Kifune Shrine shows a different side of Kyoto — still incredibly beautiful, but much quieter and more peaceful. The whole area is filled with greenery and has a very relaxed, calming atmosphere.
The stream running alongside the road up to the shrine adds so much charm to the walk. Even though it was not the autumn foliage season, the maple trees here still had their own special beauty, creating a peaceful and refreshing setting. In some ways, it even reminded me of Minoh Park in Osaka.
If you are tired of the crowded areas of Kyoto, this is a great place to refresh your mind while still experiencing a very distinctive Kyoto atmosphere.
The restaurants built over the stream also look like a wonderful experience. However, from May into early summer, rain can sometimes affect this part of the visit, so it is worth checking the weather before going.
I visited Kifune Shrine as it was all hyped up on social media due to its water omikuji
If you truly want to visit this temple and are in decent shape, I recommend you visit this temple in tandem with Kuramadera
A word of advice. Start from Kurama station and not the Kibune side
Starting from the Kurama side is already quite a hike but starting from the Kibune side is nothing but uphill for a long time
So in my opinion is this temple worth a visit?
Not on its own. But it’s nice if you add with the Kuramadera
Fabulous little shrine. You cannot really get to this without a car, if you took a train to the area , about 45 min outside Kyoto, you would then have to take a local bus. I drive, very narrow roads up hill, sometimes one car at a time. There will be parking down the hill, I recommend you park (¥1,000) for people managers and there are coin parking. I don’t trust those. Note, when driving you will pass an overpass… there is a bus stop but another farther up the hill…Keep driving until it turns narrow and you will see people with parking signs…Park car them about 10-15 min mild walk up the hill has river, small boutique hotels and then the seine in left side part of the hill. If you have a car It is a nice little trip.
One of the most beautiful walks I’ve ever done! I remember going there once, but missing half the shrine, this was because I entered from the kibuneguchi station!! Try start at the Kurama station and follow the shrine walking path towards kifune (on the signs it says Kibune). When arriving there, continue to walk up the road as there’s 3 parts of shrines to kifune!
The walk is beautiful, pleasant, and I loved it!! I recommend it a lot, there’s nice breaks in between the stairs you need to walk up, so it’s not very tiring unlike climbing other mountains.
One of the best shrine to visit. Unique, less or even no tourist. It’s a chain of three shrine and you start with Kifune shrine. The best experience is to pick the fortune letter and dip it in the water and it reveals the reading in it. Very calm, unique and less tourist place. Suggest to plan well to visit this place from Kyoto. You can take a train to Kibune and a short bus ride or a walk of 2km to reach this place even the walk is good if ur up for it. After your done with this shrine you can even visit Kurama onsen which is just one stope from Kibune. You can take a day pass n enjoy the onsen after a long walk
