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About Kyoto
Kyoto, located in the Kansai region of Japan, was the imperial capital of Japan for over a millennium, from 794 to 1869. Unlike Tokyo, which was heavily bombed during World War II, Kyoto was largely spared and retains an astonishing wealth of historical temples, shrines, traditional wooden townhouses, and beautifully manicured gardens. It is widely considered Japan's cultural soul.
A Brief History
Kyoto was founded as Heian-kyō in 794 and modeled on the Tang Dynasty Chinese capital of Chang'an. For over a thousand years it was the seat of the Japanese emperor, the center of Buddhist and Shinto religious life, and the source of Japan's most refined artistic traditions — including tea ceremony, ikebana flower arranging, kabuki theater, and Noh drama.
Temples and Shrines
Kyoto is home to an extraordinary concentration of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Kinkaku-ji — the Golden Pavilion — is a Zen Buddhist temple covered in gold leaf that reflects perfectly in the still pond surrounding it. Fushimi Inari Taisha, dedicated to the Shinto god of rice, is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates that wind up a forested mountain. Arashiyama's bamboo grove, where towering stalks of bamboo create an ethereal green tunnel, is one of the most photographed spots in Japan.
Geisha Culture
The Gion district is Kyoto's most famous geisha quarter and one of the best-preserved historic districts in all of Japan. Traditional machiya wooden townhouses line narrow stone lanes lit by lanterns in the evenings. If you are lucky, you might glimpse a maiko — an apprentice geisha — hurrying to an engagement, her kimono rustling and her white-painted face glowing in the dusk.
Seasonal Beauty
Kyoto is perhaps most beautiful during cherry blossom season in late March and early April, when the city's parks and temple gardens are blanketed in pink and white blooms. Autumn brings equally spectacular scenery, with fiery maple leaves turning the hillside temples into paintings.
Why Visit Kyoto?
Kyoto is a place of extraordinary stillness and beauty. It invites you to slow down, to notice the moss on a stone lantern, the sound of water in a bamboo pipe, the scent of incense drifting from an ancient temple. It is one of the few places in the world where you can genuinely feel that time has stood still.
A Brief History
Kyoto was founded as Heian-kyō in 794 and modeled on the Tang Dynasty Chinese capital of Chang'an. For over a thousand years it was the seat of the Japanese emperor, the center of Buddhist and Shinto religious life, and the source of Japan's most refined artistic traditions — including tea ceremony, ikebana flower arranging, kabuki theater, and Noh drama.
Temples and Shrines
Kyoto is home to an extraordinary concentration of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Kinkaku-ji — the Golden Pavilion — is a Zen Buddhist temple covered in gold leaf that reflects perfectly in the still pond surrounding it. Fushimi Inari Taisha, dedicated to the Shinto god of rice, is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates that wind up a forested mountain. Arashiyama's bamboo grove, where towering stalks of bamboo create an ethereal green tunnel, is one of the most photographed spots in Japan.
Geisha Culture
The Gion district is Kyoto's most famous geisha quarter and one of the best-preserved historic districts in all of Japan. Traditional machiya wooden townhouses line narrow stone lanes lit by lanterns in the evenings. If you are lucky, you might glimpse a maiko — an apprentice geisha — hurrying to an engagement, her kimono rustling and her white-painted face glowing in the dusk.
Seasonal Beauty
Kyoto is perhaps most beautiful during cherry blossom season in late March and early April, when the city's parks and temple gardens are blanketed in pink and white blooms. Autumn brings equally spectacular scenery, with fiery maple leaves turning the hillside temples into paintings.
Why Visit Kyoto?
Kyoto is a place of extraordinary stillness and beauty. It invites you to slow down, to notice the moss on a stone lantern, the sound of water in a bamboo pipe, the scent of incense drifting from an ancient temple. It is one of the few places in the world where you can genuinely feel that time has stood still.