Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Arashiyama, Kyoto
Source: ja.kyoto.travel, checked 11 Oct 2026.
This bamboo path is one of the sights Kyoto is best known for. It runs about 400 m from Nonomiya Shrine past Tenryu-ji's north gate to Okochi Sanso, with tended bamboo on both sides, and on a cloudy day it's dim even at noon.
More photos of Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Insider tip
Go as early as you can. Kyoto City streams a live camera of the path, so you can check the crowds before you set off. In 2026 the Arashiyama Tsukitouro light-up fills it with bamboo lanterns from 30 September to 8 November, 18:00 to 21:00 (¥1,500 on the day, free for 12 and under).
What the guides say about Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Stay in Arashiyama if you want the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove at first light. There's no charge and no opening hours on the path, and Tenryu-ji opens at 8:30. Places to stay cluster round Togetsukyo Bridge. Kyoto City's register of licensed places to stay (end of July 2026) lists 39 within a kilometre of it, and 15 of its 16 ryokan and hotels are within 500 m, on both banks. The other 23 hold the simple-lodging licence that guesthouses, hostels and rented houses use. Hanaikada, a hot-spring ryokan, is a minute's walk from the bridge.
4. Arashiyama, as early as you can manage. The bamboo path runs about 400 m past Tenryu-ji's north gate, and it's free. Kyoto City streams a live camera of it, so you can check the crowds before you leave. Tenryu-ji opens at 8:30, and Muso Soseki's pond garden borrows the Arashiyama hills as its backdrop (¥500). Leave by the north gate and you're on the bamboo path. JR Sagano Line rapids reach Saga-Arashiyama in about 11 minutes.
What's on at Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Upcoming events at Arashiyama Bamboo Grove and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Arashiyama Tsukitouro Bamboo Light-up
嵐山月灯路
Time 18:00 to 21:00 (last entry 20:40) Station Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line), 10 min walk
Bamboo lanterns, some made by local residents in workshops, line the Bamboo Grove path and about 1 km of lit walkways. At the gate it's ¥1,500 in cash, online tickets with guaranteed entry cost ¥2,000, and children 12 and under go free.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 Arashiyama Tsukitouro Bamboo Light-up
嵐山月灯路
Time 18:00 to 21:00 (last entry 20:40) Station Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line), 10 min walk
The bamboo grove path is lit every evening, with a 30-metre bamboo corridor hung with 1,500 woven bamboo balls and mist drifting through the grove. In 2026 it was ¥1,500 cash at the ticket booth in the grove or ¥2,000 online, and free for 12 and under.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 Tenryu-ji Hatto Cloud Dragon Painting Autumn Opening
天龍寺 法堂「雲龍図」特別公開
Time 9:00 to 16:30 (last entry 16:20) Station Randen Arashiyama Station (Keifuku), 13 min on foot from JR Saga-Arashiyama
The Hatto hall's Cloud Dragon ceiling painting by Kayama Matazo is open daily in autumn, with a separate ticket from the garden.
Kimon Berlin, CC BY-SA 2.0 Hogon-in Autumn Opening and Night Viewing
宝厳院 秋の特別拝観・夜間特別拝観
Time 9:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:45), night viewing from 13 Nov 17:30 to 20:30 (last entry 20:00) Station Arashiyama (Randen), 3 min walk
This Tenryu-ji sub-temple opens its Shishiku garden, which borrows Arashiyama as a backdrop, round a lion-shaped rock under heavy maples, and for an extra ¥500 you can see Tamura Noriko's paintings in the main hall. From 13 Nov the garden is also lit at night (17:30 to 20:30, ¥1,000).
663highland, CC BY 2.5 Kogen-ji Autumn Special Opening
弘源寺 秋の特別拝観
Time 9:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:45) Station Arashiyama (Randen), 3 min walk
A Tenryu-ji sub-temple opens its dry landscape garden, the Bishamonten statue and paintings by Takeuchi Seiho and his circle. A combined ticket with Hogon-in is ¥1,000.
Smaller local events nearby
Knowing and Enjoying Kyoto Through Paintings Exhibition
On now, until 28 Feb · Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts and Culture
An exhibition of Nihonga that introduces Kyoto sights, festivals, geiko and Kyoto vegetables, with folding screens of Kyoto and wagashi wrapping paper designs.
¥1,000, combined ticket with Fukuda Art Museum ¥2,300 · 10:00 to 17:00 · Map · Source: Saga Arashiyama Bunkakan · 絵で知る、もっと楽しむ京都
Monthly zazen at Tenryu-ji Festival
Sun 8 Nov, Sun 13 Dec, Sun 10 Jan · Yuun-an, Tenryu-ji, Arashiyama
A 9:00 to 10:00 zazen session on the 2nd Sunday of the month needs no booking and welcomes beginners. A talk (Ryumonkai) follows at 10:00. There are no sessions in February, July or August.
Free · Map · Source: Tenryu-ji · 天龍寺坐禅会
Nearby
Around Arashiyama
Bamboo at first light, then the maple temples under Mount Ogura
Arashiyama is on Kyoto's north-western edge, where Togetsukyo Bridge crosses the Oi River with wooded hills right behind it. You'll want the bridge, Tenryu-ji and the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, and so will everyone else. Go early. Then walk north into Sagano. Its temples line the foot of Mount Ogura, and it's quieter at the far end, which Kyoto's official tourism site calls Okusaga.
Arashiyama has 30 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 14 shrines and temples, 4 landmarks, 3 parks and gardens, 2 restaurants, 2 bathhouses, 1 cafe, 1 museum, 1 viewpoint, 1 shop and 1 neighbourhood. Read the Arashiyama guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Arashiyama Bamboo Grove?
- Saga-Tenryuji Susukinobaba-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市右京区嵯峨天龍寺芒ノ馬場町).
- How do I get to Arashiyama Bamboo Grove?
- The nearest station is Arashiyama (Randen). Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is in Arashiyama, Kyoto.
- How much does Arashiyama Bamboo Grove cost?
- Nothing. Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is free to visit.
- How long do you need at Arashiyama Bamboo Grove?
- Plan for 30 min.
- When is the best time to visit Arashiyama Bamboo Grove?
- Early morning.
Stay near Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
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