Kiyomizu-dera

Kiyomizu-dera sits halfway up Mount Otowa in the Higashiyama hills, and its huge wooden stage, built out from the main hall over a steep slope, is one of the most recognisable sights in Japan. The temple traces its origins back more than 1,250 years to a priest who found a pure spring on the mountain; by tradition the founding date is 778. The name means pure water temple. The current main hall was rebuilt in 1633 with the support of the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu after a fire, and in 1994 the temple was listed as part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto World Heritage Site.

The main hall enshrines an eleven-faced, forty-two-armed Kannon, affectionately known as Kiyomizu Kannon-san. The stage in front of it stands about 13 metres above the ground and gives a wide view over the treetops towards the city, framed by cherry blossom in spring and red maples in autumn. Below the hall, the Otowa waterfall splits into three streams, and visitors queue to drink from them with long-handled cups for good fortune. Jishu Shrine, within the precinct, is linked to love and matchmaking and is popular with younger visitors.

The temple is open from 6:00 every day, with closing times that change with the season, and it holds special evening openings in spring, summer and autumn when the buildings are illuminated. Arrive at opening time if you can: by late morning the approach and the stage are crowded, especially at weekends and in the cherry blossom and autumn leaf seasons. Allow an hour or so for the temple and longer if you plan to explore the surrounding lanes. A wheelchair-accessible route map is available from the temple.

Only two paths lead into the grounds, one from the Nio-mon gate at the top of Kiyomizu-zaka and one from Chawan-zaka, and the temple warns that some online maps show routes that do not connect. From Kyoto Station, city buses 206 and 100 run to the Gojozaka stop, from which it is a ten-minute uphill walk. Keihan Kiyomizu-Gojo Station is about 25 minutes away on foot. There is no parking at the temple, so public transport or a taxi is the sensible choice.

Kiyomizu-dera is the natural starting point for a walk through old Higashiyama. Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka, stepped lanes of wooden shops and tea houses, lead north from the temple towards Yasaka Pagoda, Kodai-ji and eventually Yasaka Shrine and Gion, an easy downhill route that fills a relaxed half day.