Kyoto Arashiyama Bamboo Grove and Tenryu-ji Temple Walking Tour with Lunch

Walk Arashiyama's Bamboo Forest and World Heritage Tenryu-ji with a certified guide, capped with a Michelin-rated Zen vegetarian lunch.

Getting started

Meet your expert guide in Arashiyama and set off on a walking tour through the district. After a brief orientation and review of any dietary requests made in advance, you begin walking toward the Bamboo Forest. The route continues at a steady pace between two temples and one garden, so comfortable shoes and weather-appropriate clothing are important.

What to expect

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest

This iconic Bamboo Forest is one of Kyoto's most photographed walkways, with tall bamboo lining the path on both sides. You experience it on foot as part of a guided walking tour of the Arashiyama area.

Features

• The walking tour of Arashiyama Bamboo Forest is led by a professional, certified guide from MagicalTrip, who explains the area's significance and helps you navigate the crowds.
• Your guide takes photos during the tour so you can focus on walking through the bamboo and enjoying the surroundings.
• As you move through the forest, you start to compare its natural forms with ideas from Japanese garden philosophy that you will explore more deeply later in the day.

Tenryu-ji Temple (World Heritage)

Tenryu-ji Temple is a World Heritage Zen temple in Arashiyama, known for its historic garden and views framed by the surrounding hills. It is one of the two temples included in this experience.

Features

• Inside the Tenryu-ji Temple gardens, you sit down for a premium Michelin-rated lunch at a restaurant on the grounds, with vegetarian and vegan options available when requested in advance.
• The included Michelin-rated temple lunch is based on shojin ryori, a traditional Buddhist vegetarian or vegan course, or a traditional Kyoto lunch if you requested that at least one day before the tour.
• While you explore Tenryu-ji Temple, your expert guide introduces core ideas of Japanese garden philosophy and points out how concepts like natural asymmetry differ from Western symmetry.
• Photos are taken during your time around Tenryu-ji so you have a record of both the World Heritage architecture and the surrounding garden landscape.

Secret temple and villa garden

Away from the main paths, you visit a secret temple with moss gardens and a hillside villa garden that looks out across Kyoto. This is the second temple and the additional garden included in the experience.

Features

• In the secret temple, you walk through moss gardens and then continue up to a hillside villa garden with panoramic views of Kyoto, which contrasts with the enclosed feeling of the Bamboo Forest.
• This stop deepens your introduction to Japanese garden philosophy, as your guide helps you read the garden layout, stone placement, and borrowed scenery that frame the city below.
• Your walking tour includes access to this secret temple and villa garden as part of the itinerary, and more photos are taken here to capture the moss textures and the panoramic city views.

Wrapping up

Your walking tour concludes after the visit to the secret temple and villa garden, leaving you free in Arashiyama to continue exploring independently or make your way back using your preferred transport.