What other travelers are saying about Shoshazan Engyoji Temple
Remember your money, obviously cash. You'll pay ¥1200 for the ropeway (unless you want to hike), then ¥500 for entrance (unless you want to take the bus which will be ¥100), but walking isn't so bad. The temple itself is beautiful and most of the smaller ones around as well. The mountain is worth the ¥500. You can also enter the temples, free of charge, but remember to take off your shoes before you enter. There was a bit snow so the pictures turned out well enough, I think. It was really peaceful once you were away from the crowds at the temple. I came around 10am and it wasn't as busy as when I left at 12pm when everyone started to come up.
Frequently Asked Questions
To reach Shoshazan Engyoji Temple from Himeji, take JR train to Himeji Station, then bus #10 to Shoshazan Ropeway station. Take the Mount Shosha Ropeway cable car to the summit, then walk 20 minutes through the forest to reach the temple complex.
Shoshazan Engyoji Temple is open daily from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM (until 4:00 PM in winter). The entrance fee is 500 yen for adults and 200 yen for children. The Mount Shosha Ropeway costs an additional 1,000 yen round trip for adults.
Shoshazan Engyoji Temple served as a filming location for Tom Cruise's movie 'The Last Samurai' and the popular NHK drama 'Musashibo Benkei'. The temple's ancient wooden halls and mystical forest atmosphere made it perfect for these historical productions.
Key attractions at Shoshazan Engyoji Temple include the Maniden Main Hall, Daikodo Lecture Hall, Jikido Refectory Hall, and the scenic walking paths through ancient cedar forests. The temple complex offers stunning views of Himeji city and the Seto Inland Sea.
The best time to visit Shoshazan Engyoji Temple for autumn foliage is mid-November to early December. The temple's mountain location at 371 meters elevation provides spectacular fall colors with maple and ginkgo trees creating a stunning backdrop for the historic buildings.
I had been to Himeji castle many times before, but this was my first time to Engyoji. I don’t know why I didn’t know about it, but I wish I had known about it earlier. What a great place to visit. It’s a huge temple complex on the top of a mountain, accessible by cable car. What a fun excursion if you have extra time before or after seeing Himeji castle and the garden beside it.
Amazing that a temple complex like this built on a rather challenging hike.
If The Last Samurai's story had been real and accurate on this location, one will tend to understand that Omura was probably angry at the samurai because he had been sour-graping about not being in good enough shape to be able to visit Katsumoto's keep.
Had I had enough time today I would have wanted to try and reach the Maniden at least but these pics were as far as I got.
Worth noting that you have to be in shape to walk the whole way, or at least be willing to pay an additional 500 yen for the microbus, otherwise skip paying for the entrance altogether, and just hang around near the ropeway lookout point.
The Engyoji temple is a significant Buddhist temple located on Mount Shosha in Himeji. The temple complex is huge but main parts to cover are the Maniden, Jogyodo, Daikodo, Jikido. You can dedicate an ema for wish fulfilment at Maniden. The Maniden can be reached via a walk up the mountain from the ropeway station. The walk up is around fifteen minutes and has many Kannon statues on the way. Or you can take a shuttle but it comes at some intervals. Majority of the important places to visit are located within five to ten minutes of walk. But also except for Mani den, many of the buildings are not open for public.
Mt Shosha, Himeji, is stunning. Impressive complex, spent about 2 relaxed and very enjoyable hours there. Stunning mid-Nov autumnal scenery. Well worth the visit.
Bus direct to cable car which runs every 15mins. Van drives up to shrines for those needing it. Walk to shrines is pretty, uphill but not difficult.
