Temple

Shinsen-en

Nijo, Kyoto

Address
167 Monzen-cho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto 京都市中京区御池通神泉苑町東入る門前町167
Hours
Daily
7:00 to 20:00

The temple office (amulets and goshuin) opens 9:00 to 17:00.

Source: shinsenen.org, checked 11 Oct 2026.

The pond of Shinsen-en garden with its vermilion boat pavilion
Photo: Jason Riedy / Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Shinsen-en is what's left of the imperial garden laid out in 794 beside the Heian palace, a spring-fed pond with a shrine to the dragon king Zennyo Ryuo, now a Toji Shingon temple just south of Nijo Castle. Kukai is said to have prayed for rain on its shore in 824, and the rite held here in 869 to ward off disaster, with 66 halberds, one for each province, grew into the Gion Festival. When Tokugawa Ieyasu built the castle he took the spring to fill his moats, and the garden lost its northern grounds.

Nearest station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line)
Cost Free
Time needed 30 min
Best time Early morning
FreeEarly morning

Insider tip

The temple keeps ducks on the pond, and four ducklings arrived in May 2026. Don't feed them bread, rice or snacks, which the temple says make them ill. Masked Kyogen plays without words are staged on 7 and 8 November in 2026 from 13:00, no booking and by donation. On New Year's Eve at 22:30 the little Eho-sha shrine is turned to face the coming year's lucky direction.

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What's on at Shinsen-en

Upcoming events at Shinsen-en and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.

Performance Free

Shinsen-en Dainenbutsu Kyogen

神泉苑大念佛狂言

7 to 8 Nov Shinsen-en, Nijo

Time 13:00 to about 17:30 Station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line), 1 min walk

The local kyogen society, performing since 1903, puts on five or six silent masked plays a day to gongs, drums and flutes on the stage by Shinsen-en's pond, and the programme is chosen on the day. Tsuchigumo, where the spider throws its threads over the audience, is the favourite. Entry is by donation, the seats are outdoors and you can't take photos during the plays.

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Official site
The pond of Shinsen-en garden with its vermilion boat pavilion Jason Riedy, CC BY 2.0
Festival Goma stick 200 yen

Hitaki-sai Fire Rite at Shinsen-en

神泉苑 御火焚祭

23 Nov Shinsen-en, Nijo

Time From 13:00 Station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line), 5 min walk

A goma rite at the Zoun Benzaiten shrine where wishes written on goma sticks (200 yen each) are burned, with the garden special viewing opening the same day.

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The pond of Shinsen-en garden with its vermilion boat pavilion Jason Riedy, CC BY 2.0
Garden ¥1,300

Nijo Castle Cherry Blossom Festival

二条城桜まつり

19 Mar to 19 Apr (dates to be confirmed) Nijo Castle, Nijo

Time 8:45 to 17:00 (last entry 16:00), light-up 18:00 to 22:00 Station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line), right outside the station

About 300 cherry trees of 50 kinds flower in turn through the festival. By day there's a stamp rally and a fair of Kyoto products, and the evening light-up runs on its own ticket.

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The white corner turret of Nijo Castle above its stone wall and moat Pom', CC BY-SA 2.0
Illumination ¥2,000

Nijo-jo Matsuri and Autumn Light-up

二条城まつり

22 Oct to 5 Dec (dates to be confirmed) Nijo Castle, Nijo

Time Light-up 18:00 to 22:00 (last entry 21:00) Station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line), 1 min walk

Nijo Castle's autumn festival, with a Kyoto specialty goods fair and other events by day, and an evening light-up and art show in the grounds. In 2026 the night ticket was ¥2,000 Monday to Thursday and ¥2,400 Friday to Sunday, separate from day entry, and free for junior high students and under.

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The white corner turret of Nijo Castle above its stone wall and moat Pom', CC BY-SA 2.0
Exhibition On now ¥100

Nijo Castle Wall Painting Original Display: Paintings that Adorned the Throne

二条城障壁画 展示収蔵館 秋期原画公開

10 Sept to 8 Nov Nijo Castle Shoheki-ga Exhibition and Storage Hall, Nijo

Time 9:00 to 16:30 (last entry 16:00) Station Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line), 1 min walk

Original Ninomaru Palace wall paintings from the Ohiroma first and second rooms are shown, focusing on the rooms used for the 1626 imperial visit. Castle admission is charged separately.

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The white corner turret of Nijo Castle above its stone wall and moat Pom', CC BY-SA 2.0

Smaller local events nearby

  • Shieikai Ikebana Exhibition Garden

    24 to 25 Oct · Gallery35 KYOTO-KAMANZA, Kamanza

    An ikebana exhibition by the Shieikai group, shown at Gallery35 KYOTO-KAMANZA on Nijo-dori.

    Free · Map · Source: Ikenobo · 三浦映子社中展 ─心の花─

  • Early Spring Special Viewing of the Shiroshoin at Nijo Castle Exhibition

    24 Dec to 26 Jan (dates to be confirmed) · Nijo Castle

    Visitors entered the Yo-no-ma of the Shiroshoin in the Ninomaru Palace, shown to the public for the first time in 2025-26, with an original wall painting exhibition.

    Map · Source: Nijo Castle (Kyoto City) · 世界遺産 二条城の早春

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Nearby

Nijo Jinya Landmark · 2 min walk Nijo Jinya is a merchant's house just south of Nijo Castle, rebuilt between 1848 and 1854, where a rice dealer and money changer put up feudal lords... Kyo-Yuba Seike Nijo Castle Food · 3 min walk Seike makes its own yuba from Japanese soybeans in Miyama, and this nine-seat counter on Oike-dori near Nijo Castle, its first shop in Kyoto city... Nijo Castle Landmark · 3 min walk Tokugawa Ieyasu built Nijo Castle in 1603 to guard the Imperial Palace and to lodge the shogun on his visits to Kyoto. Coffee Kobo Teramachi Cafe · 5 min walk Coffee Kobo Teramachi roasts its own beans in a hot-air roaster, in a two-storey row house about 110 years old on the Sanjo-kai arcade. Sanjo-kai Shopping Street Shopping · 5 min walk Sanjo-kai is a covered shopping street running about 800 m along Sanjo-dori from Horikawa to Senbon, one of the longest arcades in western Japan. Tron Onsen Inari-yu Sento · 5 min walk Inari-yu is a neighbourhood sento just south of Sanjo-dori, a short walk south of Shinsen-en garden and Nijo Castle.

Around Nijo

The shogun's castle, with the Shinsengumi's Mibu a walk south

Most people come for Nijo Castle, and it's worth its two hours. Tokugawa Ieyasu built it in 1603, and its Ninomaru Palace is the only palace complex still standing inside a Japanese castle. Then walk south, past a pond garden first laid out in 794 and an 800 m covered shopping street, to the temple in Mibu where the Shinsengumi trained.

Nijo has 17 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 5 shrines and temples, 3 landmarks, 3 shops, 2 restaurants, 1 bar, 1 cafe, 1 museum and 1 bathhouse. Read the Nijo guide.

Good to know

What is the address of Shinsen-en?
167 Monzen-cho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市中京区御池通神泉苑町東入る門前町167).
What are the opening hours of Shinsen-en?
Daily 7:00 to 20:00. The temple office (amulets and goshuin) opens 9:00 to 17:00.
How do I get to Shinsen-en?
The nearest station is Nijojo-mae (Tozai Line). Shinsen-en is in Nijo, Kyoto.
How much does Shinsen-en cost?
Nothing. Shinsen-en is free to visit.
How long do you need at Shinsen-en?
Plan for 30 min.
When is the best time to visit Shinsen-en?
Early morning.

Stay near Shinsen-en

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