You won’t have trouble finding things to see in Kyoto. We underestimated the amount of time to spend in this cool city & definitely want to go back to explore more. Regardless if you have 2 days or 10 I would recommend one day in the Arashiyama area. The big ticket site here is the famous Bamboo forest.

 

There’s definitely a magical feel walking through this stunning forest. Get there early to avoid the crowds.

Once you walk through the forest, consider checking out Okochi Sanso Garden. For a fee, you can enter this beautiful Japanese garden and freely explore. It is stunning and tranquil, quite a change from the crowds you may have endured at the bamboo forest. We loved walking down the sweet, mysterious paths.

 

There’s a darling tea house that serves matcha and sweets. While we were there enjoying ourselves a breeze blew through the courtyard causing cherry blossom petals to fall like rain and swirl in the air. The kids jumped up and laughed and danced in the floating petals.

 

There were so many visual treats exploring this place.

 

 

 

The path takes you to a breathtaking view.

After the Japanese gardens we headed south and walked along the Katsura river admiring the idyllic scene. We crossed the bridge and found our way to Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama. Online reviews will warn you of the uphill hike to see the monkeys. It was a bit of trek. But once you’re at the top the treat is real…literally walking among the monkeys.

The monkeys have free roam of the place. They climb all over and it’s so fun to watch.

 

There’s a building where you can buy treats and feed the monkeys through a protected area.

 

The walk back down was much easier and full of beautiful look outs and monkey spotting.

This was such a memorable day for us in Kyoto. We felt so lucky to experience the bamboo forest, the Japanese garden & the monkey park all in one day. It’s travel days like this that make journeying across the globe worth it.