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Imperial Household Agency
Permission to visit the Kyoto Imperial Palace is granted by the Kunaichō - the Imperial Household Agency, which is inside the walled park surrounding the palace, a short walk from Imadegawa Station on the Karasuma line. You have to fill out an application form and show your passport. Children can visit if accompanied by adults more than 20 years of age but are forbidden entry to the other three imperial properties of Katsura Rikyū, Sentō Gosho and Shūgaku-in Rikyū.
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Katsura Rikyū Imperial Villa
Katsura Rikyū, one of Kyoto's imperial properties, is widely considered to be the pinnacle of Japanese traditional architecture and garden design. Set amid an otherwise drab neighbourhood, it is (very literally), an island of incredible beauty and well worth the troublesome application process required to make a visit.
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Nishijin
Nishijin is Kyoto's traditional textile centre, the source of all those dazzling kimono fabrics and obi (kimono sashes) that you see being paraded about town. The area is famous for Nishijin-ori(Nishijin weaving). There are quite a few machiya in this district, so it's a good place simply to wander.
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Nishijin Textile Center
In the heart of the Nishijin textile district, this centre is a good place to observe the weaving of fabrics used in kimono and their ornamental obi. There are also displays of completed fabrics and kimono. The centre holds occasional kimono fashion shows and has a decent shop upstairs where you can buy goods made of Nishijin-ori.
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Ōkōchi-Sansō Villa
This is the lavish estate of Ōkōchi Denjirō, an actor famous for his samurai films. The sprawling stroll gardens may well be the most lovely in all of Kyoto, particularly when you consider the brilliant views eastwards across the city. The house and teahouse are also sublime. Be sure to follow all the trails around the gardens (the standard route is clearly marked). Hold onto the tea ticket they give you when you enter - you'll need it to claim the tea and cake that comes with entry.
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Rakushisha
This building was the hut of Mukai Kyorai, the best-known disciple of illustrious haiku poet Bashō. Legend holds that Kyorai dubbed the house Rakushisha (literally 'House of the Fallen Persimmons') when waking one morning after a storm he found the persimmons he had planned to sell had fallen from the garden's trees and scattered on the ground.
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Sentō Gosho
The Sentō Goshowas originally constructed in 1630 during the reign of Emperor Go-Mizunō as a residence for retired emperors. The palace was repeatedly destroyed by fire and reconstructed; it continued to serve its purpose until a final blaze in 1854, after which it was never rebuilt. Today only two structures, the Seika-tei and Yūshin-tei teahouses, remain. The magnificent gardens, laid out in 1630 by renowned landscape designer Kobori Enshū, are the main attraction.
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Shūgaku-In Rikyū Imperial Villa
Lying at the foot of Hiei-zan, this superb villa was begun in the 1650s by Emperor Go-Mizunō, following his abdication; work was continued by his daughter Akeno-miya after his death in 1680. It was designed as a lavish summer retreat for the imperial family. The gardens here, with their views down over the city of Kyoto, are worth the trouble it takes to visit.
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Sumiya Pleasure House
Shimabara, a district northwest of Kyoto Station, was Kyoto's original pleasure quarters. At its peak during the Edo period (1600-1867) the area flourished, with more than 20 enormous ageya - magnificent banquet halls where artists, writers and statesmen gathered in a 'floating world' ambience of conversation, art and fornication. Geisha were often sent from their okiya (living quarters) to entertain patrons at these restaurant-cum-brothels.
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Tsūen-jaya
The Tsūen-jaya, located just across from the station, is Japan's oldest surviving tea shop and has been in the Tsūen family for more than 830 years. The present building, near Uji-bashi, dates from 1672 and is full of interesting antiques. You can try fresh matcha (powdered green tea) and sweets for around ¥680 .
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