Nison-in
Arashiyama, Kyoto
- Daily
- 9:00 to 16:30
Source: nisonin.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Nison-in is named for its two main images, a Shaka who sends souls off and an Amida who welcomes them, a gilded pair carved in the mid-Kamakura period. Past the gate, the Momiji no Baba approach runs about 100 m between alternating maples and cherries. The temple dates to the 830s or 840s and sits at the foot of Mount Ogura.
Insider tip
Entry is ¥600, free for primary school children and younger. The rare Nison-in Fugenzo cherry by the main hall flowers from mid-April into Golden Week, and the temple calls it one of the latest-blooming cherries in Japan. Its Gyoentei tea room opens only in Golden Week and the autumn leaf season.
What's on near Nison-in
Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Nison-in, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Saga Dainenbutsu Kyogen Autumn Performance
嵯峨大念佛狂言 秋季定期公演
Time 13:30 to 16:30 (former members' show from 11:30) Station Saga-Shakado-mae bus stop (City Bus 28, 91), 2 min walk
Masked players act out plays without a word on Seiryo-ji's kyogen stage, one of Kyoto's three great nembutsu kyogen and an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property. This autumn it's Hashi Benkei, Shibari Bozu and Tsuchigumo from 13:30, after a show of Momijigari by former members at 11:30, and it's free and goes ahead in rain.
Mti, CC BY-SA 3.0 Arashiyama Tsukitouro Bamboo Light-up
嵐山月灯路
Time 18:00 to 21:00 (last entry 20:40) Station Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line), 10 min walk
The bamboo grove path is lit every evening, with a 30-metre bamboo corridor hung with 1,500 woven bamboo balls and mist drifting through the grove. In 2026 it was ¥1,500 cash at the ticket booth in the grove or ¥2,000 online, and free for 12 and under.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 Arashiyama Tsukitouro Bamboo Light-up
嵐山月灯路 Arashiyama Bamboo Light-up
Time 18:00 to 21:00 (last entry 20:40) Station Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line), 10 min walk
Bamboo lanterns, some made by local residents in workshops, line the Bamboo Grove path and about 1 km of lit walkways. At the gate it's ¥1,500 in cash, online tickets with guaranteed entry cost ¥2,000, and children 12 and under go free.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 Saga Otaimatsu Fire Festival at Seiryo-ji
涅槃会とお松明式（清凉寺）
Time Kyogen from 15:30, torches about 20:00 Station Saga-Shakado-mae bus stop (City Bus 28), 2 min walk
Three giant torches are lit in front of the main hall around 20:00 to recall the Buddha's cremation. Before that, from 15:30, you can watch Saga Dainembutsu Kyogen, one of Kyoto's three nembutsu kyogen, masked plays without words, for free.
Mti, CC BY-SA 3.0 Saga Dainembutsu Kyogen spring performance
嵯峨大念佛狂言 春季公演（清凉寺）
Time From 13:30 Station Saga-Shakado-mae bus stop (City Bus 28), 2 min walk
Masked plays without words, performed by the Saga Dainembutsu Kyogen preservation society on the kyogen stage at Seiryo-ji, one of Kyoto's three nembutsu kyogen. Free to watch, rain or shine.
Mti, CC BY-SA 3.0 Nearby
Around Arashiyama
Bamboo at first light, then the maple temples under Mount Ogura
Arashiyama is on Kyoto's north-western edge, where Togetsukyo Bridge crosses the Oi River with wooded hills right behind it. You'll want the bridge, Tenryu-ji and the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, and so will everyone else. Go early. Then walk north into Sagano. Its temples line the foot of Mount Ogura, and it's quieter at the far end, which Kyoto's official tourism site calls Okusaga.
Arashiyama has 30 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 14 shrines and temples, 4 landmarks, 3 parks and gardens, 2 restaurants, 2 bathhouses, 1 cafe, 1 museum, 1 viewpoint, 1 shop and 1 neighbourhood. Read the Arashiyama guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Nison-in?
- 27 Saga-Nison-in Monzen Chojin-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都府京都市右京区嵯峨二尊院門前長神町27).
- What are the opening hours of Nison-in?
- Daily 9:00 to 16:30.
- How do I get to Nison-in?
- The nearest station is Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line). Nison-in is in Arashiyama, Kyoto.
- How much does Nison-in cost?
- Nison-in is cheap, marked ¥ on the site's price scale.
- How long do you need at Nison-in?
- Plan for 45 min.
- When is the best time to visit Nison-in?
- Autumn leaf season.
Stay near Nison-in
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