Gion

Gion　祇園

Overview

Gion is an area of Kyoto that all visitors gravitate to. In many places it is beautiful, you may spot a Geisha, and it is close to many other sites. This ride will take you to Minamiza kabuki theater, Kaburenjo Theater, the gaudy side of Gion north of Shijo Dori, Minami Shirakawa - one of the best preserved streets in Kyoto - and Antique Row.

Minamiza kabuki theater is located on the corner of Shijo - Kawabata. It is the main kabuki theatre in Kyoto, and was founded in 1610 C.E. The Kaburenjo Theater hosts the Miyako Odori ("Cherry Blossom Dance") presentation every April. For about 3,000 yen, you can watch a large group of geisha perform on the shamisen. Shirokawa Dori is a beautiful telephone pole- and telephone wire-free street with gorgeous wooden buildings and a small graceful river. Furumonzen is a narrow street filled with antique shops. 

Getting to the Starting Point

If you are coming from City Hall, ride due east on Oike across the bridge that spans the Kamo River. Once you cross the river, stay on the sidewalk on the river side. Turn south (right), and ride until you get to Shijo. About 10 minutes. This is the easy, direct way. The map below takes you through several beautiful streets - and some not so beautiful - before you get to Minami-za and Hanamikoji Dori.

On your left is Gion. The most striking building is Minami-za, the ornate kabuki theater, which should be more or less in front of you.

Hanamikoji Dori, Gion

Side street, Gion

Directions (Map Below)

Unless it is early in the morning, your best bet may be to get off and push your bike at this point.

Walk into Gion on the Minamiza side of the street. At Hanamikoji Dori, turn right. This is the heart of the Gion found in the tourist books. Wooden buildings - tea houses and restaurants - line both sides of the street. Wander the back streets as well to escape the crowds. The area is very preserved and redolent of an earlier period. If possible, go very early in the morning when the rest of the world is asleep. The light is lovely.

At the end of the Hanamikoji street, on the left, is Gion Kaburenjo Theater. Following the move by the Emperor to Tokyo in the 19th century, Kyoto feared being left behind. As a result, then governor Hasegawa went on a building spree. As part of the revitalization effort, Kaburenjo Theater was constructed. In 1872 the first Miyako Odori was held, and the following year the Theater opened. The performance has been held every spring since.

Beyond the theater, at the end of the street, is Kenninji Temple. It is quiet, open, and serene. Kenninji was the first zen temple to open in Japan. It was founded in 1202 and begun by the priest Eisai. Many of the current buildings date from the 18th century as fire destroyed the complex during the Onin War (1467 - 1477)..

Now it is time for the gaudy side of Gion. Head back towards Shijo Dori. Go across and into the hostess bar, snack bar, tacky side of Gion. Before the bars open in the evening, it is strangely quiet. You can ride and gawk freely here away from the hordes.

You have to pass through this to get to Minami Shirakawa Dori, one of the most sublime streets in Kyoto. It is one of but a handful of streets in Kyoto that has both a traditional look and no telephone poles or wires.

From there you can ride over to Furumonzen Dori, where there are many antique shops. Ukiyoe, byobu, obi, kimono, Noh masks, and more can be had - for a price - along Furumonzen.

Total Riding Time

One to two hours of slow, on and off, riding.

Furumonzen, Gion

Maiko

Video

Gion Video

To watch, click here.

More Information

Kaburenjo Theater

On Hanami-koji, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto
075 561 1115

Entrance Fee: depends on performance

Minami-za Theater

East side, Shijo-ohashi-bridge, Higashiyama-ku , Kyoto
075 561 1155

Entrance Fee: depends on performance

Yasaka Shrine

625 Kitagawa, Gionmachi, Higashiyama, Kyoto
075 561 6155

Donguri Yu (public bath)

075 561 3616

Entrance Fee: 410 yen (closed Fridays)

Map

Gion Route

If the map does not load when using Internet Explorer (IE) on a Windows PC, please hold down the "Control" key and refresh the page