Kyoto has become one of our favorite places we’ve visited so far. With it’s traditional feel and natural beauty, we just love it. However, returning to Kyoto, Japan in 2024 has become much more crowded with other tourists than last time. Even still, we enjoyed our time there.
This time we stayed nearby the Arashyiama side of the city. The area we stayed was pretty local and I loved the forest trail we had easy access to nearby. We also returned to some of the sites we enjoyed, but skipped out on some this time, like Fushimi Inari. But here are some of things we did this time when returning to Kyoto, Japan in 2024.
Went to Local Festivals in Kyoto, Japan in 2024
Yokai Grand Parade
We happened to be in Kyoto, Japan around Halloween. So we decided to check out Toei Kyoto Studio Park to see the Yokai Grand Parade. This was held at the small theme park in Japan where they film period dramas. During the Yokai festival they have people who dress up like the supernatural beings and spirits from Japanese folklore. During the Grand Parade, a hundred of the Yokai dance. We booked our tickets through Klook, where you can see the different events that Toei Studio Park holds throughout the year. I think we paid around $22 USD total. The event was a bit lackluster and we ended up waiting around 2 hours to get a good spot to see the Yokai dance. It was interesting but not something I’d really recommend.
Kurama Fire Festival
We also went to the Kurama fire festival in Kyoto, Japan in 2024. This is something I would definitely NOT recommend. It sounds really cool to see. It’s a local tradition where the people in Kurama village light up giant torches and carry them through the town to honor Yuki-jinja Shrine. While the idea of the festival sounds amazing – hundreds of people parading through the town dressed in traditional outfits and bearing flaming torches – the actual event is so packed with people it becomes a little scary.
Unfortunately, this is an event that, I believe, has been ruined by tourism. It’s free so a ton of foreigners (like us) go to see the event. They have one small train and during the event they shuttle everyone to walk in one direction. It took us about an hour to get through the small town to the train station and then another hour to get on the train. You’re jam-packed with hundreds of other people while the flaming torches are sparking all around. This is an event that needs to be returned to the locals.
Visiting the Nintendo Museum in Kyoto, Japan in 2024
One of the other major things we did while in Kyoto, Japan in 2024 was visit the newly opened Nintendo Museum. We were lucky enough to get tickets in the lottery so we were excited to go! The day we had scheduled to go, we also decided to visit Byodo-in Hoodo in Uji. This is the temple that is located on the 10 yen coin. Easily accessible by the JR Nara line at Kyoto station, you can just get off at Uji station and walk 10 minutes.
The entrance fee for Byodo-in is 700 yen (~$4.70 USD) per person. It’s a beautiful complex and you get access to the museum as well. If you’re looking to enter the Phoenix Hall, that’s an additional 300 yen (~$2.00 USD) fee. We skipped this as we were short on time with our scheduled appointment at the Nintendo Museum.
Nintendo Museum in Kyoto, Japan
From Byodo-in temple, we took the bus right to the Nintendo Museum. We had a quick lunch at Coco Ichibanya and then went across the street for our allotted time to enter the museum. The entrance fee to the museum is 3,300 yen (~$22 USD) per person and while cool, is not really worth it. The museum itself has cases and displays of all the Nintendo systems and old games on the second floor.
The first floor has interactive games you can play. When you arrive you receive a card with 10 coins on it. You use that card and those coins to play the various games – from gigantic NES and N64 games to batting cages – there is a ton of things you can play. However, the lines get long for the popular things. The museum was cool and I’m glad we got to see it, but again, not really worth the price.
Friends Visiting Kyoto, Japan in 2024
During the time we were returning to Kyoto, Japan in 2024, our friends Josh and Christine were visiting. We enjoyed showing them some of the city while also getting to see some new places we hadn’t been. Namely, Otagi Nenbutsuji Temple which has over 1,200 little stone figures around the grounds. On the way to that temple, we also walked to Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple, which has a small bamboo forest that is much less crowded than the popular bamboo forest area.
We also visited a light show at the Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden called Light Cycle. That was very cool and worth the ~$27 USD total cost. Finally, before they left Japan, we met them in Osaka where we walked around Osaka Castle, around Dontonburi, and had an amazing dinner at Wagyu IDATEN.
Taking the Romantic Train
This time around we also decided to take the romantic train in Kyoto, Japan in 2024. We skipped this last time because it was still winter and the trees were mostly dead. We waited to do it this time, hoping that the autumn leaves would be more colorful. While it was beautiful, it wasn’t as great of an experience as I had hoped and definitely think it can be skipped. The train is uncomfortable and you only get the view for a few seconds at a time before you’re blocked by tunnel after tunnel. We booked our tickets through Klook, which costs around $6 USD per person.
New Places We Ate in Kyoto Japan in 2024
Saryo Tesshin and Shigetsu
We decided to do a couple of special meals this time around. The first one was for Sean’s birthday, we went to Saryo Tesshin, a Michelin Guide soba restaurant. The interior was beautiful, the staff was amazing, and the food was delicious (just not as life changing as we were expecting it to be). We booked the reservations for this on Tabelog.
The next was my favorite food experience I think I’ve ever had. We booked to experience shojin ryori (Zen vegetarian cuisine) at at Michelin guide restaurant at Tenryuji Temple, called Shigetsu. I booked this through their website. I booked the Yuki (Snow) menu for 3,800 yen (~$25 USD) per person. It was some of the best food I’ve ever eaten and the experience of eating like a monk, in a temple, was amazing. I’ve definitely never had better vegetarian food!
Omakase Experience in Kyoto, Japan in 2024
Returning to Kyoto, Japan in 2024 we decided to book an omakase experience. This translates to “I’ll leave it up to you” where the chef essentially prepares the meal for you. It’s typically an expensive experience so we made it our 5th anniversary celebration. We definitely had to be a bit adventurous for this one as they served a lot of dishes we normally wouldn’t order like a giant Japanese oyster and abalone with uni. While I enjoyed a lot of the dishes, it just reinforced that we really like tuna and salmon.
For some of our returning favorites in Kyoto, Japan in 2024: we had the best pizza at Pizzeria LUGARA, went to Ichiran multiple times, enjoyed THE best apple tart near Kiyomizu-dera, and had delicious sushi at Sushi no Musashi in Kyoto Station.
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