Kimono Forest Tickets and Tours

Kyoto One Day Sightseeing Tour from Osaka or Kyoto

Kyoto Nijo Castle, Arashiyama, Kinkaku-Ji June 2026

Anson: Guide. Driver: retired police officer. The maneuvering through the tight corners of the Kyoto streets was performed by our skilled driver. Anson provided an upbeat and factual description of the four attractions visited on this tour. According to Anson, typically two attractions are offered, however, for this trip, four attractions will be visited. Anson did a good job of keeping the schedule, despite the ambitious itinerary. One of the highlights of the tour was the interior walk through of the Ninomaru Palace, and hearing the “nightingale floors” following our footsteps. Anson guided the group through the various meeting rooms through the palace. You are not allowed any photos inside the Palace. Apart from the Palace, we had some free time to roam around the Nijo Castle grounds. There were several other tour groups in the Palace progressing at different paces so there were times where congestion along the nightingale floor path was heavy. There is an additional cost of 1300Y for entry into the Nijo Castle grounds and Ninomaru Palace. The next attraction was the Kinkaku-ji, which is a temple covered with a gold leaf décor. You cannot go inside but just walk around the perimeter of the moat which served as protection. There was a school group tour during our visit so the area was pretty crowded. The gravel path was of average width so that it was quite congested. Most pictures were included strangers from other groups. This attraction required an additional 500Y. There are a handful of attractions in Arashiyama, each requiring minimal time to visit. The bamboo forest is the most time consuming since you have to walk into the forest to immerse yourself. A brisk 10 minute walk into to the area where there are less people for photo ops. There were some rickshaw services on a private path but I did not look into it. Walking through the kimono forest should take less than 5 minutes, but the trek across the bridge and back would take around 20 minutes. There is an additional 10 to 15 minute walk between these attractions. Anson recommended to eat at the food court to save time but I managed to sneak into one of the empty ramen shops for a bowl. Note that the local ramen shops only take cash. Despite the ambitious schedule we arrived back to the meeting point on schedule.

Osaka / Kyoto: Katsuoji, Arashiyama & Kinkaku-ji One Day Tour

Good tour but Arashiyama was way crowded.

Overall very good but Arashiyama portion could have been first on the itinerary due to the excessive crowds at the site.

Kyoto Customizable Tour with Local English Guide (Amanohashidate)

Highly recommend!

Our guide, Yama, picked us up in Hakone and accompanied us on a two day tour through the Japanese Alps, all the way to Kyoto as our final destination. The places we visited were breathtaking (narai juku, shirawago and takayama), but what truly made the experience special was Yama, our guide, impeccable, kind, and always attentive, making us feel completely relaxed and truly on vacation.