Have any members here stayed in temples in Kyoto & mount koyo

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

I am going to JPN for the first time ever, I am visiting these 2 places along with Tokyo and Osaka

I would love to engulf myself in the cultral parts of JPn temples, seeing the medival JPN aspect.

What temples could I visit and stay in, I dont speak no Japanese but I understand the ethnics behind it. I understand the concept and I will read info before hand.

I am travelling myself and I would like to take pictures when I go in October.


Now please dont laugh but will they have electric chargers and stuff. I am asking as I thought some temples but at least have electric chargers and not 50 inch LCD TV's and DVD players

I want to pray in the morning in the monks and are all temples basically the same in the sense, you stay there, see the insides and stuff, pray and then leave in the morning.

As I would like to walk in the forests surrounding the temples as I seen in some of the pics on the internet.

I am hoping to stay there for at least a few days each and I assume this is for an evening stuf as opposed to a whole day as I cant imagaine it lasting a whole day unless you guys tell me.

Please give me lists and stuff as I have to start booking planes & hotel tickets.

I would also like to book temples and stuff now as I really want this trip to be memoriable.

 

[aria]

Hey!

I just got back from a week trip to Japan (I've been there several times recently)

There are two things I've found indispensable when planning travel:

(1) The Lonely Planet Japan guide is truly the best guidebook out there, the maps and advice are very useful

(2) This online guide is also great for planning: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e623.html

I don't know if temples in Kyoto take boarders, but I'm sure there will by some outside of cities (I have no experience around Mt. Koyo).

If you haven't already, consider the Japan Rail Pass. I also highly recommend taking a day trip to Nara.

I've helped several people plan trips to Japan and you can't go wrong with what you're covering (Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo)... however, you can swap Osaka for something else since Tokyo may make it seem not quite the same (consider a day trip to Nikko from Tokyo as well as Nara).

Best of luck!

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

Thanks dude, Nikko is on my trip as well but forgot to write that down

I am thinking now is it wqorthdoing to Osaka, I guess the neo building isnt there so why go there now

 

[djdelly]

From what I've been told... you go to Osaka to eat and drink in excess.... Foodies love Osaka for that reason.

KOYOSHI
1-3-12 Shibata
Kita-Ku, Osaka (train stop is Hanku Umeda)

telephone number: 06-6372-5747

This place is supposed to be the bee's knee's.

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

From what I've been told... you go to Osaka to eat and drink in excess.... Foodies love Osaka for that reason.

KOYOSHI
1-3-12 Shibata
Kita-Ku, Osaka (train stop is Hanku Umeda)

telephone number: 06-6372-5747

This place is supposed to be the bee's knee's.

thanks dude but i dont drink alcohol and really only eat westen food i.e chicken & chips, hotdogs and pizza

so I dont know how much JPN food I am going try

also Bobak, have you been to kyoto as I want to check out these temples but i dont know which are the best ones

http://www.templefees.com/

 

[aria]

From what I've been told... you go to Osaka to eat and drink in excess.... Foodies love Osaka for that reason.

I dunno... Michelin gave Tokyo more stars than any city on earth, by a substantial margin. Besides, the only difference I can see is Tokyo would be more expensive.

thanks dude but i dont drink alcohol and really only eat westen food i.e chicken & chips, hotdogs and pizza

so I dont know how much JPN food I am going try

Don't completely give up on Japanese food! If sushi's not your game (though don't knock it 'til you tried it), you can always go shabu-shabu, yakitori, soba noddles or a bunch of other variations of fairly straightforward dishes that should be friendly to a Western pallet.

also Bobak, have you been to kyoto as I want to check out these temples but i dont know which are the best ones

http://www.templefees.com/

Yes I have been, and here are my favorites:

* Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion, really is the best)
* Kiyomizudera
* Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion)
* Chionin Temple
* Nanzenji Temple (if you like zen rock gardens, its near Kinkakuji)

Outside of temples, I recommend Nijo Castle.

I have not been to the Sanjusangendo temple or Fushimi Inari Shrine, but I've heard they're both awesome.

Again, you really can't go wrong with the site below, I absolutely agree with its recommendations (and this is after I'd already seen this stuff) of what's worth prioritizing
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html
(and yes, Kyoto has a lot of good stuff; esp. temples)

I've also done the side trips to Nara (lots of amazing temples and deer, seriously) and Himeji (original castle) and loved them.

There are literally hundreds of temples in Kyoto (and shrines, but it sounds like you're skewing towards the Buddhist facilities), most are very nice and atmospheric, but the above really are the ones you "must see".

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

Well I am going there 2nd October and leaving on the 23rd

I was thinking landing in Kyoto and staying there a few days at least and a couple in mount koyo. I will then go to Nikko for a day or two.

I was going to Tokyo for the 10th for Tokyo game show and staying there for a day and swag all the free shit I can

and basically stay there, that should be alright I think and explore Tokyo and buy and see shit

Also I was gonna take about £1000 british pounds to last me the trip as I heard JPN aint really like the U.K or USA in terms of lots of peeps/shops take credit cards.

What transport should I take as I really only need internal transport as I think I will go from Kyoto, to Nikko and then to Tokyo.
I mean is the JR really worth it as I want a pass that will let me take trains and stuff in the cities and obviously I dont want to pay single fares.

I was going to have the hotels paid before I land in Japan

 

[aria]

Well I am going there 2nd October and leaving on the 23rd

I was thinking landing in Kyoto and staying there a few days at least and a couple in mount koyo. I will then go to Nikko for a day or two.

I was going to Tokyo for the 10th for Tokyo game show and staying there for a day and swag all the free shit I can

and basically stay there, that should be alright I think and explore Tokyo and buy and see shit

Also I was gonna take about £1000 british pounds to last me the trip as I heard JPN aint really like the U.K or USA in terms of lots of peeps/shops take credit cards.

What transport should I take as I really only need internal transport as I think I will go from Kyoto, to Nikko and then to Tokyo.
I mean is the JR really worth it as I want a pass that will let me take trains and stuff in the cities and obviously I dont want to pay single fares.

I was going to have the hotels paid before I land in Japan

Good plan on the hotels.

The JR Rail Pass sounds expensive at first, but once you crunch numbers it's actually an incredible deal (especially since it allows unlimited Bullet Train (shinkansen) rides, as well as any other JR train, for the duration).

I found that a lot of bigger places do take credit cards (including major chains like Starbucks and local versions as well as mini-marts --the Japanese mini-mart, including 7-Eleven, Lawson, Family Mart, etc, all have excellent food, surprisingly).

If you're going to the TGS, you might consider contacting a Tokyo member, I believe some of them go. I'll be happy to vouch for you, along with the LV peeps of course.

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

Good plan on the hotels.

The JR Rail Pass sounds expensive at first, but once you crunch numbers it's actually an incredible deal (especially since it allows unlimited Bullet Train (shinkansen) rides, as well as any other JR train, for the duration).

I found that a lot of bigger places do take credit cards (including major chains like Starbucks and local versions as well as mini-marts --the Japanese mini-mart, including 7-Eleven, Lawson, Family Mart, etc, all have excellent food, surprisingly).

If you're going to the TGS, you might consider contacting a Tokyo member, I believe some of them go. I'll be happy to vouch for you, along with the LV peeps of course.

Thanks dude but I dont know any JPN members since and as you can appreciate that the location isnt always true

Plus what tickets do I need to puirchase to take unlimited trains in Tokyo and Kyoto, if the JR rail does then I might have to get that as I still need to go to mount koya, Nikko and Tokoyo from Kyoto

 

[aria]

Thanks dude but I dont know any JPN members since and as you can appreciate that the location isnt always true

Plus what tickets do I need to puirchase to take unlimited trains in Tokyo and Kyoto, if the JR rail does then I might have to get that as I still need to go to mount koya, Nikko and Tokoyo from Kyoto

In order to keep people living in Japan from buying the JR Rail Pass, you can only purchase it outside of Japan

Official site:

http://www.japanrailpass.net/eng/en001.html

Oddly enough, the Rail Pass isn't actually sold by the JR, rather by authorized dealers that include the two main national airlines (JAL and ANA) as well as special travel agents. I've used Kintetsu, and it appears they have several branches in the UK.

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

In order to keep people living in Japan from buying the JR Rail Pass, you can only purchase it outside of Japan

Official site:

http://www.japanrailpass.net/eng/en001.html

Oddly enough, the Rail Pass isn't actually sold by the JR, rather by authorized dealers that include the two main national airlines (JAL and ANA) as well as special travel agents. I've used Kintetsu, and it appears they have several branches in the UK.

yeah but can I use it for all internal trains in tokoyo, kyoto and nikko, to get to one part of the town to the other side

 

[aria]

yeah but can I use it for all internal trains in tokoyo, kyoto and nikko, to get to one part of the town to the other side

Oh yeah, just as long as they're JR trains (not Tokyo Metro, Keio or other subway or private line). For inside Tokyo that should be pretty doable with the Yanamoto line as well as the Nikko trip.

Even if you need to take the odd subway trip, the prices in Japan are incredibly reasonable compared to the craptastic Tube prices --we're talking 160-200 yen as compared to 4 pounds.

 

[The Drizzle]

JPN

 

[The Legendary LoneWolf]

ok Bobak I booked my ticket, now this is the type of thing I am going to do in Koyasan for a day or maybe two, to walk through the forest andf cementary and stuff

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4905.html

now in regards to Kyoto, I am going to stay there for a few days as I need to be at TGS for the start.

Now in this link I can guess what would be the best places to visit but what would you say as you been here before

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html

and for Nikko, would you say the first 2 places

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3800.html

also what about these places in Kyoto
Kiyomizudera
Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion)
Katsura Rikyu
Fushimi Inari Shrine

 

[aria]

ok Bobak I booked my ticket, now this is the type of thing I am going to do in Koyasan for a day or maybe two, to walk through the forest andf cementary and stuff

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4905.html

now in regards to Kyoto, I am going to stay there for a few days as I need to be at TGS for the start.

Now in this link I can guess what would be the best places to visit but what would you say as you been here before

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html

and for Nikko, would you say the first 2 places

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3800.html

also what about these places in Kyoto
Kiyomizudera
Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion)
Katsura Rikyu
Fushimi Inari Shrine

Kyoto

Kinkakuji is a must see, more than any other really. It's spectacular and something that's used whenever people want a key image from Japan (its that golden temple on top of the Kyoto webpage). Kiyomizudera is also pretty nifty, I think the overall complex of Kiyomizudera offers a lot to see as well as a good sweeping view of Kyoto (which is nice but not one of the best skylines out there).

I missed the other two because I of my time schedule at the time and they're a bit further out. Kiyomizudera was convenient to the subway, and the buses to Kinkakuji are popular and easy to track down. I imagine its the same story on easy bus access for Katsura Rikyu --With that said, Katsura Rikyu requires advance reservations (which make it a bit of a hassle). Fushimi Inari Shrine is near a JR station (remember, the subway and JR are different lines), and it depends on how into the torii gates you are --they're at a lot of Shinto temples, just not in the incredibly dense layout they are at the Fushimi Inari Shrine. You could probably survive without having seen them.

The Shogun's old palace (Nijo Castle) offers a look at how the long-tome military rulers of feudal Japan lived, and if you've ever read Lone Wolf & Cub or other similar feudal Japanese-stuff it makes a good visit right in the middle of Kyoto.

Nikko:

Nikko is convenient in that those top two sites are all a part of very densely packed area/complex (including that Rinnoji Temple, which is otherwise miss-able). Frankly, in Nikko you can easily get away with just going to the Toshogu Shrine.