#Kyoto Imperial Palace/In the 14th century, the Imperial Palace was moved 2km east to its current location. The emperor currently resides in Tokyo, but stays here when he visits Kyoto.

#Kyoto State Guest House/In 2005, the government opened a Japanese-style guesthouse to welcome distinguished foreign guests.

#Kyoto Gyoen (100 ha)/The area around the Imperial Palace was once home to many mansions of the Imperial Court aristocracy. After the capital was moved to Tokyo, the government demolished these mansions and developed them into a public park.

#Shinsenen/When the capital was built in Kyoto in the 8th century, this garden was also built as the Imperial Palace Garden, where the emperor and court nobles enjoyed banquets and boating. The construction of Nijo-jo Castle on the same site reduced the garden's area to less than 10% of its original size.

#Nijo-jo Castle/This spot is where the original Imperial Palace was built in the 8th century. The Tokugawa Shogun, which unified Japan, built the castle in the 17th century to guard and monitor the Imperial Palace, govern the Kyoto area, and symbolize the shogunate's authority. In the 19th century, the last shogun proclaimed the restoration of imperial rule here, returning power to the emperor.

#Nanzenji Temple (15 ha)/Originally a detached palace for the emperor, it came under the patronage of the Ashikaga Shogun in the 14th century and became Kyoto's most prestigious Zen temple. The arched brick Lake Biwa Canal runs through the temple grounds.

#Incline Railway/The water from the Lake Biwa Canal was used for power generation, water transportation, Japanese gardens, and more, transforming Kyoto into a modern industrial city. The incline railway lifted ships from the lower to the upper surface of the canal.

#Heian-Jingu Shrine/Constructed at the end of the 20th century, this shrine enshrines the first and last emperors whose capital was Kyoto. The main shrine building is a replica of the buildings of the Heian-kyo period, and the garden is expansive, drawing water from the Lake Biwa Canal.

#Okazaki Park/On the site of the National Industrial Exposition held at the end of the 20th century, Okazaki Park is a cultural center in Kyoto, housing an art museum, library, traditional industry museum, zoo, and more.