We didn’t want to go there on the first day because of the crowd so we waited until the first good weather day thereafter. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a clear sky to take advantage of the moon, but at least it wasn’t raining. We were able to enjoy the numerous illuminated walkways around the whole district. Hundreds of lanterns placed along the way, inside temples and gardens, and mainly along the famous Bamboo Grove, make it easy to move around. The whole area of the Togetsukyo Bridge is also illuminated as are parts of the trees in the mountain behind. This is a very large scale setup — it is beautiful and it does attract a lot of people.
We arrived quite early, before the 5PM starting hour of the “show” and went directly to the end of the path, the Nisonin Temple, to slowly walk our way back to the Bamboo Grove and the bridge, visiting the beautiful Jojakko-Ji Temple on the way.
Taking photos with a tripod was quite a challenge considering the number of people around, but it was well worth it. This event only lasts for 10 days and only takes place once a year! Highly recommended…
Unryû-In Temple
Arashiyama
Official Website: https://hanatouro.kyoto.travel/e/index.html
From Friday, December 9th to Sunday, December 18th, from 5 PM to 8:30 PM
Entire Togetsukyo Bridge Area Illuminated, plus all Bamboo Forest Walkways Illuminated from Nonomiya-Jinja Shrine to Okouchi Sanso Villa. See the web page above for detail.
Price: free to yen 1,000 depending on the place visited
