Kyoto in Half a Day: Yasaka Shrine & Nanzenji Temple — Guide Satoko

Can You Do a Private Walking Tour of Kyoto's Higashiyama and Nanzen-ji from Kyoto Station? A Licensed Guide's Report

The tour was originally arranged for a larger number of guests, but as some of the group were unable to join, we carried out the tour with the remaining guests. I had originally planned to travel from Kyoto Station to Yasaka Shrine by bus, but because it was hot and I wanted to reduce the walking distance as much as possible, we instead traveled by subway and the Hankyu line. This meant the guests had to walk from the Hankyu station to Yasaka Shrine, but as a result I was able to show them the Shijo Ohashi Bridge, Hanamikoji Street, and more. Thanks to the heavy rain the previous day, the river was slightly swollen and its flow looked refreshingly cool, and the guests were delighted to see the riverside restaurants preparing their terrace platforms.

They were also very fond of the sight of the lanterns decorating the dance hall at Yasaka Shrine.

I had originally intended to walk along the Shirakawa, but since we had already entered Yasaka Shrine, we skipped the Shirakawa route and instead passed along Chion-in and in front of Shoren-in. The guests were amazed at the sheer size of the Chion-in Sanmon gate. When I told them the story of how Tokugawa Ieyasu took part of the neighboring Shoren-in grounds when building Chion-in, they were very surprised. They greatly enjoyed the tranquility of this area.

From Heian Shrine to Nanzen-ji, we walked along the Lake Biwa Canal, and the guests enjoyed the scenery there. Along the way, we could see the head of a giraffe from the zoo, so they stopped to watch it.

At the Sanmon gate of Nanzen-ji, one member of the group was not comfortable with heights, so they waited below. The rest of the guests admired the view from the gate and the Buddhist statues inside. We then visited the Hatto (lecture hall), and I considered entering the Hojo, but the guests decided not to go inside, so we visited the Suirokaku aqueduct and left Nanzen-ji. It was around 13:30 at that point, and when I asked what they would like to do, they said they would return to the Hotel. With the guests' agreement, I saw them to the transfer point at Karasuma Oike, confirmed that they boarded the train heading toward Takeda, and said goodbye.

One member of the group spoke excellent English and was very polite. Another member of the group did their best to keep walking in the heat. As a souvenir, they gave me some chocolate from Europe.

Click here for more details: Kyoto Customized Half-Day Tour with Licensed Local Guide

Tour Report by Satoko

I am a 53-year-old woman, living in Kyoto for nearly 40 years. I got the license in 2001. Since then, I worked as an interpreter or a translator in several companies, secretary at universities, and now work for a company on weekdays at the international dept.I do guiding job only weekend now. I started full swing guiding career after COVID-19 pandemic. I have gotten good review from many of my guests. I love my hometown, Kyoto which has a lot of interesting and historical sites to see. Particularly, I am native to Arashiyama which is famous for bamboo forest. So, I know a lot of places where you can relax yourself around this area. Other than that, Kyoto has many attractive sites which surely interest you.Also, I like meeting many people from different cultural background. I am very happy if I learn about your culture as well. Let’s enjoy exploring around Kyoto!