Kasugataisha Shrine

Kasugataisha Shrine is one of the most serene and peaceful places I’ve visited in Nara. The moment you enter the grounds, you’re surrounded by lush greenery, towering ancient trees, and a natural quietness that feels almost timeless. The pathways lined with moss‑covered lanterns create a beautiful blend of nature and tradition. Not to mention the deers roaming freely along the way. Deep inside this forested area sits the sacred temple, calm and dignified. The environment feels truly spiritual — a place where you can slow down, breathe, and appreciate the harmony between the shrine and its natural surroundings. Walking through the grounds was soothing and refreshing, almost like stepping into a tranquil world far away from the busy city.

Local says that this is considered one of the most sacred sites in all Japan. I heard from one of the tour guides that there is a path leading here that meant for the gods and emperor only. I guess that’s the ancient Nara forest path. Aside from the beautiful Shinto Shrine. You can also see huge tree in the area and lots of beautiful Wisteria (depending on the season of your visit) The place is within the Kasugayama Primeval Forest which is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara. Going to this place is 100% worth it. 👍

This is my favorite temple that I visited Nara. Beautiful temple grounds in the forest, it's so peaceful with lesser crowds. Really beautiful architecture and pretty bright colors in contrast to the vackground of the temple. Definitely eye catching and there are a lot of interesting photo spots. One of my favorite is the dark room filled with lit up lanterns.

Kasuga Taisha Shrine is one of Nara’s most beautiful and atmospheric spiritual sites, offering a peaceful escape into history and nature. Hidden within an ancient forest, the shrine is famous for its thousands of stone and bronze lanterns that line the pathways and hang from its vermilion-colored structures. Visiting feels like stepping into a timeless world, where Shinto tradition, quiet beauty, and sacred woodland all blend into a deeply calming experience. The approach to the shrine, passing through the Nara Park grounds with its gentle wandering deer, is just as memorable as the destination itself. Inside the complex, the bright red buildings contrast beautifully with the green surroundings, creating striking views for both reflection and photography. Whether you visit during the soft light of morning or the golden glow of late afternoon, Kasuga Taisha leaves a lasting impression of serenity, elegance, and spiritual depth.

Decided to make this my first stop since it opens earlier than Todai-ji. Kasuga Taisha covers a pretty huge area, with many different parts aside from its main hall with signs guiding you along. I reached here before the opening hours, you can still explore most of the areas except for the main hall. If I remember correctly the entrance fee for the main hall is 800 yen, it also gives you access to the dark latern room, which I personally think it was just alright. Bought a fortune which comes with a deer figure, but I ended up breaking one ear when I was walking around so please store it with care hehe.

Kasuga Taisha Shrine is a famous Shinto shrine in Nara, Japan, founded in 768 CE and closely associated with the powerful Fujiwara clan. It is best known for its thousands of bronze and stone lanterns, which are lit during special festivals. Located within Nara Park, the shrine is surrounded by a sacred forest and is symbolically protected by the park’s deer, which are considered messengers of the gods. Kasuga Taisha is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an important center of traditional Shinto worship. (source : ChatGPT)

Enormous shrine and a beautiful one. Since I only had a few minutes because I had to go back to my hotel to check-out, I had to be rather quick and I regret not having visited the shrine the day before when I arrived at Nara with more time to spare because it totally deserves a more thorough visit. Also, very photogenic. This coming from a tourist with no particular knowledge about the shrine (again, I would have liked to have more free time here to learn about the place had I known it was this amazing).

My friend's and I visited here after spending some time in the park with the deer. I didn't know this was a unesco world heritage site until we walked in. For us, this was a blind walk in and we stumbled upon gold. Beautiful place. We got to visit all the 12 shrines not just the main one.

Located inside Nara Park, after an 8 minute gentle ascent from the 2nd Torii gate, Kasuga Taisha is an impressive temple. Surrounded by deer peeking out from the many shrines that border the building, the temple itself has a few small charm shops and a prayer/offering area, as well as a booth where you can enter the main temple area for 700 yen. We didn't opt to see the main temple, but appreciated its beauty from afar (mainly because I'm cheap). Personally, I'm not much for sightseeing the many, many temples in Kyoto, so this wasn't for me. But it's worth a walk up to check it out.

Pretty cool Buddhist shrine. Huge collection of old stone lanterns, more deer and seems temple is functional still, saw a wedding going on. Good history spot. If you are into lanterns then it's a 5+ stars, but as a tourist destination I'd give it a 3.

Located in Nara, we biked here from Nara Park. You can still find deers here too. Less than $4 per person to enter. There's a soft serve ice cream shop near the entrance but I don't recall seeing any other food vendors inside so be sure to pack some snacks with you. We spent a good hour here. There's a few spots where you can sit and rest. Lots of lanterns all around. Be sure to visit the one inside one of the rooms so you can see them lit up. It's a pretty magical to see.

Kasuga Taisha is a beautiful shrine in Nara Park. My husband and I visited after Todaiji and really enjoyed it. We were lucky enough to witness a wedding while we were there! When I looked at pictures I was mistakenly under the impression that this temple would be best visited at night, but no, the lit lanterns are inside a dark room that you can walk through ad part of the tour. Tip: bring crackers for the deer that are right outside this temple!

Kasuga Taisha Shrine is Nara's most popular Shinto shrine. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is most known for its stone lanterns... there are over 3000! The stone lanterns are unique and ancient-looking because of the green moss growing on them. They really have character! There also were some beautiful gold hanging lanterns towards the back as we were leaving. Besides the stone lanterns, the wild deer wander freely through the property. Begin your journey by visiting the deer fountain, dipping the cup into the spring water, pouring water on each hand, cleaning the mouth, pouring water on the hands again, then cleansing the cup with the remaining water. When we got to the place of worship, we made a donation, bowed, clapped, and said a prayer. It was a calming, spiritual experience!

Surreal experience. Not handicapped friendly, however. Disclaimer. If you or anyone you are visiting with is disabled, this probably won't be a place you'll enjoy. It's a bit of a trek from the Nara Deer Park up to the point where the thumbnail photo was taken. There's an incline walk and quite a few stairs with relatively few seats. My mum was able to get a seat at the restaurant at the base of the incline while I walked up the hill. Once there, you really enter into a beautiful area full of nature and history. There were a decent number of Chinese tourists congregating around the incline hill, but in the actual shrine itself, there were not too many people. There is a souvenir shop at the bottom of the hill where they sell some goods as well if you want to shop. I really recommend bringing a bottle of water especially if you visit in the summer and some comfy walking shoes. Take your time and explore the area.

x4* Kasuga Taisha Shrine Shinto shrine Walking path flanked by 3000 stone and bronze lanterns Deer are around

Kasuga Taisha: If you happen to be in Nara, you will naturally be drawn to the mammoth Tōdai-ji Temple, the world's largest wooden structure with one of the world's largest bronze Buddhas inside. After all, size matters even in Japan. However, if you get a chance to go to the other side of Nara Park to visit this historic shrine, it would be well worth your time since it's a lot more peaceful in a bucolic setting in front of a mountain (photo: http://bit.ly/1KkLk93). The wild deer make it over here as well though not nearly as many as you would find at Tōdai-ji since they must know must of the crackers will be handed out where the tour buses congregate. Deer know those things (photo: http://bit.ly/1Sw446x). I know because I watched "Bambi". What makes this site unique are all the lanterns donated by worshipers. Not only are there hundreds of bronze ones hanging from the shrine buildings but hundreds of stone ones that line the pathway to the shrine (photo: http://bit.ly/1VAZeEC). It's the same concept as the torii gates at Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Shrine where they look like they go on to infinity. There are many trails that lead to auxiliary shrines although some are cordoned off. The offerings here take the shape of hearts usually reflecting hopeful prayers for marriage, honeymoons and pregnancies (photo: http://bit.ly/1SlUSnh). The inner shrine requires an admission of ￥500. Otherwise it's free. This place is a charmer that just shows size doesn't matter all the time.

It's a packed shrine located near Nara park, a lot people come to pray for their families.

Next to Todaiji is a nice little shrine at the other side of the park. This to me besides the temple and the actual deer park to visit and it'll be a full day of walking around. I wouldn't say it's a must see (Todai-ji is) but it's part of the trip you must complete especially when coming to Nara.

Kasuga-taisha is another one of the be-autiful shrines in Nara city. I LOVE the way it looks when the wisteria is in bloom (April/May) but it is a really nice place to visit any time of year. The lanterns look amazing with snow piled up over them or surrounded by the bright green summer leaves... If you want to see all the lanterns lit up, you need to come in early February (for setsubun) or during the "Tokae" lantern festival in the middle of August. To get here from Nara park, walk through the huge stone lanterns and follow the walkway through the woods...as you get closer to the shrine, you will see more and more lanterns, until you make it to the shrine's entrance which is lined with stone lanterns. It costs ¥500 to enter the shrine, but if you are feeling poor, and don't want to go inside, you can still see all the lanterns at the entrance, so it is still worth wandering up here. This used to be on my jogging route, so I can assure you there is a bit of a hill as you walk towards the shrine from Nara city...but you probably won't notice it unless you are running and out of breath!

My favorite stop in Nara. Although deer are ubiquitous in Nara, here you'll see them backdropped by what appear to be ancient stone structures covered in moss. I highly recommend checking out the room with hundreds/thousands of lit stone lanterns - it's the second-most awe-inspiring temple experience in Japan, the first being the passageway underneath Zuigudo Hall at Kiyomizudera in Kyoto.

I toured a bit in the area and would make this one of my top two places to see if you were short on time. I didn't see another shrine like it across my many visits to shrines in Nara and in Kyoto because of the huge number of lantern holders that were strewn across the entire walk. It was beautiful and easy to get around. There were lots of deer and people but it is a wide walkway so it did not feel crowded. The temple at the top was nice too but I really enjoyed the walk. I would label this a must see.

2000 Stone Lanterns you say? 2000 stone lanterns I repeat. YESSSS 2000 of the best stone lanterns you will ever see in your life. This was quite possibly my favourite destination in Japan. Nara a city filled with deer, roaming the city like the owned the place. (They do) But the lanterns here somewhere deep in the park was just another level. You walk, and walk, and walk, and the lanterns seem endless, but there is something about this place that makes you quiver in awe, I can't say I know the history or why there are all these stone lanterns, but if you are ever in Japan, or Nara, you really cannot miss this place. Deer might appear in between the lanterns, its just an awesome experience. This review is not doing this place justice