Popular Kyoto Maple Viewing Spot: Kitano Tenmangu Shrine – Even More Enchanting at Night

Text and photos by /Kavanagh

Kitano Tenmangu Shrine is dedicated to Sugawara no Michizane, the Japanese deity of scholarship. The "Ododoi" (part of the Kyoto city wall built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, which once encircled the city—only a small portion remains today, and the one within Kitano Tenmangu is among the best preserved) within the shrine grounds is a famous maple-viewing spot in Kyoto. Every autumn when the leaves turn red, the normally free-to-enter Ododoi is also enclosed and charges an admission fee.

When I visited Kitano Tenmangu Shrine the previous year (2012), I had missed the peak of the maple season, but the beauty of the foliage still left a deep impression on me. So in 2013, during the maple leaf season, I decided to visit again to admire the moving scenery. This time (2013), I went at just the right time, when the leaves were at their most vibrant, so the view was even more stunning and breathtaking than the year before.

The Ododoi's red leaf season admission period in 2014 is from November 1 (Sat) to December 7 (Sun), daily from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Nighttime maple viewing (autumn leaf lighting) begins on November 15, from November 15 (Sat) to December 7 (Sun), during which the area is illuminated every day after sunset until 8:00 PM.

Visit date: December 7, 2013

The ticket to Kitano Tenmangu Shrine comes with a free tea coupon, allowing you to sit in the tea room, enjoy hot tea and sweets, and take in the maple scenery.

Kitano Tenmangu Shrine Autumn Ododoi Visiting Information:
November 1 (Sat) to December 7 (Sun), 2014.
Visiting hours: 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Nighttime maple viewing (autumn leaf lighting) starts on November 15
Nighttime maple viewing period: November 15 (Sat) to December 7 (Sun), 2014
Nighttime maple viewing hours: 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM (lighting after sunset)
Admission fee (includes tea coupon): Adults 600 yen / Children 300 yen Transportation:
Take Kyoto City Bus lines 50 or 101 and get off at "Kitano Tenmangu."
 

A second life begins in Kyoto.
Kavanagh @ Kyoto – Living Freely.