Last updated on June 30th, 2023 at 11:09 am

This ancient city in Japan thrives on its rich history and culture. From being a religious hub to the center of a variety of traditional art forms, you will get to sense Japan’s soul. In this blog post, we’ll share our Kyoto 3-day itinerary for you to explore the best this city has to offer. 

On our trip to Japan, we spent 3 days in Kyoto and took a day trip to Hiroshima and Miyajima from Kyoto. Give yourself at a minimum 3-days to explore the attractions in and around Kyoto properly.

We visited in the summer season but if you decide otherwise there are plenty of amazing places to visit Japan in the winter. With more time in hand, definitely also visit Japan’s 3rd largest city,  Osaka, which is less than 15 minutes away from Kyoto via Shinkansen trains. And while in Osaka, here’s a great guide to help you explore the Dotonbori district. 

Below is our recommendation on what to see and do in Kyoto. Feel free to take inspiration and mix it up based on your interests.

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3-day Kyoto Itinerary 

Day 1

Explore the Gion District

Gion is one of the oldest establishments in Kyoto. We’d recommend taking a good part of the day to explore the streets. Once popularly visited for religious reasons, Yasaka Shrine is now mostly for elite Geisha performances.

The age-old teahouses tucked on each side of the streets in Gion caught our attention right away. These teahouses, called ‘Ochayas,’ are exclusively meant for entertainment performances by Geishas and Maikos (trainees). FUN FACT: Ochayas, although literally mean teahouse, do not serve tea. The actual tea ceremony rooms in Japan are called ‘Chashitsu.’ 

Gion is full of many small shrines, temples, gardens, and historic streets. Heck, the Gion district itself can take days to see. But in 3 days, you’ve to suck it up and cramp up the highlights. 

Visit Ginkaku-Ji temple, aka the Silver Pavilion

Ginkaku-Ji is only 15 minutes away from Gion by taxi, so you can easily club this temple with Gion street strolls. Unlike the Golden Pavilion (aka Kinkaku-Ji), the exterior of Ginkaku-Ji is not really painted with silver. And to be completely honest, we never made it to this temple because of exhaustion from the summer heat in Japan.

TIP: Visiting Japan in August wasn’t easy. The Asian heat is a different beast altogether. We didn’t anticipate how tired we would be during the day walking in the summer.

Related: Interesting facts about Japan you should know before going

Get a cultural experience at Gion Corner

Since 3 days in Kyoto is barely any time to experience the ancient Japanese culture, why not get a quick crash course at Gion corner?

In one hour at Gion theater, we saw 7 different traditional art forms. I got selected to volunteer for the tea ceremony (yes, I was that girl who was quick to raise her hand). Although we didn’t understand a word about the ancient comedy play and the puppet show, we really enjoyed it. The ticket price is roughly $30/person, and you can find more information on the shows at the Gion Corner Website.

We also got to see Maiko’s dance performance. Other ways of experiencing these traditional art forms would be to take private or group classes. 

Spot a Geisha

This is a legit activity for a fan of the ‘Memoirs of a Geisha.’ After a successful stint, we can happily pass on our tips for finding Geishas and Maikos in Gion. FUN FACT: Maikos are trainees who are learning the art form of singing, dancing & music under an experienced artist or a Geisha (also Geiko).

Both Maikos and Geikos will wear makeup on their faces, but Maikos are more elaborate in their dresses and adornments. For this, you definitely want to spend your evening time here. 

Eat and Drink at Pontocho Alley

Barely any space to walk, less than 2-meters wide, Pontocho alley is probably the most local experience we had in Kyoto. Enjoyed best at night, we stumbled upon Pontocho alley by accident. TIP: This is another great spot for seeing a Geisha at dusk. 

On one of our evening strolls in Gion, we saw the reflection of Izakayas lined up on the Kamo river. A drink or two on those patios was incumbent. Later we read that some of the teahouses here do not even host foreign tourists. Guests at those places are only allowed upon recommendation or past relationships. TIP: If an Izakaya tells you that they are all booked, then chances are it’s one of those elite izakayas. Menus were mostly in Japanese, but it didn’t take much translation to order my warm Sake and Gaurav’s Sapporo.

Day 2

Pray at Fushimi Inari-Taisha (and a photo-op with orange Torii Gates)

With today’s social media influx, I don’t think there is anyone who goes to Kyoto and returns without walking through these orange Torii gates. But do you know Fushimi Inari Taisha is, in fact, a religious place – a Shinto Shrine?

FACT: Shinto and Buddhism are the two major religions in Japan. If you are up for a hike, I would suggest going all the way up for a splendid view. Or at least go till the halfway point to see an aerial view of Kyoto like we did.

These hundreds of orange torii gates are offerings by devotees who are typically Japanese businesses. The Shinto god of rice, Inari, is believed to bring good fortune to businesses. FUN FACT: The bigger the Torii gate donated, they say, the better your business will flourish. If you don’t want to spend millions on a big gate, just buy a small one for your wishes. 

To get here, take the JR Nara line train from Kyoto Station to Inari Station, which is covered in the JR Pass. The shrine is right next to the train station. 

Visit either Nijo Castle or Kiyomizu-dera Temple

They are both main attractions in Kyoto, but realistically I believe you can only see one of them properly after the above excursion. After Fushimi Inari in the morning, take the train back to Kyoto Station and pick your choice between Nijo Castle or Kiyomizu-dera temple.

Depending on how much time you have left, you just might be able to squeeze them both. Nijo castle’s last entrance is at 4 pm since the castle closes at 5 pm. We skipped the temple and went to the castle instead. Tired of changing trains and buses, this time we took a taxi from Kyoto Station, which got us to Nijo Castle in about 15 minutes. TIP: Taxis for short durations are not super expensive.

Walk through Nishiki Market (try some food too, maybe?!)

10 minutes away from Nijo castle by taxi or a 30-minute walk from there is Nishiki Market, a local fish market. Be ready to find Kyoto’s seafood delicacies here. We will let the pictures speak for themselves. TIP: Fair warning to our vegetarian friends who might not find it much appetizing. 

Frankly, I feel one must be adventurous enough to at least see what this market has to offer. If you are another kind of adventurous with food, try some of these “interesting” fish delicacies. Let us know how you liked it. At the end of the market, there are shopping arcades with many souvenir shops.

In case you are wondering if we ate anything here, then sorry to disappoint you! I am not quite that adventurous with food. And although Gaurav loves seafood, he said he’d pass this for some Ramen.

Day 3

Visit Kinkaku-ji temple, aka the Golden Pavilion

If there was one Temple we weren’t going to miss, it was Kinkaku-ji. Kyoto’s postcard golden pagoda is fondly called the Golden Pavilion. It’s a Buddhist temple with fairly huge temple grounds and neatly manicured gardens. Silver Pavilion or Ginkaku-ji temple is its counterpart which we didn’t have time to go to.

Kinkaku-ji temple is not super easy to get to; you can either take bus #205 or #101 directly from Kyoto Station. Or, in our case, to maximize the usage of JR Pass, we took the train from Kyoto station to Emmachi Station and then took bus #204 or #205 (a taxi is another option) to the temple. The temple is about a 5-minute walk from the bus station.

Experience Arashiyama Bamboo Forest

Have you heard of ‘Shinrin-yoku’? It’s a genius term that means Forest Bathing in Japanese or immersing oneself in the forest to gain positive spirits from nature. After a spree of sightseeing in the hustle-bustle of Kyoto city, a calling to the forest of Aarashiyama could just be the perfect thing.

But didn’t I mention the social media influx? Expect a heavy crowd during the day. TIP: Definitely, try to come here as early in the morning as possible to enjoy a peaceful walk. 

Besides the Bamboo forest, Aarashiyama also offers a nature walk by the river ending in a monkey park. These are all within a short walking distance from the train station.

Aarashiyama is just on the outskirts of Kyoto city. From Emmachi station, after Kinkaku-ji, we continued our journey by JR train to Saga-Aarashiyama. You can also take the JR Nara line directly from Kyoto Station. If taking the local Kyoto subway then the Sagano Line from Kyoto Station will take you to Aarashiyama. TIP: JR Railway pass cannot be used on the local Kyoto subway.

We took the train back to Tokyo in the evening of our 3rd day, but with more time, take a day trip to the 2nd largest city in Japan and explored all the things to do in Osaka. If Tokyo is also on your itinerary, then here’s some inspiration on how you can spend a week in Tokyo. 

Transportation in Kyoto

Getting around Kyoto is very easy, especially since it’s well connected by trains and buses. Some of the train lines in Kyoto are covered under the JR pass but not all. We had purchased a JR Railway 7-day pass, so we tried to maximize its usage everywhere possible. TIP: In case of any doubt, go to the friendly Tourist Information desk at railway stations in Japan.

The information desk people are super helpful, and they have English-speaking staff on board in big cities. We got amazing help from them in finding the right trains and directions every single time. Also, do not hesitate to take taxis, they weren’t too expensive for short hauls. Most taxi drivers spoke broken English enough to communicate which landmark we wanted to go to.

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Where to Stay in Kyoto

Accommodation in Kyoto depends on which tourist attraction you want to stay closest to. In our case, we chose to stay in Gion since we wanted to be within walking distance of the old Kyoto city. 

Hope this post is helpful in planning your Kyoto trip, and you enjoyed going through our journey here. Do share and pin it for later if you liked it 🙂

Happy Traveling!