Kyoto - How to Get from Kyoto Station to Kinkakuji

Kinkakuji (金閣寺), also known as the Golden Pavilion, is a Zen temple in northern Kyoto, with its top floors covered in gold leaf. In 1994, it was inscribed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage. Currently it is one of the most visited sites in Kyoto.

You can get to Kinkakuji from Kyoto Station by bus 101 or 205. It will take around 40 minutes. A Kyoto Bus Map (in English) can be found here.



After lunch at Denhichi Sushi, we continued our journey to visit the Kinkakuji.

Admission fee is 400 yen. The admission ticket has an unique design. The admission ticket takes the form of a lucky talisman. It has good luck and prosperity written all over it.



It was originally built at the end of the 14th century as a villa for Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. after his death, it was converted into a temple of Zen Buddhism.

Kinkakuji was burned down twice during a civil war. In 1950, it was burned down again by arson. A 21 year old monk set fire to the pavilion due to a sense of self hate and detestation of anything beautiful. The present building was rebuilt in 1955. Improvement works were done in 1987 to replace all of the gold leaf.

There were different scenes of the garden when you walk around the pond. there were carp fish swimming upstream. The bridges, stones and plants created a zen typology.




In the winter, the Golden Pavilion would be capped in snow. In the summer, you can see the golden pavilion shimmering in the lush green background.

I was not able to capture the reflection of the golden pavilion on the pond that day. However, it was amazing with the building shimmering in the sunlight.



The Golden Pavilion is surrounded by a Japanese strolling garden. It integrates building and the setting around it to create an artistic design.



There were people throwing coins at the stone carvings for luck.



It is worth visiting if you are interested in Japanese architecture and culture. I hope you'll get to see the gold leaf reflecting on the pond when you're there next time!

Kinkakuji (金閣寺)
Hours: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Address: 1 Kinkakuji-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto