We came here on Dec 10 for the koyo. It's here where we get to witness Kyoto's true beauty. The blazing fall colors of red, yellow, orange, pink and brown made the visit Instagram worthy. Need I say more? Please check out the pictures

I found the actual rock garden to be underwhelming. However, because I came early in the morning, there was little to no crowd - I had the privilege of enjoying the autumn leaves mostly by myself for around an hour. It was absolutely stunning. There is a certain section with a peculiar type of tree (pictured below) covered by maroon and scarlet leaves - that was a one in a million view. It was also very serene to walk around the pond. I really liked it here - 4.5 stars.

This is a beautiful temple to visit. The grounds are very well maintained, and the autumn colors are beautiful, even in December! There are many beautiful views iv water and woods. There is a peaceful rock garden, which is well set up for some time spent in contemplation. The grounds are easily walkable for anyone, our group included a 4 year old, a young adult, and an active senior. We also dined at the vegetarian restaurant, enjoying a “hot pot” family style lunch.

I've been here a few times over the years. The grounds and gardens are magical. The Zen Rock Garden is the main reason most people visit, of course, and it is wonderful. It is ruined slightly by the crowds of noisy people, which stops it being as Zen as it could be, but nevertheless, it is a must-see in Kyoto, in my opinion. Try to visit early or late to avoid said crowds.

If you love a building with philosophical purpose you will love this as much as we did. A n open sided temple with a contemplation platform overlooking a dry zen garden which is raked daily by the monks. Take your thoughts, allow them to settle, then let your mind fly. A special place.

My wife and walked about 20 minutes from the Golden Pavilion to visit the famous rock garden of Ryoanji Temple. We might be in the minority, but we found the rock garden to be extremely underwhelming. It reminded me of some sort of avant-garde art that we just didn’t “get.” We can say that we saw it but we didn’t get much else out of the visit.

An interesting rock garden with 15 rocks, apparently you are supposedly unable to view all 15 rocks at one time due to their positioning in the garden. The gardens are beautifully manicured, and it is a nice peaceful area to spend time strolling around the gardens and lake. Not overly busy.

Lovely temple to visit, very interesting to wander round. You need to take your shoes off in here and I found going upstairs, whilst holding my shoes in a plastic bag, quite difficult. Make sure you take time to go in Roanji Gardens too as they are beautiul.

Moment zen for the whole family, our 2 teenagers appreciated the garden and zen atmosphere there as well. Can easily be combined with the Golden Pavillon, just 30' minutes walk from each other. First do the Golden Pavillon (crowded), then walk to the Ryoanji Temple and enjoy the Zen setting there.

Ryoan-ji Temple is about a mile from Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavilion). We walked, but there is a bus that goes from one temple to the other. Here you will have to remove your shoes, but fear not, you will walk on tatami mats to see the garden and rooms. There is a rock garden of 15 rocks absent of trees. You can also see a tea room and other rooms visible to the visitor. This is quite different than other temples we toured.