Saihōji (Kokedera) Temple

Such a unique experience! Definitely book in advance. The visit takes just over an hour. First, you’ll copy a sutra (prayer) - very neat and meditative experience- while sitting in the main hall, about 15 minutes. Then you can walk around the gardens. We went at 9:30am and it was absolutely beautiful. Over 120 species of moss!

It’s definitely worth visiting if you want to experience peace and tranquility in a beautiful Japanese-style garden. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are quite expensive, costing $55 for two tickets. Each entry allows a maximum of 50 people, and the garden closes at 1 PM. Need about 2 hours to enjoy the garden.

‼️ IF you visit, you MUST make a reservation in advance. The entry fee is 4000 yen per person 😱 Walking around the gardens of this temple is calming and the whole area is very tranquil. The greenery is very picturesque. Entry is limited to ensure your visit is quiet and uncrowded. HOWEVER… The garden is not large. A slow lap around the place will easily take less than 30 minutes. Given this, the entry fee of 4000 yen per person is incredibly steep. I would not recommend putting Saihoji in your Kyoto itinerary, especially if it’s one of your first few visits to the city. There are so many more temples and beautiful experiences Kyoto has to offer that are much more accessible and financially advisable.

This was the best thing we did during our stay in Kyoto. Stunningly beautiful moss gardens and a very powerful activity set during the invitation into the temple. (Don't want to give too much away!) The timed reservation tickets you have to book in advance, and the limit on the number of guests made this experience very peaceful and thought provoking.

The temple was a joy to visit, so calm and unique. It offers the possibility to try your hand at calligraphy, before visiting the gardens. It's different from all the other temples we visited in Kyoto and I highly recommend visiting it.

I'm honestly very happy we made a reservation for this temple. Because the amount of people is limited, you get a much calmer experience here compared to most other popular temples. You start out by copying sutras in the main building and aterwards you are free to explore the beautiful garden. The entrance fee is relatively expensive but is worth it in my opinion.

Recommend visiting with a camera and a clear observant mind. We visited when the sun was out and I feel this might be the best time to see the moss because of the dappled light moving over the mossy floor.

Kyoto is a collection of tourist attractions, no longer shrines or temples, just a rolling swarm of selfies and Instagram shots. Saihoji deals with this well, implementing a limited reservation system. However, an entrance fee 800% that of the other temples in Kyoto returns the feeling of a commercial operation. Furthermore, the garden that is open to the public is really rather disappointing, a few muddy ponds and a tired feeling forested area.