Ola! I’m Renata from Brazil. I have been in Kyoto for three years!

Kyoto, a popular travel destination in Japan, is ideal for shopping due to its wide array of department stores, underground malls, shopping centers, and local shopping districts.
In this article, we introduce five recommended photo spots and nice Japanese restaurants in Kyoto.

The Shijo Street and Kawaramachi Area

Shijo Street and Kawaramachi are the busiest and most crowded shopping areas in Kyoto. This area is appealing for its array of department stores, shopping districts, and drug stores located all in one place.
It’s also a very convenient location to use as the starting point for your sightseeing adventures. This is due to the many city buses bound for sightseeing spots within the city that pass through this area.

You can take the photos like this!

Here’s restaurants you can eat the best Japanese around Shijo Street.

Daitokuji Sushicho

Kyoto Gion Teppanyaki Plancha Ken

Nishiki Market

Nishiki Market is a place you can’t leave out when visiting Kyoto. Long ago, it was called Kyoto’s Kitchen and is a popular food spot visited by many international visitors even today.
This is an area where you can not only enjoy Kyoto’s diverse food and cuisine, but also have fun just by watching the hustle and bustle at the market stalls.

Nishiki Market
Address: Kyoto, Kyoto, Nakagyo, Nishidaimonjicho 609
Official Website: https://www.kyoto-nishiki.or.jp/ (Japanese)

The market is located between the Karasuma and Kawaramachi Stations of the Hankyu Kyoto Line. Thanks to the shopping street’s colorful roof, visitors can browse without an umbrella on rainy days.

– Three-minute walk from Shijo Station (Kyoto Municipal Subway Karasuma Line)
– Three-minute walk from Karasuma Station (Hankyu Kyoto Line)
– Four-minute walk from Kawaramachi Station (Hankyu Kyoto Line)
– Ten-minute walk from Shijo Station (Keihan Main Line)

Nishikimarket walking tour!

 

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Here’re restaurants around Nishiki Market.

ARCHI COFFEE

 

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Gion-Higashi & Ponto-Cho

Gion is the best-known entertainment quarter in Kyoto. Originally it prospered as the monzencho (*1) of Yasaka Shrine (formerly called Gion-sha). It gradually developed into a town full of restaurants, high-class ryotei (Japanese restaurants), and entertainment facilities.
The extent of what can be called the Gion area is quite large. On the eastern end there is Yasaka Shrine and if you go 500 meters in the completely opposite direction, you’ll come across Kamo River on the western end.
The north and south range is also about 500 meters. On the southern end is Kenninji Temple and the northern end spreads out to around Shinbashidori Avenue.

Kyoto’s Gion has been the foremost entertainment district in Japan since ancient days. By day it bustles with visitors but at night these streets look completely different. Let’s visit Gion at night. The Gion area of Kyoto is the foremost place to get a taste of Japan. With its streets lined with old wooden buildings, Gion is visited not only by domestic tourists but also by visitors from all over the world.

You can take photos like this around Ponto-cho and Gion.

Restaurants around Pontocho:

Pontocho Robin

Pontocho Misogigawa

Takase river

Rows of cherry blossoms can be fascinatingly elegant. Especially, at night and along a river. Kiyamachi Street along the Takase River in downtown Kyoto is one of the city’s most popular spots for cherry blossoms and for fine dining. When I walked down the street along the river, one pale pink petal fluttered lightly down. I looked up at the tree. The branches were waving in the breeze. People who walked under the cherry trees or dined along the river with friends or family were all enjoying this wonderful, magical night. And so was I.

The nearest railway stations are Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae on Subway Tozai Line, Sanjo Keihan or Gion Shijo on Keihan Line, and Kawara-machi on Hankyu Line.

You can take the photos like this around Takase river.

Restaurants around Takase river:

Kyoto Cuisine Irifune / Hotel Okura Kyoto

Who am I? About Renata:

Born in Rio, Brazil. I worked in the inbound tourism industry in Kyoto, writing a blog about travel in Japan.
Hobbies: travel, watching trains, visiting stylish cafes, sweets, collecting seal stamps, watching musicals, taking photos, and others – so many, in fact, that I find it weird myself.