A Weekend in Kyoto
When we thought of booking a Japan trip, we knew we would have limited time due to leaving our daughter with grandparents. We picked Tokyo (because, duh) and also Kyoto because we’d heard how beautiful all the temples were. We flew non stop from Newark to Tokyo Narita, took the Narita express into the city and purchased tickets for the bullet train to Kyoto and headed straight there. It was a little daunting to figure out and we considered buying the Japan Rail Pass that would have saved a little money, but limited us from getting on the fastest bullet train. So we paid more and took the fastest train. The ticket agents spoke English, so we didn’t have problems there. I found this site very helpful.
Jumping for joy because I was in Japan!
Once we arrived at Kyoto station, we grabbed the hotel shuttle provided by the Westin, which was super convenient. We were definitely jet lagged and had been traveling for 24+ hours at that point, but we made it! We grabbed an in room espresso at the hotel and set off to explore Kyoto for the evening. We felt like we got a great feel for the city and we spent about 2 days there. Below are my favorites!
Restaurants: One thing I didn’t realize about restaurants in Japan is that many won’t do reservations online - only via telephone with a credit card authorization form and detailed cancellation policy. Being as I didn’t want to make calls to Japan (and a probable language barrier), I used hotel concierges in both cities and spent more time than I thought was necessary going back and forth with what restaurants I wanted, availability, and sending my credit card number across the world. It all worked out in the end, but I have never had to put so much effort into a simple reservation anywhere else I’ve ever been.
Teppan Tavern Tenamoya - super casual, lots of counter grill-side seating and DELICIOUS. We went for one of the combos and we got fried soft shell crab, grilled shrimp, steak, tons of veggies, delicious rice and Japanese beer. It was very affordable and one of our favorite meals. It’s cash only and hard to find, so leave extra time.
Tempura Yoshikawa - this is a pricier meal if you want to do the tempura tasting menu and, since we were in Japan, we wanted to try the best tempura. It puts tempura at home to shame - so light & perfectly fried. This is a quiet, upscale, intimate restaurant with the tempura being fried right in front of you. We shared a nice bottle of sake here. I would highly recommend.
Sights:
Fushimi Inari - probably the most instagrammed spot in Kyoto…or Japan...who knows, but it’s very famous. It’s very packed, and I honestly felt a little claustrophobic in it, but it is a must see. You can buy a mini shrine to either write your name on and leave there OR take it home with you. It’s currently one of my favorite Christmas tree ornaments
Trying to get a shot with no people at the Fushimi Inari!
So happy to see this amazing Bamboo Forest
Arashiyama Bamboo Forest - a must see - it’s shaded and like nothing I’ve been in. There’s also very cute stores and streets to explore outside the forest
Other temples: There are so many to choose from and they are all beautiful. In the effort of saving time and making an efficient route through the city, we skipped the Kinkaku-Ji temple and checked out the Tenryu-Ji Temple. The Westin was also within walking distance of the Heian Shrine and the Nanzen-Ji temple. They were both a little off the beaten path, so we basically had the places to ourselves, which was nice for pictures. Additionally, the Nanzen has really cool aqueducts nearby that were a surprise to stumble upon!
Gion neighborhood - this was one of our favorite areas to explore, especially in the evening. It has dark, winding alleys lit with Japanese lanterns and filled with little izakayas, bars, and restaurants. It was so cute, we explored this both nights. We also explored the Yasaka shrine in this area at at night, which was nice because it was just us and a couple of photographers.
Hotel: We stayed at the Westin Kyoto because of earning points. It was your run of the mill, nice, but not too nice Westin. Pros: free train station shuttle, which we took both ways, helpful concierge with restaurant reservations, nice in room espresso machine, earned Marriott points Cons: probably could use an update, about a 15 min walk from Gion, and expensive (as we found all hotels to be when we were looking at Kyoto in May); would I stay again? Yes.
Overall, we loved Kyoto. The people were very friendly, it was beautiful, and the weather in May reminded us of the Monterrey peninsula. It was a great introduction to Japan & the far East before we continued our journey to the chaos of Tokyo!
