Edo

Iwashimizu Hachimangu, one of Japan's three great Hachiman shrines, sits atop Mount Otoko in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture. Founded in 860 CE, it has served as a guardian of the imperial capital for over a millennium. Its ten-building sanctuary complex, designated a National Treasure in 2016, is the oldest and largest surviving example of Hachiman-zukuri architecture. Highlights include vivid polychrome carvings, Oda Nobunaga's Golden Rain Gutters, and the Iwashimizu Festival—one of Japan's Three Great Imperial Festivals.

Kamigamo Shrine (Kamo Wake Ikazuchi Jinja), founded in 677 CE in northern Kyoto, is one of the city's most ancient sanctuaries. Home to two National Treasure halls and 41 Important Cultural Properties, its entire precinct is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Discover its iconic nagare-zukuri architecture, mystical sand cones, and the legendary Aoi Matsuri — over a millennium of living spiritual heritage.

Kajūji's shoin in Yamashina, Kyoto, an Important Cultural Property, was rebuilt from a late-17th-century imperial residence and is noted for its Kajūji-dana shelves.

At 54.8 meters, Kyoto's Tō-ji pagoda is Japan's tallest wooden tower. Rebuilt in 1644 after four fires, its first story holds a cosmos of Diamond-World Buddhas.

The Hondo of Gyokurin-in, a sub-temple of Daitoku-ji in Kyoto, is an Important Cultural Property built in 1621. Founded by the renowned imperial physician Manase Shōrin, it features a grand eight-room hōjō layout and fusuma paintings by Kano Tan'yū and his school.

The Sawai Family Residence in Kyotanabe, Kyoto, was home to deputies of the convent Donge-in. Rebuilt in 1740-41, it and its construction papers are designated.

Shūon'an, or Ikkyū-ji, is where the witty Zen monk Ikkyū spent his last years and lies buried behind a locked imperial gate, amid historic halls and gardens.

Discover Shinjuan Tsusen-in, an Important Cultural Property in Kyoto's Daitokuji Temple. Originally the dressing chamber of Emperor Ogimachi's consort, this elegant study hall was relocated in 1638 and now stands as a rare example of imperial court architecture within a Zen Buddhist temple.

Discover Shinjuan Hondo, an Important Cultural Property at Daitoku-ji Temple in Kyoto. Built in 1638, this Zen main hall houses Japan's oldest surviving fusuma paintings and connects visitors to the legendary monk Ikkyu Sojun.

The Main Hall of Shinshō-gokuraku-ji — better known as Shinnyo-dō — is the largest Tendai-school main hall in Kyoto. Built in 1717 from solid zelkova, it shelters the secret 'Nodding Amida' image, opened once a year on November 15.

Discover Sumiya, the only remaining ageya banquet house in Japan, designated as an Important Cultural Property. Explore Edo-period architecture, fusuma paintings by Yosa Buson, and the samurai history of Kyoto's Shimabara district.

Reached by a rare downhill approach, this 1669 Zen-style Buddha Hall holds three Buddhas of past, present, and future beneath a coiling dragon by Kanō Tan'yū.

The Takizawa Family Residence in Kurama, Kyoto, is a former charcoal wholesaler's townhouse built around 1760, designated as a national Important Cultural Property. It is recognized as the oldest known example of the tōri-doma (running earth-floor corridor) style machiya in Kyoto, preserving the authentic character of mid-Edo-period merchant architecture in the historic temple town of Kurama.

Discover Chion-in, the grand head temple of Jodo (Pure Land) Buddhism in Kyoto. Explore Japan's largest wooden gate (National Treasure), the majestic Miei-do Hall, the legendary Seven Wonders, and the iconic 70-ton bell. A must-visit spiritual landmark in Higashiyama.

Standing at the foot of Mount Kacho in Kyoto's Higashiyama district, Chion-in is the head temple of Jodo-shu (Pure Land Buddhism). Discover the National Treasures of Japan's largest wooden Sanmon Gate and the colossal Mieido Hall rebuilt by Tokugawa Iemitsu, along with the Great Bell ranking among Japan's three greatest Buddhist bells. Explore the famous Seven Wonders, including the Forgotten Umbrella and the Nightingale Floors, the seasonal beauty of Yuzen-en Garden, and nearby Higashiyama attractions like Gion and Yasaka Shrine in this complete guide to one of Japan's most significant Buddhist temples.

Built in 1641 as Chion-in's Imperial Messenger's Gate, this Important Cultural Property carries fine carvings of sages riding a carp and a crane on its struts.

Built in 1621 by Tokugawa Hidetada beside Chion-in’s great gate, this Important Cultural Property houses an octagonal cabinet holding a Song-edition Buddhist canon.

Discover the Sanmon Gate of Chion-in Temple in Kyoto, a National Treasure and the largest wooden temple gate in Japan. Standing 24 meters tall and 50 meters wide, this 1621 masterpiece features stunning polychrome paintings and Buddhist statuary inside its upper story.

Chion-in's Great Bell Tower, built in 1678, holds a 70-ton bronze bell cast in 1636, one of Japan's three great bells, rung each New Year's Eve by seventeen monks.

Discover Chion-in's Miei-do, a National Treasure built in 1639 by the Tokugawa shogunate. Explore the grand hall honoring Honen Shonin, its Seven Wonders, and the heart of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism in Kyoto's Higashiyama district.