The tour starts at JR Kyoto Station at 9 AM. You will go to Demachi Yanagi Station by JR Nara Line and Keihan Line. From there you will begin walking. The main tourist attractions of this tour are Ginkaku-ji Temple ( the Silver Pavilion ), the Philosopher's Path, Nanzen-ji Temple, Heian Jingu Shrine Garden and Maruyama Park. The tour ends at Gion Shijo Station of Keihan Line.
JR Kyoto Station
Gion Shijo Station of Keihan Line
During this period in usual years, you can enjoy viewing cherry blossoms, varying from early bloom to full bloom.
Ginkaku-ji Temple (the Silver Pavilion ) is a symbolic temple of Higashiyama Culture of Muromachi Period (1333 - 1578) characterized by wabi-sabi or refined simplicity and rusticity.
The Philosopher's Path with a narrow stream is lined with hundreds of cherry trees.
A popular photo spot in the precinct of Nanzen-ji Temple, in which runs a high-rise waterway supported by arch-shaped brick piers.
Weeping cherry trees will be in blossom in the Heian Jingu Shrine Garden, a strolling-style landscape garden with a pond.
Cherry blossom viewing along the Kamo River from Marutamachi Street to Shijo Street
At Maruyama Park you will see lots of people having parties under cherry blossoms, eating and drinking merrily.
Strolling along the Gion area.
guide fee
transportation fee : ￥410 per person ( you and guide ),
entrance fee for Ginkaku-ji and Heian Shrine Garden : ￥1,100 per person
and lunch.
It is desirable to carry overseas travel insurance because the guide is not liable for any damage or loss incurred during the tour. It is also requested to bring enough Japanese yen with you because some restaurants and taxis do not accept credit cards.
This is a limited-time tour from March 27 to April 7 in 2023 except on Saturdays and Sundays.
This is a limited-time tour from March 31st till April 10th in 2020.
The cherry blossom season varies from year to year and the day of your tour may be too early or too late for cherry blossoms.
At this time of the year it is occasionally still cold, so wear warm clothes, please.
Sneakers or walking shoes and portable umbrellas are desirable.
We loved our tour with Yoshi! He was very informative about the places we visited and was very fun to be around. He has made us want to come back to Japan just to take the silver route tour with him next time! We would say this is a must-do tour if you would like to see Kyoto with a guide. We would recommend him to everyone. Once the tour was finished he even took us to an izakaya for dinner that we would not have been able to do on our own because it was 100% Japanese with no English menu. It was an incredibly cool experience that we will always treasure.
Hi Alex. Thank you so much for your wonderful review for my tour. I am awfully pleased to learn that you and Amy enjoyed spending the day with me. When you visit Kyoto again, I will be very glad to guide you on My Favorite Silver Tour. I will tell the chef of the izakaya that you were delighted with the food and the communication with him and his customers. I wish you health and best of luck. Yoshie
We thoroughly enjoyed our day tour with Yoshie! The route was expertly planned out and fast paced which we loved. Yoshie clearly is passionate and knowledgeable about the history of the temples and various sites. We also had the fortune of joining him at his favorite izakaya restaurant after the tour. We fully recommend this tour 100%!
Hi Brian. I appreciate your supreme comment on my tour in Kyoto. I enjoyed myself guiding and talking with you and Kate. You two were very friendly and thoughtful, too. I hope you will return home with lots of nice memories of your trip in Japan. Be sure to get in touch if you have another chance of visiting Kansai area. I wish you good health and big happiness! Yoshie
I got a hold of Yoshi-san a few months before our trip and asked if he could do a 2-day tour for us. He immediately replied with a solid yes. I booked our time with him and we were set. A week before our tour he contacted me again to check in. We kept in contact until we met in the lobby of our hotel. What an amazing 2 days we had! The weather was awful the first day and he routed us through taxi rides and quickly to the venue avoiding lines. Yoshie has a very scheduled itinerary which we appreciated. He was excellent at timing our trains so that we spent very little time waiting and he infused the day with interesting and informative background of all the sites we visited. He is connected to the people along the way and made our stops for lunch on each day very fun and memorable. There were 3 of us in our group which included our mom. Yoshie made sure she was taken care of and comfortable. I have to say that one of the best memories of our trip was having dinner with him and his friends at the end of the day. It was a very quaint Itzakaya. We enjoyed the food, drink and company. With lots of laughter! If you decide this is the tour you want to do, you will not be disappointed. Have fun! and Kanpai!
Hi Kym-san. I appreciate your heart-warming comment on my two-day tours in Kyoto. I also had a lot of fun with you, your sister and mother, guiding, talking, eating and drinking together. I was surprised that your mother was very active, energetic and curious. If you have another chance of visiting Kansai area, be sure to get in touch, please. I wish you and your family good health and happiness. Kampai! Yoshie
Yoshie-San is an amazing guide - friendly, informative, inspiring with his knowledge and wisdom of Japanese culture. This has been our first trip to Japan - and Yoshie went out of his way to put my daughter and I at ease and help us operate independently. Loved each of the sites we went to in the tour - and Yoshie was kind enough to recommend and then join us for dinner at an excellent spot. Very grateful for an amazing day!
Hi Fareed-san. I really appreciate your kind words for my two-day tour in Kyoto and Nara. I hope you had a fruitful tour today, too. It was nice meeting and talking with you and your daughter. I was pleased that you had a deep curiosity about Buddhist temples and statues as well as Shinto shrines. When you visit Kansai area again, be sure to get in touch, please. With best wishes, Yoshie