As part of our trip to Japan we travelled to Kyoto and surrounding areas. I will detail visiting Kyoto with kids and will also include Nara in this section. It’s actually closer to Osaka but we travelled from Kyoto as we had more activities planned in Osaka. We travelled by Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto using a 2 week Japan Rail-pass. This can be pre ordered before you depart for Japan which is what we did. We booked through Klook https://klook.tp.st/iborr0rJ
We then redeemed it when we arrived in Tokyo. The journey took approximately 2 hours 40 minutes, travelling on the Hikari trains which are the fastest that are included with the JR rail pass.
The journey itself was lovely the seats are beautiful incredibly spacious in a 3-2 format. There was plenty of space for us to leave Teddy’s pram up when he was asleep in it and just slot it next to our feet. Genuinely there is so much space especially when compared to an aeroplane. If you are lucky enough in a clear day you can get a good view of Mount Fuji. We weren’t that lucky but we did see it, just with the top covered with cloud.
When arriving in Kyoto we grabbed an Uber to get to our apartment. We stayed again in an apartment and this was probably the nicest we stayed in. It was close to the main Kyoto station which was great when visiting Kyoto with kids and travelling around and using the public transport system which proved time effective for us.
One of the main things for us to see before we set off to Japan was the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove. I had read many reports that it was incredibly busy and quite possibly not worth the visit purely due to the overcrowding. As we were there during February we had been quite lucky with crowds and this was no exception. We set off early on our first morning in Kyoto and had an incredible time. It was really very quiet and so easy to walk through the trail! Especially, with a toddler who, of course, wanted to walk all the way, which he did quite easily!
We reached the bamboo grove by getting the using our JR pass from Kyoto station to Saga- Arashiyama station and then it was around a 15 minute walk to the forest which was a very lovely walk and easy to find by following the small crowds away from the station.
I would say this was easily in our top 5 sights in Japan and in particular when visiting Kyoto with kids. We were especially surprised at how quiet and easy to navigate it was thanks to a lack of overcrowding. I would absolutely recommend a visit here, it really was a one in a lifetime trip.
Situated on the bamboo trail is Tenryuji Temple. This is a world heritage site and ranked 1st in the city’s zen temples. As we were there in February it didn’t have the colours that you would expect from spring to autumn but nevertheless it was well worth the ¥500 admission fee (kids are free)
The general area of Arashiyama that we wandered through and round to get to the temple and the bamboo grove was also a great experience. There are lots of little stalls selling food and Japanese goods. The spicy chicken was particularly good!
We spent an hour or so just taking in the scenery and again with it being the ‘off season’ it wasn’t too crowded at all to have a good look around.
As we reached the bamboo grove quite early by the time we had finished we actually has time in the same day to head to another iconic spot in Kyoto, Fushimi Inari Shrine, another favourite on our trip to Japan.
This trip features the iconic orange torii gates leading up to Mount Inari. We didn’t make it all the way to the top of the mountain but we made it to a common view point, the Yotsutsuri intersection.
Little Teddy walked the whole way by himself, he had an absolute blast and so many people we saw on the way up and down told him how well he did, he was extremely proud of himself! Some of the path is actually pram friendly, but not all of it, we luckily took our cabin approved one and folded it down and carried it with no issues up and down. We reached the shrine from the Inari JR station from Kyoto, again using our rail pass.
The walk around the shrine and through the torii gates was truly a unique experience and one I would not miss if you are in the Kyoto area. We once again got very lucky and actually headed up there late afternoon so the crowds were very minimal, meaning we had great views and no trouble letting Teddy walk the whole thing.
That evening after heading back in to the centre of Kyoto we headed out to the Gion district. This is the geisha district in Kyoto and was stunning to explore with narrow, dimly lit, intimate roads with fantastic dining areas throughout. We ate at a lovely Italian restaurant but we really preferred just walk-in through the distract at night as it was a truly unforgettable experience. As we approached Gion from our hotel we initially came to Yasaka shrine, one of the most famous shrines in Kyoto, located right on the outskirts of the Gion district.
It’s well worth a look at night when lit up and an absolute must do when visiting Kyoto with kids.
The next morning it was time to travel to Nara to see the famous deer. We caught the train, it was a 45 minute train journey using the JR rail pass from Kyoto.
The park was a pretty cool experience. There is a temple, Kofuku-ji temple, with a huge pagoda with deer freely roaming around, it was quite a sight. Teddy mostly wanted to play with his football but it was cool to see and feed the deer!
They could get a little bit rough when feeding them crackers but was a really fun experience. Crackers are freely available to purchase to feed the deer yourself and it is a nice activity to experience especially with young ones.
There wasn’t a whole lot else to explore outside of the park but the walk from the station to the park had a huge range of lovely shops and food outlets featuring your usual Japanese food stalls which a whole range of delicious items.
The next morning we checked out of our apartment and took the Shinkansen to our next destination, Hiroshima.
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