Temple

Daitoku-ji

Kitano, Kyoto

Address
53 Murasakino Daitokuji-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto 京都市北区紫野大徳寺町53

Source: ja.kyoto.travel, checked 11 Oct 2026.

A raked gravel garden with a moss island at Ryogen-in, a subtemple of Daitoku-ji
Photo: Eric Salard / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Daitoku-ji, head temple of the Daitoku-ji school of Rinzai Zen, was founded in 1315 and rebuilt by the monk Ikkyu after the Onin War. Hideyoshi held Oda Nobunaga's funeral here, and Sen no Rikyu added the upper storey of the Sanmon gate in 1589. The statue of himself Rikyu placed inside is said to have angered Hideyoshi, one of the reasons given for Rikyu's death.

Nearest station Daitokuji-mae bus stop (City Bus 1, 101, 204, 205, 206)
Cost ¥
Time needed 1-2 hours
Best time Weekday mornings

Insider tip

Daisen-in is open every day (¥500), while Korin-in and Soken-in open only for special showings each spring and autumn. Koto-in, known for its maple garden, is closed through 2026 with no reopening date. The Sanmon gate isn't open to visitors.

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What's on at Daitoku-ji

Upcoming events at Daitoku-ji and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.

Exhibition On now ¥1,000

Daitoku-ji Juko-in 460th Anniversary Special Opening

大徳寺 聚光院 開創460年 特別公開

18 Sept to 6 Dec Juko-in, Daitoku-ji, Kitano

Time 9:30 to 15:30 (last entry) Station Daitokuji-mae bus stop (City Bus 1, 204, 205, 206), 5 min walk

Sen no Rikyu's family temple at Daitoku-ji opens for the first time in about three and a half years, with copies of the National Treasure wall paintings by Kano Eitoku and his father Shoei, Senju Hiroshi's waterfall panels and the tea room Kan'in-seki. It's cash only, preschool children can't enter, and it's closed on 14, 16 to 18, 27 and 28 Oct and 21, 22 and 27 to 29 Nov.

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A raked gravel garden with a moss island at Ryogen-in, a subtemple of Daitoku-ji Eric Salard, CC BY-SA 2.0
Festival Free

Yasurai Matsuri at Imamiya Shrine

やすらい祭（今宮神社）

11 Apr (dates to be confirmed) Imamiya Shrine, Kitano

Time Processions arrive at the shrine about 14:00 Station Imamiya-jinja-mae bus stop (City Bus 46), right by the stop

Demons in red with wild red or black hair dance through the streets with bells and drums to calm the sickness spirits of spring. Step under the big flower parasol and you're said to be safe from illness for a year.

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The red two storey gate at the main entrance of Imamiya Shrine, Kyoto Torsodog, CC BY 3.0

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Nearby

Daisen-in Temple · 3 min walk Daisen-in, founded in 1509, is a Daitoku-ji subtemple you can visit any day of the year. Daitokuji Ikkyu Food · 3 min walk Daitokuji Ikkyu has cooked Daitoku-ji's shojin ryori, the temple's vegetarian cuisine, since the late 1400s, and says the monk Ikkyu gave it its name. Ichiwa Cafe · 6 min walk Ichiwa sells one thing, aburi-mochi. Imamiya Shrine Shrine · 6 min walk Imamiya Shrine goes back to 994, when the gods of plague were carried up nearby Funaokayama in two portable shrines to calm them, and it took its... Funaokayama Viewpoint · 7 min walk Funaokayama is the low hill used as the northern reference point when Heian-kyo was laid out. Sarasa Nishijin Cafe · 7 min walk Sarasa Nishijin is a cafe in the old Fujinomori-yu bathhouse, which closed in 1999.

Around Kitano

Tenjin's head shrine, Kyoto's oldest geisha district and Daitoku-ji

Start at Kitano Tenmangu, head shrine of about 12,000 Tenjin shrines, founded in 947 for Sugawara no Michizane, the scholar students still pray to before exams. Come on the 25th, when the Tenjin-san Market fills the approach and the lanterns are lit after dark. Kamishichiken, Kyoto's oldest geisha district, lines the shrine's east approach, and Daitoku-ji's Zen temples are about 1.7 km north-east.

Kitano has 25 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 10 shrines and temples, 3 cafes, 3 shops, 2 restaurants, 2 bathhouses, 1 viewpoint, 1 neighbourhood, 1 museum, 1 bar and 1 market. Read the Kitano guide.

Good to know

What is the address of Daitoku-ji?
53 Murasakino Daitokuji-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市北区紫野大徳寺町53).
How do I get to Daitoku-ji?
The nearest station is Daitokuji-mae bus stop (City Bus 1, 101, 204, 205, 206). Daitoku-ji is in Kitano, Kyoto.
How much does Daitoku-ji cost?
Daitoku-ji is cheap, marked ¥ on the site's price scale.
How long do you need at Daitoku-ji?
Plan for 1-2 hours.
When is the best time to visit Daitoku-ji?
Weekday mornings.

Stay near Daitoku-ji

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