Honen-in
Ginkakuji, Kyoto
- Daily
- 6:00 to 16:00
The path to the main hall is open unless a service is on. The halls and garden open only 1 to 7 April and 18 to 24 November, 9:30 to 16:00.
Source: honen-in.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Honen-in is a short climb east of the Philosopher's Path, on the spot where Honen, founder of the Jodo sect, kept a hermitage with his disciples Anraku and Juren. The present temple dates from 1680. You walk in through a thatched gate between two mounds of white sand, the byakusadan, and the patterns drawn in them change with the seasons.
Insider tip
The grounds are free and open from 6:00, but you can't go inside the halls (you pray from the veranda). The garden, the painted screens and the courtyard of camellias open only from 1 to 7 April and 18 to 24 November, for ¥800. The old bathhouse from 1694 is now a lecture hall that hosts exhibitions and concerts.
What the guides say about Honen-in
18. Watch for special openings. Many temples open halls, gardens and treasures only for set weeks. Kyoto's Winter Special Openings ran from 9 January to 18 March in 2026, at ¥800 a site at most of them. This autumn, Chion-in's Sanmon gate opens from 31 October to 13 November (¥1,000) and Honen-in's garden from 18 to 24 November (¥800), and you'll need a booking for Rurikoin from 13 November to 6 December. The events page has the dates.
7. Ginkaku-ji and the Philosopher's Path. Ginkaku-ji opens at 8:30 (9:00 from December to February) and has cost ¥1,000 since April 2026. Then walk south on the path, about 1.8 km of stone beside a branch of the Lake Biwa Canal, roughly 30 minutes at an easy pace. Turn off for Honen-in, free from 6:00, where you walk in between two mounds of white sand.
What's on at Honen-in
Upcoming events at Honen-in and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Honen-in Spring Opening
春季 伽藍内特別公開（法然院）
Time 9:30 to 16:00 Station Kinrin-shako-mae bus stop (City Bus 5)
The temple's buildings, normally closed, open for a week in spring (and again in autumn), when the three famous camellias in the inner garden are out.
Tetsuhiro Terada, CC BY 2.0 Pumpkin Memorial at Anraku-ji
鹿ケ谷カボチャ供養（安楽寺）
Time 9:00 to 15:00 Station Kinrinshako-mae bus stop (City Bus 5), 7 min walk
For about 230 years this small temple near the Philosopher's Path has served simmered Shishigatani pumpkin on 25 July, from a revelation that eating it in midsummer keeps strokes away. Entry is ¥1,000 that day with the pumpkin included, the temple's scrolls are on show, and Kyoto vegetables are sold at the gate.
Reikan-ji Autumn Special Opening
霊鑑寺 秋の特別拝観
Time 10:00 to 16:30 (last entry 16:00) Station Kamigu-no-mae-cho bus stop (City Bus 32), 5 min walk
Reikan-ji, a convent founded in 1654 whose abbesses were imperial princesses, opens its moss and maple garden, a study moved from Emperor Gosai's palace with Kano-school paintings, and its main hall, with guides explaining the buildings. It's better known for spring camellias, so autumn is the rarer chance.
Tetsuhiro Terada, CC BY 2.0 Ginkaku-ji Autumn Special Opening of the Togudo
銀閣寺 秋の特別公開 国宝 東求堂
Time Guided visits at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:30, 14:30 and 15:30 (about 30 minutes) Station Ginkakuji-michi bus stop (City Bus 5, 7), 10 min walk
Ginkaku-ji opens its main hall and the National Treasure Togudo, whose four-and-a-half-mat study, Dojinsai, is where tea, flower and incense culture took shape, on guided visits of about 20 people, in Japanese only. Sign the sheet in front of the main hall about an hour before your slot, and it's ¥2,000 on top of the usual ¥1,000 entry.
Reginald Pentinio, CC BY 2.0 Ginkaku-ji Spring Special Viewing of the Togudo
銀閣寺 春の特別拝観 国宝東求堂
Time Tours at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:30, 14:30 and 15:30 Station Ginkakuji-michi bus stop (City Bus 5, 7, 203)
A guided 30-minute visit inside the main hall and the Togudo, whose four-and-a-half-mat study, Dojinsai, is seen as the starting point of tea, flower arranging and incense. Groups are capped and you can't take photos.
Reginald Pentinio, CC BY 2.0 Nearby
Around Ginkakuji
Temple gardens along a canal path, under the Daimonji hill
Get to Ginkaku-ji for its 8:30 opening, because the temple fills up as the day goes on. Then walk south on the Philosopher's Path, about 1.8 km of stone path beside a branch of the Lake Biwa Canal, and turn off it for the temples on either side. Honen-in's grounds open at 6:00, and you don't pay to go in.
Ginkakuji has 15 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 7 shrines and temples, 2 museums, 2 restaurants, 1 viewpoint, 1 shop, 1 neighbourhood and 1 bathhouse. Read the Ginkakuji guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Honen-in?
- 30 Shishigatani Goshonodan-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市左京区鹿ヶ谷御所ノ段町30番地).
- What are the opening hours of Honen-in?
- Daily 6:00 to 16:00. The path to the main hall is open unless a service is on. The halls and garden open only 1 to 7 April and 18 to 24 November, 9:30 to 16:00.
- How do I get to Honen-in?
- The nearest station is Jodoji bus stop (City Bus 5). Honen-in is in Ginkakuji, Kyoto.
- How much does Honen-in cost?
- Nothing. Honen-in is free to visit.
- How long do you need at Honen-in?
- Plan for 20 min.
- When is the best time to visit Honen-in?
- Early morning.
Stay near Honen-in
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