We visit Nanzen-ji on every trip to Japan, whether for sakura or momiji. Our spring 2023 trip was no exception. The grounds are so familiar to us now, that we know what we will see around each corner. We were amazed at the scarcity of tourists. The blossoms were just at peak and yet we felt as if we had the place to ourselves. It has never been empty like this before. Since this is the first sakura season since Japan reopened after COVID closures, we feared the grounds would be packed and almost didn't visit this year. We were so glad we decided to walk here from the Okazaki Canal.

This temple anchors one end of the Philosophers Walk, which, combined, makes for a delightful outing. The temples roots as an old Imperial palace are evident in the number of buildings and grandeur of the site. You could easily spend a couple hours here exploring. The walk ip to the Temple is lined with little shops and eateries. A taxi stand I noticed was near the gate. So while my main focus was hopping on the Philosophers Walk, I delighted in spending time here.

This was a great place to visit, there was a service going on in the main building when we got there, so we took some photos and explored further. My husband, my mum (85) and I climbed to gate for a view over the area which was great to see. The steps to get up to the top are very steep and coming back down was worse then going up, however having said that the view was worth it. The only thing is you have to take your shoes off and walking up the stairs in socks can be slippery. The aqueduct was interesting to see and according to our guide this was the first place in Kyoto to have used bricks in construction courtesy of the British. It makes for some lovely photos and there were plenty of people having their photos in the gardens with the fresh new green leaves. A great place to visit on a warm day with the canopy of trees offering much needed shade.

The large grounds, with several buildings, make this an interesting temple to visit. I paid the extra money to visit Hojo Hall and the gardens, and it was worthwhile spending the extra time and money for this. The gardens were the highlight of the temple for me. This temple was surprisingly uncrowded in mid-afternoon. Getting here was quite easy, by taking the subway (Tozai line) to the Keage station. From there it is about a 700 m walk northeast to the entrance to the temple. This temple is also close to the southern end of the Philosopher's walk (it starts about 700 m northeast of the temple), so if you are already at the temple it may be worthwhile to combine this temple with a walk on the Philosopher's Walk for a nice half-day excursion, with possibly the Eikando temple also added since you will walk right past it.