Day trip

Enryaku-ji

Mt Hiei, Kyoto

Address
4220 Sakamoto-Honmachi, Otsu, Shiga Prefecture 〒520-0116 滋賀県大津市坂本本町4220
Hours
Daily
9:00 to 16:00

Hours are for the Todo area. Saito and Yokawa open at 9:30 in December, January and February. Tickets are sold until 15:45.

Source: hieizan.or.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.

Vermilion halls and a two-storey pagoda of Enryaku-ji on Mount Hiei, with snow on the ground
Photo: Maechan0360 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)

Enryaku-ji covers the top of Mount Hiei on the border of Kyoto and Shiga, with Lake Biwa below on one side and Kyoto on the other. Saicho founded it some 1,200 years ago, and so many founders of later Buddhist schools trained here that it's called the mother mountain of Japanese Buddhism. The temple is spread over three areas, Todo, Saito and Yokawa.

Nearest station Enryakuji Bus Center (Hieizan Drive Bus)
Cost ¥¥
Time needed Full day
Best time A clear day

Insider tip

From Kyoto Station the Hieizan Drive Bus takes about 70 minutes to the Enryakuji Bus Center. The other way up is the Eizan Railway from Demachiyanagi to Yase-Hieizanguchi, then the cable car, ropeway and shuttle bus, also about 70 minutes. One ticket for all three areas costs ¥1,000. The shuttle bus between the three areas runs from the spring equinox to the first Sunday of December.

View on the interactive map Google Maps directions

Nearby

Shugakuin Imperial Villa Landmark · 4.1 km away Retired Emperor Gomizuno-o built Shugakuin Imperial Villa on the slopes of Mount Hiei between 1656 and 1659. Shisen-do Temple · 5.1 km away The retreat where the poet Ishikawa Jozan (1583 to 1672) spent his last years, now a temple under Eihei-ji of the Soto Zen sect. Ohara Day trip · 5.5 km away Ohara is a valley in the hills north-east of Kyoto, and the main sight is Sanzen-in, a Tendai temple. Tenka Ippin Sohonten Food · 5.7 km away The head shop of Tenka Ippin, the ramen chain built on kotteri, a soup of chicken bones and vegetables so thick the company calls it a soup you eat... Keibunsha Ichijoji Shopping · 5.9 km away Keibunsha calls itself a shop of all sorts of things to do with books. Ginkaku-ji Temple · 6.2 km away Ashikaga Yoshimasa, the eighth Muromachi shogun, began building a mountain villa here in 1482, and after his death in 1490 it became the Zen temple...

Good to know

What is the address of Enryaku-ji?
4220 Sakamoto-Honmachi, Otsu, Shiga Prefecture (in Japanese: 滋賀県大津市坂本本町4220).
What are the opening hours of Enryaku-ji?
Daily 9:00 to 16:00. Hours are for the Todo area. Saito and Yokawa open at 9:30 in December, January and February. Tickets are sold until 15:45.
How do I get to Enryaku-ji?
The nearest station is Enryakuji Bus Center (Hieizan Drive Bus). Enryaku-ji is in Mt Hiei, Kyoto.
How much does Enryaku-ji cost?
Enryaku-ji is mid-range, marked ¥¥ on the site's price scale.
How long do you need at Enryaku-ji?
Plan for full day.
When is the best time to visit Enryaku-ji?
A clear day.

Stay near Enryaku-ji

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