Higashi Hongan-ji

photo by lienyuan lee · CC BY 3.0

It opens at 5:50, and at that hour the great hall holds the service, not tourists.

At ten to six in the morning, from March to October, the gate is already open and inside the Goeidō, the founder's hall, the service is under way: you go in barefoot, sit at the back and listen. You pay nothing and it is all on the level. If you arrive on the evening train and leave early, this is the only visit you will manage to fit in.

Head temple of the other branch of the Hongan-ji, five minutes from Kyoto Station. The Goeidō, the founder's hall, is a national Important Cultural Property.

ℹ️ Free admission, all on one level. Open 5:50–17:30 from March to October and 6:20–16:30 from November to February: it is the earliest gate to open in the city. The monks lead guided tours, ⚠️ but the website does not publish their times. From 31 October to 6 December 2026 there is NAKED GARDEN NIGHTS, an evening event held jointly with the Shōsei-en.

🚉 Gojō · 9 min walk

Sources: higashihonganji.or.jp

All series · Open the map