Tenjin-san Market
Kitano, Kyoto
Source: kitanotenmangu.or.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
On the 25th of every month Kitano Tenmangu holds its fair day, and stalls crowd the shrine's approach all day. The date honours Michizane, who was born on 25 June and died on 25 February. January's Hatsu-Tenjin and December's Shimai-Tenjin are the big ones, with about 1,000 stalls and some 150,000 people.
Insider tip
After sunset the shrine's lanterns are lit, so it's worth staying into the evening. In December you'll find New Year decorations and whole salted salmon among the usual plants, antiques and used clothes.
What the guides say about Tenjin-san Market
17. Kitano Tenmangu on the 25th. The Tenjin-san Market fills the approach all day, and after dark the shrine lights 350 stone and 250 hanging lanterns. Awamochi Sawaya has made millet cakes by the shrine since 1682, and yours will likely still be warm. City Bus 50 takes about 35 minutes from Kyoto Station. The Kitano guide covers Kamishichiken, Kyoto's oldest geisha district.
Toyouke-jaya, across Imadegawa-dori from Kitano Tenmangu, is the lunch counter of a tofu maker that's been in the area since 1897. Order the yudofu, made with its own nigari silken tofu, or the Toyouke-don, tofu on rice. It's shut on Thursdays and Fridays unless the day's the 25th or a public holiday, and the 25th is the Tenjin-san Market across the road.
What's on near Tenjin-san Market
Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Tenjin-san Market, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Kamishichiken Kotobuki-kai Dance Recital
上七軒 寿会
Time 16:00 (doors 15:30) Station Kitano Tenmangu-mae or Kamishichiken bus stop (City Bus 50), 3 min walk
Kamishichiken, which grew from seven teahouses at Kitano Tenmangu's gate, holds its annual recital at the Kaburenjo, a programme of nagauta dances by its geiko and maiko. Tickets are ¥10,000, and children under school age aren't admitted.
mrhayata, CC BY-SA 2.0 Kamishichiken Beer Garden
上七軒ビアガーデン
Time 17:30 to 22:00 Station Kitano Tenmangu-mae bus stop (City Bus 50, 55, 203), 3 min walk
Kamishichiken, Kyoto's oldest geisha district, turns its kaburenjo theatre into a beer garden for the summer, and geiko and maiko in matching yukata come round and hand out their senjafuda name cards. The first set of draught beer and snacks was ¥2,500 in 2026, seats are in two-hour slots, nobody under 20 gets in, and it isn't open every night, so check the closed days.
mrhayata, CC BY-SA 2.0 Kitano Odori
北野をどり
Time 14:00 and 16:30 (doors open an hour before) Station Kitano Tenmangu-mae bus stop (City Bus 50, 51, 55, 203), 3 min walk
Kamishichiken, Kyoto's oldest geisha district, opens the spring dance season in the Kamishichiken Kaburenjo, a Japanese-style theatre that's not normally open to the public. Each show runs about 90 minutes.
mrhayata, CC BY-SA 2.0 Tenjin-san Market at Kitano Tenmangu
天神市（北野天満宮）
Time 7:00 to sunset Station Kitano Tenmangu-mae bus stop (City Bus), 1 min walk
Kitano Tenmangu's market on the 25th, the date tied to Sugawara no Michizane's birth and death, is Kyoto's other big fair alongside To-ji's, strong on antiques, old tools and secondhand clothes. On market days the shrine buildings are lit after dark.
z tanuki, CC BY 3.0 Kitano Tenmangu Momiji-en Maple Garden
史跡御土居のもみじ苑
Time 9:00 to 16:00 (last entry 15:40), to 20:00 during the light-up from 13 Nov (last entry 19:40) Station Kitano Tenmangu-mae bus stop (City Bus 50), 1 min walk
About 350 maples grow on the Odoi, the earth rampart Toyotomi Hideyoshi built round Kyoto, and the garden opens for the season with a light-up after dark from 13 Nov. Look out for the vermilion Uguisu Bridge over the Kamiya River, and the ticket comes with a sweet based on fu-no-yaki, said to have been devised by Sen no Rikyu.
z tanuki, CC BY 3.0 Nearby
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 Tenjin-san Market?
- Bakuro-cho, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市上京区馬喰町).
- How do I get to Tenjin-san Market?
- The nearest station is Kitano Tenmangu-mae bus stop (City Bus 10, 50, 51, 55, 203). Tenjin-san Market is in Kitano, Kyoto.
- How much does Tenjin-san Market cost?
- Nothing. Tenjin-san Market is free to visit.
- How long do you need at Tenjin-san Market?
- Plan for 1-2 hours.
- When is the best time to visit Tenjin-san Market?
- The 25th, into the evening.
Stay near Tenjin-san Market
Browse live availability and compare prices around Kitano.
See hotels near Tenjin-san Market 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.