The Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-Ji Temple,

The Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-Ji Temple, although it was rainy all day when we visited it, was still worth every minute. We took the bus from Kyoto Station which was about approx 40 minutes journey. The terminal building is there, go in and ask for a bus map and directions. The day pass for the bus was 500 Yen.

The Kinkaku-Ji Temple, the Golden Pavilion officially named Rokuon-ji, is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, originally built in the 14th century and refurbished in 1955, It is one of the most popular buildings in Japan, especially by its golden leaf coating finish.  The Golden Pavilion creates a stunning mirror image on the small pond.

Owned by shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu in the 1300s for his retirement home, he stated in his will that it later be converted into a Zen Buddhism Temple at his death.

Each of the 3 floors of this temple is designed in different Architectural styles with the top 2 floors covered in pure gold leaf.

The 1st floor called the house of the Dharma Waters was a design typical of the 12th-century Shinden style; the 2nd floor called the Temple of the Waves was designed typically of Samurai houses; the 3rd floor was designed in a style typical of Zen temples.

There is a nice garden around the temple and you can see the temple reflected in the pond that surrounds it which is beautiful. So peaceful to walk in this scenic, landscape, with a beautiful garden design surrounded by zen rock, bridge plants, ponds, lush gardens, a small waterfall, Koi fishes & bonsai trees.

Kinkaku-Ji Temple is one of the must-see temples in Kyoto. It is a bit far from pretty much everywhere and the experience to reach there was not good at all, since the bus was really packed for the whole trip (40 minutes approx) but the long trip is completely worth the temple and the views. It was not as crowded as we had expected and we could roam around freely.

Information 

Address          : 1 Kinkakuji-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto

Admission     :  400 yen (regular fee)

Closed             : Open throughout the year

Hours              : 9:00 – 17:00

Access

Kinkakuji can be accessed from Kyoto Station by direct Kyoto City Bus number 101 or 205 in about 40 minutes and for 230 yen. Alternatively, it can be faster and more reliable to take the Karasuma Subway Line to Kitaoji Station (15 minutes, 260 yen) and take a taxi (10 minutes, 1000-1200 yen) or bus (10 minutes, 230 yen, bus numbers 101, 102, 204 or 205) from there to Kinkakuji.

Special Kyoto Bus, Train, and Subway Passes

Kyoto Bus Only Passes

City Bus All-day Pass

• Adult: Y500/Child: Y250
• Can be used within the allocated zone of the city (Arashiyama, Sagano, Takao, Shugakuin etc. are outside of the allocated zone)
• Unlimited use on the same day.
• When traveling outside of the allocated zone, it is necessary to pay the extra amount.

Kyoto Bus and Subway Passes

Kyoto Sightseeing One – and Two-day Pass Card

• All-day Pass Adult ¥1,200 / Child ¥600
• Two-day Pass Adult ¥2,000 / Child ¥1,000
• Can be used for city buses and subways.
• Unlimited use for one or two days.

Surutto Kansai Miyako Card

• ¥1,000, ¥2,000, ¥3,000 or ¥5,000
• Can be used on city buses and subway lines, the Hankyu Line, the Keihan Line as well as other participating private companies.
• Can be used for the value on the card. Each trip is deducted from the value of the card as it is used.

Traffic Kyoto Card

• ¥1,000 or ¥3,000
• Valid on the city subways and buses.
• Can be used for the value on the card. Each trip is deducted from the value of the card as it is used.