Best Value Spot for Autumn Foliage: Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden with Abundant Beautiful Plants

Text & Photos /Kavanah

I often say that Kyoto (or Japan in general) “just won’t let you go,” because aside from the classic cherry blossoms in spring and autumn foliage, there are also wisteria, hydrangeas, bellflowers, lotuses, red spider lilies… Each season has its own representative floral scenery.

Of course, different flowers have their own famous viewing spots, but there’s one place that gathers all of Kyoto’s most beautiful foliage and flowering plants in one location — the “Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden” located to the north of central Kyoto. The admission fee to Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden is cheap (a mere 200 yen ???), and you can enjoy a wide variety of beautiful foliage plants here, making it one of the “best value” spots in Kyoto.

Date of Visit: November 27, 2013

Although the Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden covers a large area, most of the autumn leaves are concentrated around the “Hasu Pond” area.

The beautiful red leaves by the pond — walking through the crimson tunnel on a cool day feels incredibly pleasant.

The area around “Hasu Pond” is filled with gorgeous red foliage. From this angle, it actually bears some resemblance to the Sento Imperial Palace. For those who can’t get into the Sento Imperial Palace, you can visit the Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden — I think it might soothe your disappointed heart.

The autumn leaves at Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden are really quite beautiful. The only downside is that there aren’t many buildings or shrines to use as a backdrop, which makes the composition slightly less thematic.

Kyoto Prefectural Botanical Garden

Visiting Hours: 09:00–17:00
Admission Fee: 200 yen for adults; 50 yen for elementary and junior high school students Access: Exit 3 of Kyoto City Subway “Kitayama” Station. Take Kyoto City Bus No. 1 and get off at “Botanical Garden-mae,” then walk 5 minutes.

Kavanah @ Kyoto, Freely Staying.
Kavanah X Japan Travel Madness