Kyoto · Kyoto Station
Kyoto Tower
Kyoto Tower opened on 28 December 1964, the year the shinkansen opened, on the site where Kyoto's central post office used to stand. It is 131 meters high, the observation deck is at 100 meters, and according to the operator it is the tallest structure in the city. Since 1 April 2024 its official name is NIDEC KYOTO TOWER.
The architect, Yamada Mamoru, who also designed the Budokan hall in Tokyo, imagined a white lighthouse shining over the city's tiled roofs as if they were waves, in a city with no sea. The tower is built of joined steel cylinders with no internal steel frame, and according to the operator it is the first structure in Japan built this way. It stands on the roof of a building with nine floors and three basement levels.
Good to know
- The public bath in the tower's basement, which old guides still recommend, closed on 30 June 2021.
- From 1 October 2026, Kyoto Tower Hotel and its annex give every guest a ticket to the observation deck.
- On 16 August, the evening of the mountain bonfires (Gozan Okuribi), the observation deck closes already at 18:30, and on 1 January there is a special New Year opening. The annual pass and the combined tickets are not valid on these two days.
- The entrance from the basement, through the underground Porta mall, is open 11:00-23:00. From there you take the elevator up to the 11th floor.
What is nearby
Approximate walking minutes from the entrance of Kyoto Tower.
- HereKyoto Tower
- 1 min
KYOTO TOWER SANDO Food
Three floors at the base of Kyoto Tower: a food hall in the basement, souvenirs on the first floor, and workshops on the second floor, among them a Japanese sweets class by Shichijo Kanshundo. On Saturdays there is a tuna-cutting demonstration.
- ~2 min
Kyoto Porta Street
An underground mall under the station square, with shops, restaurants and a souvenir street. Connected directly to the basement of Kyoto Tower.
- ~6 min
Kyoto Ramen Koji Food
The 10th floor of the station building: ten ramen shops from different regions of Japan, from Sapporo to Hakata. No reservations, and all of them take credit cards and have utensils for children. One of them, UNO RAMEN, serves vegan, gluten-free ramen based on soy milk, ¥2,130.
- ~10 min
AEON MALL KYOTO Shopping
A mall on the south side of the station, with a supermarket on the ground floor open 09:00-22:00. Useful on a rainy day and for last shopping before the flight.
- ~13 min
Kaikado Shopping
A workshop that has been making by hand since 1875 round tea caddies of tinplate, copper and brass, whose lid closes by itself when you line
More in Kyoto Station
Appears in: Kids' day in Kyoto: the Railway Museum, the Aquarium, To-ji and Kyoto Tower