Kyoto

Kyoto Arashiyama Bamboo forest & Garden Half-Day Walking Tour

Badge of ExcellenceKyoto, Japan
Kyoto Arashiyama Insider Walking Tour
  • 5 hours
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

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Overview

Get an up-close perspective of Kyoto’s Arashiyama district on this small-group walking tour. Learn more about Kyoto’s history and culture as you visit Arashiyama highlights such as the beautiful bamboo grove, the 14th-century Tenryuji Temple, the wide Togetsukyo Bridge over the Katsura River, and more. Get a more intimate look at this rich part of town by exploring on foot for about four hours.
  • Receive personalized attention on a tour with max. seven participants
  • Entrance fees to the temples on the itinerary are included
  • Refuel with a delicious and authentic Kyoto-style lunch (included)
  • Tour photos will be provided after so you can focus on seeing the sights

What's Included

  • Entrance fees to 2 temples and 1 Japanese garden
  • Matcha drink with a small tea ceremony snack
  • 5 hours with a local guide
  • Photos during the tour
  • Lunch (Vegetarian and Vegan menu available)
  • Gluten-free option (accepting requests only upon booking. Unable to provide if requested at door)
  • Additional foods and drinks (Available for Purchase)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

  • Saga-Arashiyama Station
    11-1 Sagatenryūji Kurumamichichō, Ukyo Ward, Kyoto, 616-8373, Japan

    North Exit of JR Saga-Arashiyama Your guide will be holding an orange signboard saying "Magical Trip".

Start time

09:00 AM

End point

  • Arashiyama Station
    Japan, 616-8385 京都府京都市右京区嵯峨天龍寺芒ノ馬場町６３１

    Tour will finish around this area. It may change depending on the location of the lunch restaurant.

What To Expect

Bamboo Forest Street

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Bamboo Forest Street

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

The Bamboo Forest Trail (Pass By)

Togetsukyo Bridge

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Arashiyama (Pass By)

Hokyoin

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Tenryuji Temple

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Okochi Sanso Garden

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Near public transportation
  • Not recommended for travelers with back problems
  • Not recommended for pregnant travelers
  • No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
  • Most travelers can participate
  • The itinerary for this tour includes some locations that are not accessible by a wheelchair or stroller.
  • Please note that we are unable to guarantee allergy-free or cater to dietary restrictions as the food is prepared in kitchens that do not belong to MagicalTrip. Additionally, there may be instances where substitutions are not possible at certain stops; however, we will make every effort to compensate at different stops throughout the tour.
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 7 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

  • For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
  • If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
  • Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
  • Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

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Reviews

5.0
161 reviews
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Showing 1-9 of 161 reviews
Best experience we had in Japan!
Jenny_B, Apr 2024
Yumi was an excellent guide! Her English was good and she also had visual aids to help learn more about shrines and temples. The gardens were stunning. The lunch was absolutely wonderful. All at a great price.
Arashiyama
Asha_P, Apr 2024
Our guide Josh was excellent, friendly and well versed in his sites. Josh was able to share interesting facts about the sites we visited. He was able to share sites which were unique and not on the tourists paths. We visited temple and gardens which seemed to be waiting just for us to visit. We would highly recommend our guide as well as the tour operator.
Tour guide is selfish and not accomodating
Nathalie_V, Mar 2024
Due to a mistake, I got on the slow train rather than the semi-express or rapid-express to Kyoto which would have given me at least 30 mins to spare from Osaka to get to the meeting point. However, I ended up being exactly 30 minutes late to the station, and the tour guide didn't feel like giving me another meeting point or answering my message. I would have waited at the next stop if needed, but no news on any future possible meeting point. I feel like that's a waste of money, just because the tour guide didn't like a foreigner messing up trains, even though I would have waited at the next destination if I had just receive 1 message. The 1 star is for the lack of accomodation... even though I spent 2.5 hours on trains to get to this activity. I had a tour guide in Seoul be a lot more accomodating when the bus drivers went on strike and most bus routes were cancelled, which made me late by more than 30 mins (and that is considering I always try to arrive 30 mons BEFORE) because of alternate route and delays. But you know what? I'm glad I missed the tour, because I visited even better places that have less tourists.
Response from Host, Apr 2024
Thank you for your feedback. Although we understand your situation on the tour date, we also had some other guests joining the tour. Some of the guests came to the meeting place with plenty of time ahead. By considering the experience of other guests who come to the place on time, we can't wait for other guests who are late for more than 10 minutes. We are sorry that we couldn't accept you on the tour date. But to operate our tour smoothly, we hope that all the guests could understand our policy. Thank you for your feedback anyway.
A very magical tour
dani, Mar 2024
We were the only two people on the tour so our guide, Kana, gave us a personalized experience. We learned so much about the history of the temples, the gardens, and enjoyed walking through the Bamboo forest on the trail. It was a beautiful and peaceful tour- highly recommend!
Lovely garden and forest tour
Mary_K, Dec 2023
I had the pleasure of being the only guest which allowed me to really get to know the guide and discuss the history and culture. Delightful guide! Four star lunch to boot! Highly recommend!
Excellent tour with a variety of experiences!
Tara_C, Sep 2023
Incredible experience. Very worth it. We had a great guide and the walking tour was wonderful. The lunch was even better. One of the highlights of our entire trip to Japan.
Amazing tour, very knowledgeable guide
Jill_S, Jul 2023
This was a wonderful tour and I highly recommend it. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and we learned a lot about Japanese religion and history. She took us to off-the-beaten-path locations, including a temple with the most beautiful, serene garden, and a garden with amazing views of the city and mountains. We also visited a famous shrine. And of course, the bamboo forest, which is really something to see. We went early enough that it wasn't too crowded. The tour included a delicious vegetarian kaiseki lunch, and our guide explained what everything was and how to eat it. The pace of the tour was perfect for the very hot weather, including a couple of stops to sit in a temple and contemplate the garden while we learned about its history and meaning, and a stop for cold matcha tea. I wish I could give the tour and our guide 6 stars!
A day to remember forever
Donna_B, Apr 2023
Our Guide was wonderful. Everything we did was so beautiful and it is a tour everyone should experience while in Kyoto.
Long, but very good tour
Griffin_C, Apr 2023
Overall a very good tour and would recommend if you have more than just a couple days in Kyoto. You will go to places that you wouldn’t on your own and you will learn a lot of interesting facts. We stopped at temples, gardens, shops, bamboo forest, and had an awesome lunch. The lunch was a very unique and authentic experience, one of my favorite parts of the tour and something I never would’ve been able to do own my own. Tour guide will give you the option to leave whenever you want which is nice. Tour was 9-2:30-2:45 so when adding travel time it’s basically an all day tour. Only comment would be that the tour could be done in a shorter period of time, probably an hour shorter.
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up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

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