Kyoto Gyoen
Imperial Palace, Kyoto
- Daily
- Open all day
Source: env.go.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Kyoto Gyoen is the park around the Imperial Palace, 1.3 km long and 700 m wide. More than 140 princely and noble houses stood here in the Edo period, and what's left is lawns, woods more than a century old and the remains of a few old gardens, among about 100,000 trees. It never closes and it's free.
Insider tip
Weeping cherries at the Konoe residence site and along the Demizu stream start the season in mid-March, and other cherries keep going into early May. The 120 trees of the plum grove peak in mid-February, and the leaves turn from late November to mid-December. The Konoe rest house has a cafe run by the confectioner Sasaya Iori, and the Nakadachiuri rest house by the main Nakadachiuri gate has a restaurant and a souvenir shop.
What the guides say about Kyoto Gyoen
11. Go early, because ticket desks close early. Temple and shrine ticket desks often close around 16:00, so don't leave the big ones for late afternoon. Kiyomizu-dera opens at 6:00, and from March to November Ryoan-ji opens at 8:00 and Ginkaku-ji at 8:30 (half an hour later in winter), while Fushimi Inari Taisha, Yasaka Shrine and Kyoto Gyoen never close. The early morning list has more.
26. Autumn colour. Tofuku-ji is at its best from mid-November to early December, when Tsutenkyo opens at 8:30 and costs ¥1,000. Be there then. Eikan-do lights its maples in the evening, 20 November to 6 December in 2026, and Kiyomizu-dera stays open until 21:30 from 21 to 30 November. The trees in Kyoto Gyoen turn from late November to mid-December. The autumn leaves collection lists more.
What's on near Kyoto Gyoen
Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Kyoto Gyoen, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Jidai Matsuri
時代祭
Time Procession from 12:00 Station Marutamachi or Imadegawa (Karasuma Line)
About 2,000 Kyoto people in costume from the city's thousand years as capital form a 2-kilometre procession, running back in time from the Meiji Restoration to the Heian period. It leaves the Imperial Palace at 12:00 for Heian Shrine and takes about two hours to pass, there are paid seats in Kyoto Gyoen, on Oike-dori and on Jingu-michi, and rain moves it to the next day.
DavideGorla, CC BY 2.0 Jidai Matsuri (Festival of the Ages)
時代祭
Time Leaves the Imperial Palace 12:00, Karasuma Oike about 12:50, Heian Shrine about 14:30 Station Marutamachi or Imadegawa (Karasuma Line)
Heian Shrine's festival is a 2 km costume parade of about 2,000 people, 70 horses and two oxen, walking back through history from the Meiji Restoration loyalists to the Heian court, and it leaves the Imperial Palace at noon. Paid seats are set up in the palace grounds, on Oike-dori and on Jingu-michi, and rain moves it to 23 Oct.
DavideGorla, CC BY 2.0 Kan'ei Imperial Procession Re-enactment (400th Anniversary)
寛永行幸四百年祭 行幸行列再現
Time Leaves Kenreimon about 12:30, reaches Nijo Castle east gate about 15:00 Station Marutamachi or Imadegawa (Karasuma Line)
About 330 people re-create Emperor Go-Mizunoo's 1626 procession to Nijo Castle in three groups, led by Empress Masako, the shogun Iemitsu and the emperor, with court musicians, walking about 3 km from the palace's Kenreimon gate. It goes ahead in light rain but not heavy rain, and Nijo Castle's last entry that day is at noon.
DavideGorla, CC BY 2.0 Kyoto Imperial Palace Spring Special Opening
京都御所 春の特別公開
Time 9:00 to 15:50 (out by 16:30) Station Imadegawa (Karasuma Line), 5 min walk from exit 6
Five days of extra displays in the palace. In 2026 they were the Takamikura throne in the Shishinden (seen from the south court), the dressing of a twelve-layer court robe, and gagaku or kemari kickball in the mornings. Entry is free with no booking, and staff give guided walks in Japanese and English.
DavideGorla, CC BY 2.0 Aoi Matsuri
葵祭 路頭の儀
Time Leaves the palace 10:30, Shimogamo 11:40 to 14:20, Kamigamo about 15:30 Station Imadegawa or Marutamachi (Karasuma Line)
Over 500 people in Heian court dress, with 36 horses and 4 oxen pulling decorated carts, walk from the Imperial Palace to Shimogamo and on to Kamigamo, everything hung with hollyhock leaves. The Kyoto City Tourism Association sells reserved seats, and rain moves it to the next day.
DavideGorla, CC BY 2.0 Nearby
Around Imperial Palace
Free palace walks, a park that never shuts, and the court's old shops
Kyoto Gyoen, a park 1.3 km long in central Kyoto, never closes. The Kyoto Imperial Palace sits inside it, and you can walk round it for free without booking. Around the edges you'll find Shokoku-ji (head of the Zen branch that takes in Kinkaku-ji), the house site where The Tale of Genji was written, and shops that once supplied the court.
Imperial Palace has 23 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 6 shrines and temples, 5 landmarks, 3 museums, 2 cafes, 2 restaurants, 2 shops, 2 parks and gardens and 1 bar. Read the Imperial Palace guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Kyoto Gyoen?
- 3 Kyoto Gyoen, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都府京都市上京区京都御苑3).
- What are the opening hours of Kyoto Gyoen?
- Kyoto Gyoen is open all day.
- How do I get to Kyoto Gyoen?
- The nearest station is Marutamachi or Imadegawa (Karasuma Line). Kyoto Gyoen is in Imperial Palace, Kyoto.
- How much does Kyoto Gyoen cost?
- Nothing. Kyoto Gyoen is free to visit.
- How long do you need at Kyoto Gyoen?
- Plan for 1-2 hours.
- When is the best time to visit Kyoto Gyoen?
- Mid-March and late November.
Stay near Kyoto Gyoen
Browse live availability and compare prices around Imperial Palace.
See hotels near Kyoto Gyoen on Booking.comPrices are for the night of Saturday 17 October. You can change the dates on Booking.com. If you book, Roam Kyoto earns a small commission from Stay22 at no extra cost to you.