Kyoto · Northeast Kyoto
Heian-jingu Shrine
Heian Shrine was built in 1895 to mark 1,100 years since the capital was founded in Kyoto, as part of the city's effort to recover after the government moved to Tokyo and the population fell by about a third. The red buildings recreate the state hall of the Heian Palace at about five-eighths of its original size. The shrine is dedicated to Emperor Kanmu, who moved the capital here in 794, and since 1940 also to Emperor Komei, the father of Emperor Meiji.
The great torii gate on the approach, 24 meters high, was built in 1929 to mark the enthronement of Emperor Showa. Behind the buildings is a garden of about 33 thousand square meters in four parts, designed by Ogawa Jihei VII, and it is designated a Place of Scenic Beauty. Its weeping cherry trees appear in the novel 'Sasameyuki' by Tanizaki Jun'ichiro, and the water in the ponds comes from the Lake Biwa Canal.
On 22 October, the day Emperor Kanmu entered the new capital, Jidai Matsuri sets out from here: a procession of about 2,000 participants in costumes from every period of Kyoto's history. It was born in 1895 from the same jubilee ceremony the shrine was built for.
Good to know
- On 22 October 2026, the day of Jidai Matsuri, the garden is open only 09:30-11:30 and closes at noon.
- The garden is open for free twice a year: in early June and on 19 September.
- The shrine closes early in winter, at 17:00 from November to February. If you come in the evening you only see the great gate from outside.
What is nearby
Approximate walking minutes from the entrance of Heian-jingu Shrine.
- HereHeian-jingu Shrine
- ~3 min
Kyoto Okazaki Tsutaya Books Cafe
A large bookstore with a Starbucks on the ground floor of ROHM Theatre Kyoto, across from the shrine.
- ~5 min
Kyo Udon Nama Soba Okakita Food
A family udon restaurant since 1940, near the zoo. Thin noodles in a kombu broth. Closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
- ~9 min
Hyotei Food
A historic kaiseki restaurant in Higashiyama.
- ~10 min
Blue Bottle Coffee Kyoto Cafe Cafe
The chain's first branch in Kansai, opened in 2018 in a traditional wooden house more than a hundred years old. 44 seats.
- ~10 min
Keage Incline Street
A sloped railway about 582 meters long that carried boats up on carts over a height difference of about 36 meters on the Lake Biwa Canal. The rails are still there and you can walk on them. About 90 cherry trees line it. Free.
More in Northeast Kyoto
Appears in: Ginkaku-ji, the Philosopher's Path and Nanzen-ji: northern Higashiyama on foot · Walking Kyoto's eastern hills: from Ginkaku-ji to Gion via the Philosopher's Path