Every time I have been in Kyoto, I took time to travel to Nara, which is a nearby city famous for temples and bowing deer. The deer have learned to bow their heads to get biscuits. However, I was there early in the morning and I guess they were very hungry. Instead of bowing, they were chasing people and ramming them with their antlers. Not so polite!
Walking around Nara Park is peaceful, especially earlier in the day before it gets too crowded. The park has temples, shrines, museums, lakes, gardens and many trees. If you have to choose one temple, then I recommend Tōdai-ji, with its giant Buddha.
Highlights
- Nara park and feeding the bowing deer
- Sanjo-dori for restaurants and cafes
- Tōdai-Ji with the giant bronze Buddha. There is also a museum and you have an option for a combined ticket
- Ukimido Pavilion on the water
- Kofuku-Ji
- Shosoin Treasure House
- The Garden of the Former Daijyo-in Temple
- Nara National Museum
- Kasugataisha Shrine
- Isuien Garden and Neiraku Museum
- Wakakusayama Hill for the view
Before you go
- Nara park is free and deer biscuits are reasonably priced (cash only)
- Be early if you want to experience Nara with less people. Also if you go in the afternoon, the deer may not be hungry for more biscuits
- When the deer are hungry, be careful when you have biscuits. They may head butt you, bite you and/or try to eat your other belongings
- Temples mostly only take cash for entry
- You should remove your shoes when entering temples
- There is a lot of nature and hiking nearby but you’ll need to take public transport or a car
Transport
- From Kyoto, you can take train line D to Nara. There is a local and a rapid train which has a duration difference of about 15 minutes
- At Nara station, Exit station east Sanjo Dori street If you need to use the toilet, there are some downstairs because when people exit the train, the ones near the barriers often have a queue
- From the station, you can walk to Nara Park in about 15 minutes or take a bus
Accommodation
- I was staying nearby in Kyoto, and it is easy to travel to Nara from there. So, I did not stay in Nara and cannot recommend any specific accommodation
- As usual I recommend checking reviews on Google Reviews or using AirBnB
Food
While I was in Nara, I mainly had baked goods and snacks.
I also walked by the famous Nakatanidou mochi shop and bought some mochi with red beans. For tourists, the speedy pounding usually happens about once an hour from 10am. People will wait out front from awhile beforehand to have a good view. However, if you miss the show you can still buy the mochi!
Chami cafe was a popular place for coffee. I bought some delicious Earl Grey butter cookies. However, the chocolate pastry I bought was very tough and not so great.
Maedano donuts are a very natural, cake style and are best eaten fresh. They had some unusual flavours like tea.
Melon de Melon was a bakery specialising in melon pan. This is a round, sweet bun characterized by a crisp crust that resembles a melon. However, the flavours can vary and I had the Earl Grey flavour.
When I visit Japan, I am always curious to see what they have at McDonalds. As a snack, I had a happy meal and a macaron. Not sure I could really tell the difference from other locations, but I had not seen macarons except for in France.
FAQs
Q: Do I need a tour guide?
A: No, it is easy to find the places of interest in the area
Q: Do people speak English?
A: Some people speak English, but many do not. Luckily many signs now have Japanese and English. However, I recommend to have GoogleTranslate ready
Q: Is it a walkable city?
A: Yes, Nara is fairly compact so you can arrive by train and travel around by foot. However, Nara Park is large so if you are not used to a lot of walking, then you may want to use the local buses or taxis
Go to Japan
Go to Country Map