately, this hotel didn’t have consecutive nights available, so we were going to split our time between the Ritz-Carlton Los Angeles and Laguna Niguel.

At the last minute, availability for two consecutive nights at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel opened up, so we switched to that. Sarah also has Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status, so upon check-in we received a complimentary upgrade to an ocean view room, which would’ve cost over $1,000 per night for our dates. Things were off to a good start…

Our first impressions of the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel were quite positive. The arrival is pretty and well-maintained, and the entrance is sophisticated and appropriate for the beachfront accommodations.

Valets and front desk staff were personable but professional, a perfect mix of laid-back SoCal and attentive service. They interacted with us on a personal level, were helpful, and made sincere recommendations.

From the front desk, we headed through the airy and light main lobby and long grand hallway. This is tastefully decorated with an aquatic motif and oceanic art, befitting of the location. It’s also dotted with white flowers and large windows that bathe the room in natural light.

Upon arrival, there was a wedding party in this area. Much later at night, convention guests. We discovered that there was an ebb and flow to crowds based upon events. Sometimes, the public areas of the resort would be almost entirely deserted; other times, they’d be packed.

As we later discovered, the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel has a ton of convention and event space, and I’d hazard a guess that this is a huge driver of business.

This can mean a full house in the bars late at night. On the plus side, the amenities are underutilized and it often feels like you have the hotel to yourself while meetings are in session during the daytime hours.

The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel is a series of four interconnected guest room buildings. The “Dana” wing consisting of two buildings and a pool on the south side of lobby and the “Monarch” wing with two buildings surrounding another pool to the north.

Due to the layout, it can be quite a hike from the lobby to the outer reaches of the resort. However, I’ll take this approach over a tower. Our room was in the first Dana building, and not too rough of a walk.

One detail along the way that I really appreciated is the open-air breezeways connecting the buildings. This offered glimpses of the ocean through lush vegetation, and is a nifty exemplar of Southern California indoor-outdoor living.

It’s a seemingly minor detail, but it captivated my attention to the point that Sarah had the joy of hearing me comment on it incessantly during our stay; now, I do the same to you!

Let’s move on to our ocean view guest room.

The number of rooms at the Ritz are pretty evenly split among ocean, garden or pool, and coastline view rooms. There are also a variety of suites and club level rooms, almost all of which offer ocean views. A small number of ground-level rooms have fireplaces, which look awesome.

Ours had a modestly sized balcony, which is where we spent most of our time while “in” the room.

It’s a minor nitpick, but it was difficult to open the balcony doors with all of the furniture out there.

Consequently, we mostly just left the balcony doors open pretty much whenever we were in the room.

The waves crashing against the coast provided soothing sounds, and chasing off birds eager to enter our room and steal our cheese became a thrilling game.

We found the room itself to be a nice blend of luxury and ocean-inspired touches. The texture of the carpeting, tray ceiling, recessed ambiance lighting, marble bathroom, and quality furniture & bedding all reinforced the feeling of quality.

Our favorite detail was unquestionably the coral-inspired, backlit glass panels flanking the balcony. This is the stylistic cornerstone, and what gives these guest rooms their own unique character.

We liked the bathrooms a great deal. They have twin sinks, a closed-off toilet, and bathtub/shower. There are also mirrors everywhere, if you’re into that sort of thing.

With that said, I don’t think the guest room necessarily screamed ‘5-star luxury’ or ‘over $1,000 per night.’ We’ve had rooms of this approximate quality at lower tier hotels.

It’s not that there is anything wrong with the guest rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel…there’s just nothing extraordinary about them, either.

They’re perfectly nice and satisfactory, but for this price point, you might be inclined to expect something that goes above and beyond and exceeds expectations.

The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel has an impressive host of amenities.

One of the most impressive is its large fitness center with floor to ceiling windows offering a prime ocean view. This fitness center was always bustling, so I don’t have any photos of the interior (sorry, I’m not quite that creepy). You’ll just have to take my word that it’s one of the nicest fitness centers I’ve ever seen. It actually made me want to work out.

Knowing that my beach bod quest is preordained to fail, I conceded defeat and drowned my sorrows in the Laguna Burger.

There are a total of six restaurants at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. Most notably, a rooftop outdoor lounge overlooking the ocean, a steakhouse with pasture-raised beef, and a Pan-Latin restaurant showcasing local produce and sustainable seafood.

We opted to dine first at 180blu, which is the outdoor rooftop lounge named after its 180-degree views of the Pacific Ocean. (Pictured above at dusk.) During our stay, this was the most popular venue at the Ritz.

The views here did not disappoint, and we’d recommend going for drinks at sunset for this reason alone. However, our food was bland and uninspired–to the point that we nixed subsequent plans to dine at the resort.

In fairness to the Ritz, this is a pretty common issue with high-end dining in South Orange County, California.

We’ve eaten at a lot of “highly-regarded” restaurants in Laguna Beach, Dana Point, Newport Beach, etc., and have found the vast majority to be a disappointment. This is not Los Angeles–the coastal culinary scene is lacking, and that’s doubly true when a restaurant can rest on the laurels of offering an ocean view. (Inland and mid-tier OC restaurants are typically your best bet.)

The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel also has two pools and a spa, none of which we used.

We did lounge around one of the pools briefly, and found it to be fine. Nothing to write home about, but it had more than ample seating and plenty of shade. Most guests clearly favored the beach, as did we.

Speaking of the beach, this Ritz-Carlton is technically located in Dana Point and not Laguna Niguel, as the latter does not have any coastline. (The next couple of paragraphs are a nerdy local history lesson about which you probably don’t care, so feel free to scroll past…)

In the late 1980s, both cities submitted incorporation requests; residents of Monarch Beach, which had been developed by the Laguna Niguel Co., voted in favor of joining Dana Point. After a lot of controversy and litigation, this vote stood, and Laguna Niguel was later incorporated without the coastal strip. Having opened in 1984, the Ritz Carlton’s name simply predates all of this. (Its original name was to be the Ritz-Carlton Monarch Beach–they should’ve gone with that!)

In reality, the Ritz-Carlton is more or less at the intersection of Laguna Beach, Niguel, and Dana Point. Although longtime residents of each will fiercely concoct reasons/excuses to proclaim their own superiority, they’re all lovely communities. We used to live 5 minutes from the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, and find this entire area to be very nice.

Each town in the area has its own upsides and downsides. Dana Point and Laguna Niguel are like two halves of a single whole, each developed around the same time, and seemingly masterplanned to perfection. Consequently, they look pristine…but also like a sumptuous seaside suburbia.

By contrast, Laguna Beach is older, more eclectic and charming. Its architecture is not uniform or nondescript, and the city has a lot more personality. Laguna Beach also has a walkable downtown.

The main drawback of Laguna Beach is that it’s significantly more touristy (thanks MTV!), which is particularly pronounced during the summer. I personally prefer Laguna Beach, but reasonable minds may differ on that.

While close to the city limits of Laguna Beach, the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel is removed both in terms of location and style.

It is definitely a standalone resort with a relatively secluded vibe–even from the adjacent Salt Creek Beach. You’re looking at about a 10-15 minute drive from the Ritz to downtown Laguna Beach.

Circling back to the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel itself, this sprawling seaside setting overlooking the Pacific Ocean is unquestionably the resort’s highlight.

The sweeping views overlooking the coastline are dramatic and gorgeous to both the north and south. Once you make the steep walk down to the public beach (or take the shuttle), you have a great stretch of coast for watching surfers, sunbathing, or whatever you care to do.

The hotel’s grounds are also quite lush and beautiful, and the space is nicely broken up by the the resort buildings, various courtyards, fire pits, and other landscaping.

It’s a thoughtful design that lends itself to exploring, all within a footprint that utilizes the resort’s acreage admirably. These manicured grounds and the natural setting are the unequivocal highlights at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel.

These sprawling grounds come with a downside: there are roughly 400 rooms at the Ritz. This means you’re not exactly getting the level of personalized service you might expect from a brand like the Ritz Carlton. (To that point, we received several point incentive fliers to decline housekeeping, check-out early, etc–I assume the hotel is short-staffed.)

Moreover, much like the look of Laguna Niguel itself, the exterior is on the boring side. It has that Spanish Colonial Revival style that typifies the area. There’s nothing wrong with this, and it’s certainly a grandiose and opulent look befitting such a property, but it looks a bit cookie-cutter.

The interior is aided by many more artistic flourishes and human touches, so it definitely scores some points there. The Ritz does a good job of threading the needle on the lavish-meets-beach look thanks to an expansive oceanic art collection.

I appreciate all of this, but feel it could’ve gone further. For a resort of its caliber, the Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel still is a tad too bland. Perhaps I’m being overly harsh because similar styles are ubiquitous throughout South Orange County, and it all just blurs together.

Now let’s compare the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel to what I view as its most direct competitor: Montage Laguna Beach (pictured below). This is an apt comparison as both are comparably priced luxury resorts that are perched above seaside bluffs, located only a few miles apart. On paper, they stack up together nicely.

While offering this comparison, I should note that despite spending dozens (if not hundreds) of sunsets and sunrises at the Montage, we’ve never actually stayed there. Nevertheless, we absolutely adore the Montage Laguna Beach.

The hotel itself has personality and charm, and the craftsman design is engaging and distinctly Californian. Moreover, we prefer the location and grounds at the Montage. It still has an isolated resort atmosphere, but it’s closer to downtown Laguna Beach.

We also prefer the layout, gardens, bluffs, and beaches at the Montage, but this is all largely personal preference. There’s more coastline to stroll at the Montage, and it’s bursting with flowers, cactus, and rabbits. The biggest advantage the Ritz has in these regards is that Salt Creek Beach is a better surf spot, and that’s fun to watch.

Overall, the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel is still a superlative resort with a lot going for it in terms of both the resort’s amenities and its prime real estate. It’s not our favorite property in the area, nor is it a perfect resort–but nothing is. If you have the Marriott Bonvoy points to burn, money is no issue, or this is your first experience with a Southern California oceanfront resort, you’re unlikely to be disappointed. If you’re paying out of pocket or are on a tighter budget, the Ritz-Carlton wouldn’t be our first recommendation.

For more tips, info, and advice, please consult our Laguna Beach, California Planning Guide. If you’re visiting other spots during your California vacation, check out our California category of posts for other things to do. If you enjoyed this post, help spread the word by sharing it via social media. Thanks for reading! 

Your Thoughts

Have you stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel? What did you think of the resort? Any other accommodations at which you’ve stayed in this area? If you’re yet to visit, does this hotel interest you? Any questions? Hearing from readers is half the fun, so please share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!

The post Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel Review appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

Want to escape the crowds of central Kyoto? This 1-day Kurama, Kibune, and Northern Kyoto itinerary is a great option for weekends, peak season, fall colors season, hot summer days, during festivals or special events…or really any random day. It includes some of our absolute favorite temples & shrines in Japan, including a couple you’re unlikely to see mentioned in any major Kyoto planning resources.

Despite having 3,483 itineraries for Japan (slight exaggeration), which is approximately 3,482 more than any of you will ever read, we continue to test new touring plans each time we’re in Kyoto. Why? I’m not totally sure. Probably a cross between being creatures of habit and because I find an odd joy in maximizing efficiency.

Frankly, this is a source of constant headaches for me. I discover new routes and tweaks I’d like to make, leading to edits of existing Kyoto itineraries…which are probably overkill to begin with. As I’ve noted before, one of my absolute favorite plans is our 1-Day Northern “Cool” Kyoto Itinerary, which already focused on Kurama and Kibune.

My first impulse was to massively edit that one day plan, as what follows here covers a lot of the same ground. However, it’s also substantially different, allowing for this to be something of a “variant” itinerary for Northern Kyoto. Or rather, for that one to be a variant, as I now prefer this itinerary.

As with the Cool Kyoto Itinerary, you’re going to want to start by purchasing Eizan Railway 1-Day Unlimited Pass. It costs ¥1000, which might seem steep, but it’s very much worth the money. This is especially true during fall colors season thanks to the Momiji Leaf Tunnel Illumination.

Eizan Railway is unquestionably the best rail line in Kyoto (and one of the top 10 in all of Japan) and you’ll get a ton of use out of it as this plan involves a ton of backtracking on the railway. Savor your experiences riding the rails of this great line and remember: the journey is part of the destination.

With that said, let’s get started with this Kurama, Kibune, and Kyoto 1-Day Itinerary…

Rurikoin Temple – I already spent 1,695 words weighing the pros & cons of visiting this temple and whether it’s worth the money and effort, so please read our full post about Rurikoin Temple if you need help making that decision. If you can’t be bothered to do that, the “pro” is the view above. The “con” is that it costs 2,000 yen and often has a long line.

If that photo carries the day, you’ll want to get plan far ahead in order to arrive at Yase-Hieizan-guchi Station at least 45 minutes before this temple opens for the day. If cost and hassle win out, consider instead starting your morning by visiting Shugakuin Imperial Villa (mentioned later in this itinerary), Sekizan Zen-in Temple, Former Retreat of Iwakura Tomomi, and maybe Jisso-in Temple–but not Enkoji Temple–as laid out in our aforementioned Cool Kyoto Itinerary.

Rengeji Temple – Walk 10 minutes downstream from Rurikoin (literally, you’ll cross the river) and you’ll arrive at Rengeji Temple, which is so tucked away and nondescript that you might question whether you’ve arrived at the right place. I’d hazard a guess that this is a common reaction, as Rengeji Temple is totally under the radar.

We love Rengeji Temple, in large part because it’s frequently devoid of other people. It also has a shockingly tranquil setting, and the contrast of crisp green moss with warm autumn foliage overhead, all with the morning sunlight flittering through, makes this a sublime setting for sitting–or strolling–through. Don’t let the (lack of) reviews or coverage fool you, Rengeji Temple is a hidden gem.

Sanmyoin Temple – Don’t actually go to this temple; it’s nothing special. Rather, navigate to Hachiman-Mae Station and keep your eyes peeled as you walk for this pagoda rising to the right as you’re walking towards the station. You could head up for a closer view if you’re so inclined, but the pagoda is the unequivocal highlight and the best perspective here is actually from a distance.

After this, catch the Eizan Line heading to Kurama. (From here, I’m going to gloss over transportation steps–just dial this all in to Google Maps and eliminate buses as an option. It’ll either route you via walking or the Eizan Line as appropriate.)

Kuramadera Temple – This is the #2 temple on our Top 100 Temples & Shrines in Kyoto, Japan List. Here are all of the reasons it ranks so highly for us; you could truly spend all day here hiking and just exploring the place. Out of all the mountainside temples in Kyoto, this is the most expansive and naturally beautiful.

Normally, we’d hike over the Kibune from the summit of Mt. Kurama. Consider doing that if you’re doing this itinerary in the summer or really any time of year when Kifune Shrine is not having a nighttime illumination or festival. These occur sporadically for matsuri and tanabata, plus pretty much the entire month of November for fall colors season. Be sure to consult a schedule of events (via the Kyoto Tourist Info Center) before you plan around this.

Shugakuin Imperial Villa (Optional/NOT RECOMMENDED) – I had to offer that all caps disclaimer because this stop is really going to be pushing your luck, but if you do the 3 pm tour here, you should finish with just enough time to rush over to Enkoji Temple and arrive before admission concludes for the day.

The problem with this is that it requires good timing and not getting lost on the side streets between the two. It’s absolutely possible, but it really is pressing your luck. Shugakuin Imperial Villa is really cool to see–especially in fall–but it’s a far lower priority than Enkoji, which is a must-do.

Enkoji Temple – Basically, the goal is to get here just before admission ends for the day, and linger for as long as you can, working your way back and up to the hillside that offers one of the absolute best views in Kyoto. During fall colors season, you’ll be able to watch the sunset from up here, and that alone makes it worth the backtracking.

This is one of our favorite temples in Kyoto, and one we revisit with regularity. You can read why in our full post about Enkoji Temple–more importantly, you can see why, with numerous sunset and fall colors shots.

Momiji Leaf Tunnel Illumination (SEASONAL) – If you’re visiting during autumn, you’ll want to take the Eizan Line all the way back north to Kibuneguchi Station. Do not be discouraged by this long commute.

In fall, this train ride is literally the destination itself for many Kyotoites, as the Momiji Leaf Tunnel Illumination along the Eizan Line is spectacular.

Kibune Festival (SEASONAL) – Upon arrival in Kibune, we recommend catching the bus to Kifune Shrine (we usually bus up and walk back). This is a relatively straightforward and small shrine, but it’s stunning when the lanterns are lit or when it’s having a festival or nighttime illumination (most notably, throughout November).

Spend some time there basking in the glow of the lanterns as they illuminate the autumn foliage. Following that,  grab dinner at one of the many wonderful, waterfront restaurants in Kibune. It’ll be a long day filled with a ton of commuting, but this is one of the most enjoyable times you can have in Kyoto, and it has the potential to be a surprisingly relaxing time during what can otherwise be a chaotic time in Japan.

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you visited Kurama and Kibune? Think these are worth the side trip from Kyoto? Any thoughts on this itinerary’s stops or its zigzagging nature? If you haven’t been to any of these stops, are you looking forward to visiting? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

The post 1-Day Kurama, Kibune & Kyoto, Japan Itinerary appeared first on Travel Caffeine.

I am obsessed with bizarre vending machine drinks in Japan. I’m also a huge fan of novelty Coca-Cola and Pepsi packaging. Put those two things together, and it’s a recipe for me to do some serious “soda stalking” as we travel around Tokyo and Kyoto on a veritable tour of 7-11 and Lawson stores.

In this post, I’ll share the fruits of these adventures in Japan, which includes special packaging, Coke and Pepsi flavors unique to Japan, and more. It might sound geeky, but…eh, it is geeky. It’s also fun and the type of thing we don’t normally share in our more planning-centric content.

My obsession with bizarre vending machine drinks actually began on our first trip to Japan several years ago, from which I wrote this post about Cool Japanese Vending Machine Drinks. I followed that up with this sequel, and promised more posts to come (which I used to justify buying more vending machine drinks “for the sake of research”).

Unfortunately, as time changes, so too do tastes, and I’ve mostly moved on from vending machines to convenience stores. This is for a variety of reasons. First, because I’ve now consumed almost all of the vending machine “staples” available in Tokyo and Kyoto, so there’s little new to try with each trip.

Second, because 7-11, Lawson, and Family Mart are usually cheaper than vending machines. Same goes for grocery stores (like Fresco or Wal-Mart owned Seiyu), which are cheaper than both vending machines and convenience stores, and usually have a better selection than both.

Fear not, though. Whenever I see those glorious 100 yen vending machines, I stop dead in my tracks, and invariably purchase a mystery drink of sometimes dubious quality and ingredients. (Joking aside, these 100 yen vending machines are gems and I love several of their main drinks.)

But I digress. This is a post about Cool Coca-Cola and Peculiar Pepsi, not my thirst for hunting down other obscure drinks in Japan…

We’ll start on a high note with Sakura Pepsi, which remains my all-time favorite Coke or Pepsi in Japan. Sakura products are incredibly popular during the spring in Japan, and have flavors all over the place, ranging from ‘basically cherry’ to savory and sour.

We last saw Sakura Pepsi during cherry blossom season three years ago. It’s similar to Wild Cherry Pepsi, but with lighter, more floral sense and mildly sour notes.

Next, Coca-Cola Peach. This is one of my favorites.

Those of you in the South might be familiar with Coke’s local “Georgia Peach” flavor, and this is pretty similar to that, albeit slightly different.

Next, we have Pepsi J-Cola.

This is aimed at Japan’s heavy users of cola, and features a deeper flavor with a refreshing aftertaste. The taste difference is apparent but slight, and I’d describe it as being slightly more intense and sharper. Not as ‘mellow’ as a traditional Pepsi.

Pepsi J-Cola comes in the normal blue variety, plus Zero and Midnight flavors.

I don’t care for the Pepsi J-Cola Zero variety. It seemed like a diluted version of something that was supposed to taste more intense, which strikes me as a contradiction. Nevertheless, I liked the matsuri summer packaging pictured above.

Several different varieties of Coke are pictured here, but we’ll focus on two of them.

I love the Coca-Cola Vanilla Float. It reminds me of a vanilla from a Freestyle machine, but a bit smoother and creamier. Coca-Cola Clear Lime, on the other hand, reminds me a lot of Crystal Pepsi for some odd reason.

Speaking of citrus Pepsi flavors, here’s J-Cola Lemon.

It’s basically just normal Pepsi J-Cola, but with an even sharper, tangier flavor. I enjoyed the taste of this, but an entire big bottle was too much.

Here’s the elusive Coca-Cola Coffee Plus. If I knew I’d only ever see this stuff once, I would’ve made more of an effort at a good photo.

I loved this. I’d liken it to beer with a mild chocolate flavor in the sense that the coffee beans here don’t overpower Coke’s distinct flavor. It was really well-balanced and the flavors worked well together. Plus, it had more caffeine!

Next, my favorite: Coca-Cola Plus. This isn’t my favorite in terms of taste (far from it!), but in terms of backstory and the unintentionally hilarious ads for it at vending machines.

Coca-Cola Plus is the result of a decade of research and development, plus collaborations with health experts, which earned it the designation of “Food of Specified Health Use” (FOSHU) from the Japanese government. The reason? It contains five grams of indigestible dextrin (a source of dietary fiber), which supposedly helps suppress fat absorption and moderates the levels of triglycerides in the blood after eating.

In other words, this is Coke Plus Laxatives. (As the label warns, drinking too much can lead to “loose bowels.”)

Joking aside, there’s actually been a fair amount of controversy about the government endorsing the dubious benefits of soda as a health drink, especially as there are much healthier ways to obtain the same ‘advantages’ this offers via a balanced diet.

Next, more souvenir bottles.

These are popular throughout Japan. Kyoto alone has multiple variations of glass bottles with traditional designs, plus this metal one, which can be purchased from vending machines.

Above is one of the glass collectible Coke souvenir bottles for Kyoto. I purchased at the top of Fushimi Inari Shrine at a small shop up there.

I’ve only seen the glass ones around temple vendors–never in convenience stores or vending machines.

Along those lines, Tokyo Disney Resort typically has special Coca-Cola bottles.

The one above was available from in-park vending machines for Tokyo Disneyland’s 35th Anniversary. There was also a collector’s version of the same.

Finally, the newest flavor of Coke to launch in Japan: Coca-Cola Energy.

We were actually in Japan when this debuted over the summer, and I had high hopes given the aggressive marketing campaign. Unfortunately, Coca-Cola Energy is awful. If you did a blind taste-test and were asked whether this reminds you more of Red Bull or Coke, you’d invariably say Red Bull.

I guess Coca-Cola Energy has a mild cola note to it, but it’s primarily a mix of the fake-fruity and chemical-derived bubble gum flavors (or whatever) that typify so many energy drinks. I don’t know why this flavor profile is so popular with energy drinks, but it just gives me flashbacks to parties in college. I was really hoping this would be simply an ‘amped-up’ Coca-Cola, but that’s definitely not the case.

That wraps up our fun look at Cool Coca-Cola and Peculiar Pepsi flavors in Japan. Here’s hoping that both companies keep releasing unique and obscure beverages in Japan, so I can keep doing this important research and write a sequel to this article!

If you’re planning a trip to Japan that includes Kyoto, we recommend that you start by consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan to plan all aspects of our vacation. You should also check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other places to visit! 

Your Thoughts

Have you tried any odd Coke or Pepsi flavors in Japan? What did you think of them? Anything you’d buy again? Do you wish Pepsi or Coke would release any of these flavors in the United States? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Any questions about what we’ve covered here? Does visiting this spot in Kyoto interest you? Hearing about your experiences—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

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