Saihōji (Kokedera) Temple

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"A tranquil, garden-rich temple famed for its moss-covered grounds and requiring advance reservations to visit, offering a contemplative experience often likened to walking through a living Studio Ghibli scene." - Anne Olivia Bauso Anne Olivia Bauso Anne Olivia Bauso is a travel writer and hotel expert based in New York City. She has written hundreds of hotel reviews, from 5-star Ritz-Carlton properties to treehouse eco-resorts in the jungle. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines

"It’s said that the human eye can see more shades of green than any other color. Put the theory to the test at the Koke-dera, or Moss Temple, a veritable spectrum of jades, mints, artichokes, emeralds, and olives. TheUNESCO World Heritage site, formallyknown as Saihoji, ishome to around 120 types of moss, which carpet the temple ground’s forested floor in ways Akira Kurosawa couldn’t have dreamed up. Reservations to the temple must be made by snail mail months in advance in Japanese. After arrival, visitors are also asked to participate in Koke-Dera’s religious activities by observing kito and shakyo (respectively, the chanting and copying of Buddhist scriptures, called sutra)."