Walking Tours

Walking Tour One

A stroll through Higashiyama-ku will take you to Kiyomizu Temple, one of Kyoto's most famous sights, and other worthwhile attractions like Sanjusangendo Hall and the Kyoto National Museum. It will also take you through some of Kyoto's most charming neighborhoods, with plenty of shopping opportunities en route.

Although the walking-tour leaflet ("Kyoto Walks") distributed by the TIC claims that you can walk from Kiyomizu Temple to Heian Shrine in 50 minutes, I don't see how it's possible unless you run the whole way. I've walked this route at least seven times, and it's always taken me the better part of a day--perhaps I'm slow, but it's a pace that I've found does justice to this wonderful area of Kyoto.

Note: The second walk, "The Philosophers' Stroll" (Walking Tour Two), includes several attractions that could be combined with this walk if you don't have time for two walks. If you continue walking north from Maruyama Park instead of heading west for Gion, for example, you could take in Heian Shrine and the Kyoto Handicraft Center (covered at the end of the second walk). In any case, since eastern Kyoto has some of the city's most traditional and beautiful restaurants, be sure to read through the dining section to decide beforehand where you might want to eat lunch or dinner.

Walking Tour Two

This stroll takes in the Temple of the Silver Pavilion as well as a couple of other temples, a museum dedicated to Kyoto's traditional crafts, Kyoto's most well-known shrine and its garden, and the best place in town for one-stop souvenir shopping. Linking the Silver Pavilion with the other sights is a canal lined by trees - a path known as the Philosopher's Pathway.