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Nara is by far the most popular day trip from Kyoto – and for good reason. It is easily accessible by train and has just the right amount of sights to fill up your entire day, but not enough to warrant an extended stay in your packed schedule. Without a doubt, Nara’s deer are what makes the city famous but the remarkable shrines and scenery of the area should also be a major draw for visitors. Everything you want to see is in easy walking distance from the train station and a lot of it is free. If you have the JR rail pass, you will be able to access the city at no extra cost to you in under an hour.

DIY Walking Tour of Nara

Walking is the best way to experience Nara. Pretty much everything you want to see is the vast Nara Park, from the deer to all the sights. There are numerous shrines and temples in Nara Park, far more than one can explore in one day and probably more than one would want to see in a day. Temple fatigue can affect even the most enthusiastic traveler, so I have included just the best and most diverse ones to see while you are in Nara. If you have time or interest in a particular sight not on this list, you will likely have time to fit it in and still make it back to Kyoto for dinner. We were able to do everything in 6 hours.

Train to Nara

To find exact train times, station locations, prices, and routes – we used Google Maps pretty exclusively. It was accurate probably 99% of the time (one or two incidences where the time was off by 10 minutes or so). Others have luck with HyperDia, but it requires you to know what station you are at and the name of the station where you want to go. It is supposed to be more accurate and efficient, however. With Google Maps, it knows where you are and you just have to enter in the place you are going to and it’ll give you walking directions to/from the station, along with which trains/metros to take. We found the metro system in Japan very easily navigable with the aid of Google Maps. It even gave us the number of the station exit to leave from to save on walking and which platform you need to be on to catch the train.

For most hotels or starting locations in Kyoto, you will more than likely need to first transfer to Kyoto Station before heading to Nara. We had the JR pass, so we took the JR train on the Nara line to Nara Station. It is a direct route, so you will not need to switch trains. The other option is taking the Kintetsu-Kyoto Line and then transferring to the Kintetsu-Nara Line at Yamato-Saidaiji Station. This option drops you off at Kintetsu-Nara Station, which saves a few minutes in your walk to the park. It is also a little under $1 cheaper if you don’t have the JR rail pass. Both options take around an hour, not counting the time to get to Kyoto station from wherever you are starting from.

You can also visit Nara with a guided bus tour if you want to skip the trains and have a guide to explain the history of the sights you are seeing in Nara.

Kofuku-ji

From the train station, it is just a 1km (15 minutes) walk to the first sight. You will be walking down the wide pedestrian-friendly Sanjo Dori Street. On your way, you might stop for some breakfast or a bubble tea. If you want to skip the walk, there is also a bus that’ll take you to the park.

Kofuku-ji is a multi-building temple complex that was first constructed in 710. Buildings were added, destroyed, and rebuilt throughout its long history. Today the complex includes a five-storied wooden pagoda, a pair of Octagonal Halls, a newly built Central Golden Hall, an Eastern Golden Hall with a large buddha statue, and a National Treasure Museum. The latter three can be entered for a fee. It is a separate ticket for each building, so you can pick and choose which (if any) you’d want to visit. The temple grounds are completely free to walk around. We paid to enter the Central Golden Hall and I’d advise against it. There is very little to see for the price. There are plenty more temples and important religious sights throughout Japan that provide more value.

Walking the grounds and admiring the exteriors definitely makes Kofuku-ji worth the stop. The pagodas are the highlight. Nara is packed with UNESCO World Heritage Sites and this is the first you’ll visit. This will also likely be the first time you will see Nara’s famous deer.

Walk in the park and toward the lawn in front of the Nara National Museum to hang out with the deer. Not only will you find a couple hundred deer but also multiple vendors selling crackers to feed to the deer. Feeding the deer is completely at your own risk. These are wild animals and act as such. They know when you buy crackers, they know if you hide the crackers from them, and they know how to get them. This might mean getting at your pockets or taking your purse from you. Most of the deer are friendly and you likely won’t encounter any problems, but it isn’t unknown for them to bite people. Maybe give them a cracker or two before you try to make them bow to you.

Todai-ji

Nara is a very popular destination. Kofuku-ji typically has a decent amount of people but it is still easy to get around and retains its peacefulness. Todai-ji, on the other hand, is often packed. This is especially true if you visit Japan during the peak season as we did. There will be countless tour bus groups and deer to walk behind or weave around. Before entering the temple, there are vendors here selling crackers for the deer. You will probably have a better experience interacting with the deer in front of the Nara National Museum where there is more space and fewer people.

Nandaimon Gate

As you walk to the main temple of Todai-Ji, you will pass under the Nandaimon Gate. It is also called the Great South Gate. It is an impressive wooden gate that dates to 1203. It is the best entrance gates to a temple we saw throughout Japan, which is very fitting for the grandeur of the Great Hall of the Buddha. On the interior of the gate, on either side are two large statues of Kongorikishi, a fierce-looking god.

Great Hall of Buddha

This the must-see temple in Nara. You can skip the rest or just view the exteriors, but The Great Buddha statue is something to behold. At the time of publication, it costs 600 yen to enter. There will likely be a bit of line to buy tickets due to the sheer amount of people visiting, but it goes quickly and efficiently. You can get a combination ticket if you want to visit the museum that accompanies it. We skipped the museum and just visited the temple itself.

Before you reach the great hall, stop to see the large octagonal lantern on the walk up to the Buddha. This lantern dates to the original founding of the temple during the Nara period (710-784) and is considered a national treasure. Look closely at the intricate carvings on the doors of the lantern. A lot of people walk right past the lantern without realizing its significance. The temple structure itself was burnt down a couple of times and the recreation still present today was constructed in 1709. The Buddha has also been recast a couple of times due to damage.

The massive Great Hall of the Buddha of Todai-Ji Temple

It is hard to get an accurate understanding of just how massive the Buddha is until you see it for yourself. It is also called the Daibutsu, which is the term used for a giant depiction of Buddha. This giant bronze Buddha is simply awe-inspiring for its scale. Do you see the nostrils on the Buddha? Children and even some grown adults can easily pass through those nostrils. Off to the side of the Buddha is a wooden pillar with an opening the size of the nostrils to see if you can too. There are a couple other statues to the side and back of the Buddha with information plaques in English.

On your way out of the temple, there are vendors selling souvenirs and small knick-knacks.

Nigatsu-do

Nigatsu-do is still apart of the large Todai-Ji temple complex. It is a short walk from the Great Hall of Buddha and on the way, you will likely pass a few other small shrines and structures. Nigatsu-do is completely free to visit. Actually it is even better than free – you can get a cup of green tea in the little tea room to the side of the temple. There are quite a lot of stairs to get up, but it is completely worth it for the views. There are a lot fewer crowds than the main Todai-Ji complex so you really take in the beauty of this area from the large wooden balcony.

Lunch

There are a few places within the park along your walk to Kasuga-Taisha to stop and enjoy a quick lunch. I’d highly recommend Mizuya Chaya for some great Udon. The staff speaks English and the food is ready almost as soon as you sit down. It is an inexpensive meal in a gorgeous location. It has multiple vegetarian options as well. We managed to perfectly time our lunch there with a short rainstorm. We stayed for a bit to eat, rest our feet, and wait out the bad weather. There are a few other cafes and restaurants in the park if you want to have something other than Udon.

Kasuga-taisha

The last place to check out in Nara Park is Kasuga-taisha shrine. This shinto shrine is famous for the many bronze lanterns that decorate the interior. There are also gorgeous moss-covered stone lanterns that lead up to the shrine. Like Kofuku-ji, the grounds are free to explore but to visit inside the shrines costs 500 yen. If you want a closer look at the lanterns then the entry fee is worthwhile. There is a dark mirrored room to let you really see the beauty of some of the lit-up lanterns. However, you can see a lot from the outside if you are considering skipping the interior.

After Kasuga-Taisha, head back toward the city and out of the park. You can say some final goodbyes to the deer or walk past Sarusawanoike Pond.

Higashimuki Shopping Street

If you want to do some shopping, Higashimuki is the street to visit. It is a completely covered street and has numerous small shops to check out. The shops themselves range in price and quality so you can find whatever you are looking for. If you are not in the mood for shopping, you can skip it. There are numerous other covered shopping streets throughout Japan when you are in the mood for souvenirs.

Depending on the time, you can visit one of the many restaurants in the area for a meal or head back to Kyoto to enjoy dinner. There are some great ice cream vendors to get your matcha ice cream fix, as well. You can take the same train/metro route back into Kyoto.