Tōfuku-Ji

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  • Address
    Honmachi 15-778, Higashiyama-ku
  • Phone
    561 0087
  • Transport
    underground rail: 15min walk from Tōfuku-ji Station (local train only stop), Keihan line; 15min walk from Tōfuku-ji Station (localonly stop), Keihan line/1min walk from Tōfuku-ji bus stop, bus 202, 207 or 208 from Kyoto Station/1min walk from Tōfuku-jistop,202, 207 or 208 from Kyoto Station
bus: 1min walk from Tōfuku-ji bus stop, bus 202, 207 or 208 from Kyoto Station

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Lonely Planet review

Tōfuku-ji stands at the heart of a world of Zen temples and subtemples. It's one of our favourite temples in Kyoto and it's usually quite peaceful, except in the November autumn foliage season, when it becomes so crowded that we give it a miss.

Founded in 1236 by the priest Enni, Tōfuku-ji belongs to the Rinzai school. Since this temple was intended to compete with Tōdai-ji and Kōfuku-ji in Nara, it was given a name combining characters in each of these.

This impressive temple complex is considered one of the five main Zen temples in Kyoto. The huge San-mon gate is the oldest Zen main gate in Japan. The Hōjō (Garden Hall) was reconstructed in 1890. The gardens, laid out in 1938, are well worth a visit. The northern garden has stones and moss neatly arranged in a chequerboard pattern.