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Would you love to do some day trips while you’re in Kyoto, but you’re unsure which ones are worth sacrificing a day for?
I’ve been in your place: you’ve meticulously planned your trip, saved up a travel fund. And now you want to add on trips to nearby cities that would complement your itinerary just right. But deciding which day trips you should take from Kyoto can lead to decision fatigue.
Because you’re probably wondering: how many days do you need to stay in Kyoto for day trips? Which cities are worth sacrificing a day in Kyoto for? Which ones should you visit in a day that fits your personal travel style? Most importantly: when should you skip day trips all together?
Ah, the paradox of choice.
But I’ve got you covered. I did day trips on our trip to Kyoto in spring and winter. From those experiences, I’ll share practical advice that I wish I knew before tacking on day trips. I’ll cover why Nara, Kobe, or Hiroshima are worth visiting according to your overall trip length. I’ll tell you which city is best for your travel style, cultural highlights to experience, gourmet food to try, and how long it takes to get there so you can plan your day trip smoothly.
You’ll leave ready to add on a day trip that fits your travel theme and your schedule. And you’ll be sure to pick one that makes your Kyoto trip even more meaningful and satisfying.
Short on Time? Best Day Trips from Kyoto at a Glance
Want the highlights up front? Here are the best day trips from Kyoto for first-time travellers based on travel style, best things to do, and train times.
🌿 Day trip: Nara
🚆Train time (from Kyoto): about 45 minutes
✨Best for: Sacred deer, Todai-ji Temple, slower-paced cultural walks, first-time visitors who love temples and traditional Japan
🍷 Day trip: Kobe
🚆Train time (from Kyoto): 45 minutes to 1 hour
✨Best for: Kobe beef, stylish cafés, botanical gardens, city views, and travellers who want a break from temple-heavy sightseeing
🕊 Day trip: Hiroshima
🚆Train time (from Kyoto): 4 to 5 hours on the Shinkansen
✨Best for: Modern Japanese history, reflection, Peace Memorial Park, and travellers with longer itineraries looking for a meaningful experience beyond Kyoto
Keep reading to get all the details on why these are the best day trips for first-time visitors to Kyoto.
How Many Days Should You Stay in Kyoto for Day Trips?
A day trip takes exactly that amount of time: a day at least! Take a day trip, or skip it altogether, depending on how much time you’re spending in Kyoto.
3 days or less: stay focused on Kyoto
Focus on Kyoto if you only have 3 days there. Pick 1 or 2 main temples you want to visit, then pick a cultural experience (like a geisha dance performance) to round out your itinerary.
And definitely have a Kyoto-style kaiseki meal to top off your trip. Make Kyoto your priority and thoroughly enjoy it. Don’t overwhelm your trip by squishing in a day trip in a 3-day itinerary.
5 days in Kyoto: add one enriching day trip
Add one day trip to your Kyoto extravaganza if you’re spending 5 days or less in the city. You’ll want the day trip to feel like a complement; not a rushed add-on. Nara is a good choice for you if you want a sister experience to Kyoto that includes nature walks with sacred deer.
Kobe, on the other hand, offers a foodie-nature escape: think city harbour views, crafts, and garden walks. Kobe might be the better choice if you want a sharper contrast to Kyoto. Avoid going to Hiroshima as your one day trip. You’ll feel rushed because it’s farther to get to and you’ll have less time in the day to enjoy the city.
7 days or more: choose up to two day trips
With 7 days or more to spend in Kyoto, you’ll have more flexibility to add complementary and contrasting day trips to your itinerary. If you want a similar experience to Kyoto, but with the chance to feed free-ranging deer, then consider Nara. For a city-views and local Wagyu beef, go to Kobe. For a day of history and reflection, pick Hiroshima as your day trip.
Nara and Kobe are easier day trips. Hiroshima takes the longest to get to. I’d recommend it as a separate, overnight trip instead so you really get the benefits of exploring the city without rushing.
Best Day Trips from Kyoto for First-Timers
The best day trips from Kyoto are easy to get to and either complement or contrast with Kyoto. The 3 best cities to visit in a day are Nara, Kobe, and Hiroshima.
Nara for Sacred Deer and the Great Buddha Hall
Perfect for a slow and spiritual day where you’re outdoors with free roaming deer. Nara is a great choice if you don’t mind leisurely walks for maximum experience. Stroll into Nara park for deer but watch out! If you feed them, they will follow you.
Some can get aggressive. I recommend admiring deer from a distance, but avoid feeding them. I saw some kid get bucked in the back for teasing a deer he was trying to feed. Neither the kid, nor the deer, were amused.
Then revel at the largest Buddha in the world in Todai-ji temple. Notice the gargantuan wooden sculptures of door gods right at the entrance dwarfing anyone going through. See how their scowling faces are supposed to ward off evil spirits. The sheer size of everything is quite humbling.
For travellers who’d like a leisurely walk with nature side-by-side with deer with a chance to glimpse at a record-shattering Buddha, then this is the day trip you’ll want to make time for.
Kobe for Botanical Gardens, Pottery Cafés, and Kobe Beef
For a city escape with harbour views and a focus on food, Kobe is your city. Take the funicular up to the botanical garden staged with a German-style castle. Spend a whole afternoon clearing your mind with walks through flower gardens and lavender fields.
Make sure to try the lavender ice cream halfway down the hill for a cool treat. Admire the city views from the hill and you’ll feel like you’re in the Swiss mountains.
Kobe, though known for beef, is also popular for pottery. Head to a charming pottery cafe where you can indulge in handmade pancakes and shop for handcrafted pottery. Then head to a kaiseki dinner with a Kobe beef option. For a full foodie experience, give the fatty Wagyu beef a try in a beautiful seasonal keiseki set menu.
For someone who’d like a 3-in-one trip of gourmet dining, nature walks, and city vibes, Kobe is your best choice for a relaxed day trip.
What’s the difference between Wagyu and Kobe beef?
Wagyu is the actual name of the cattle breed. It’s also used to refer to this type of cattle that’s been bred and raised outside of Japan. Kobe beef is a protected term in Japan to distinguish between the type of beef raised locally, and the same type of beef raised outside of Kobe.
And yes, Wagyu cattle get regular massages. That’s how the meat gets its signature white marbling of streaky, white fat.
I find eating wagyu beef is like eating butter on its own: fatty, tasteless, greasy. It’s like the beef taste has been massaged completely out of the beef! If you like butter, then you might like to try Wagyu beef. If you prefer steak to taste like beef, I say skip Wagyu completely.
Hiroshima for History, Reflection, and Modern Japan
If Kyoto is ancient and preserved, Hiroshima is new and modern. Like, 1945 new. Hiroshima is your kind of day trip if you’re looking to learn how Japan thrived after the dropping of the atomic bomb. It’ll be a day of emotional reflection on the horrors of war and recovery.
See the atomic dome preserved since 1945 as a marker of the day. Then tour the Peace Museum where footage and photography showed the destruction right after the bomb was dropped.
The footage was captured by survivors who were just far enough away to survive the bombing. If you’ve read Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, you’ll get to read stories and see photos of the girl Sadako is based on. Touring the exhibit is almost like going on a school field trip where you complement your readings with real-life experiences.
For a break from the emotional, but reflective, experience, get a cappuccino at the cafe right across the bridge. Soak up a bit of the Italian cafe atmosphere to reset. Back at the train station, make sure to stop by the stores and pick up some souvenirs of the maple leaf, a symbol of Hiroshima.
Coming from Canada, seeing the maple leaf and bottles of maple syrup from Quebec for sale was a homey feeling.
You’ll enjoy a day trip to Hiroshima if you enjoy seeing historical artifacts in real life that you’ve only ever read about in books.
Choosing the Right Kyoto Day Trip for Your Travel Style
Nara, Kobe, and Hiroshima are worth visiting as day trips for first-time travellers depending on your travel style
If you want a leisurely day of getting up close and personal with sacred deer in a serene park, head to Nara.
Prefer a delightful city escape with a funicular ride to a flower garden replete with a mock German castle? Then head to Kobe for a walk through botanical gardens and then shop for hand-crafted pottery to complete your day.
Though ancient temples are fascinating, want to get to know how modern Japan is thriving after the atomic bomb of World War II? Take the train to Hiroshima for a day of reflection at the Peace Museum to see live footage and photos preserved from that day. If you’re there in winter, even better: admire the snow-dusted trees and Zen-ness of the city in the crisp cold.
Should You Book a Tour or DIY it?
When booking a tour is worth it
Are you low on energy when it comes to planning more trips during a trip? Then book a tour and have some else take care of transportation and entry tickets. Tours are great for getting you to point A to point B without the hassle. You’ll even save time by skipping long lines with a good tour.
What’s even better is that tour guides are usually knowledgeable. If you love history, you’ll learn lots about the attractions you’re visiting. Definitely book a tour if you want to learn new things about a place, have someone else take care of logistics, and save time by avoiding long line-ups.
When a self-guided day trip is better
If being on someone else’s schedule and itinerary sounds restrictive to you, then doing a self-guided tour is the better choice. This choice works well if you’re comfortable with finding out train routes on your own, researching and picking the places you want to see, and having the freedom to wander where you like.
You might not be able to skip long line ups at popular places that prioritize tour groups, but you get to be spontaneous about the activities you want to do. If you prefer the chance to wander and are comfortable planning logistics, then a
self-guided tour is perfect for you.
Which Kyoto day trip style is right for you?
Book a good tour and let someone else take care of everything for you if you want a break from planning. You’ll enjoy this option if you’d like someone to curate an itinerary for you, plan how to get to places, buy tickets, and give you a history lesson about the places you’re visiting.
If you prefer to be spontaneous, love researching sights on your own, and don’t mind planning your own route, then do a self-guided tour. You’ll love this option if the freedom to wander and explore off the beaten path is your kind of trip.
Do You Need a JR Rail Pass for Kyoto Day Trips?
No, you do not need a JR Rail Pass for day trips if you’re visiting close-by cities. A JR Rail pass is quite the financial commitment. It’s mostly worth it if you’re visiting several cities either in one region or all over Japan. And only if you’re going to take the bullet-train a lot.
For close-by day trips, buying a return ticket is sufficient and more cost-effective. Since the cities I’ve listed (like Nara and Kobe), you’ll mainly take the local train where the tickets cost less than the high-speed trains.
Buy a JR Rail Pass if you’re committed to travelling all over Japan or to several cities in one region. Don’t bother if you’re mainly visiting a couple cities as a day trip. The cost of the pass won’t be worth it for a few, simple day trips.
Choose Kyoto Day Trips That Fit Your Travel Style and Timeline
Avoid cramming everything you might want to see in one trip! You want to have thoughtful experiences that leave you feeling fulfilled rather than overwhelmed.
Picking Nara will give you nature walks and a chance to admire the largest wooden Buddha assembled by hand. Choosing Kobe offers you a city-escape with gourmet dining and nature walks combined. Touring Hiroshima will give you a day of reflection on a major historical event. You’ll also see a modern Japanese city in sharp contrast to ancient Kyoto.
Focus on 1 or 2 meaningful day trips that complement your Kyoto itinerary instead of distorting it. Whichever city you choose, note where you want to stay and visit in my 7-day travel planner so you can stay organized.
And if day trips aren’t your priority this time? Then find out how to make Kyoto the focal point of your Japan trip by choosing experiences you’ll enjoy on a 3 day trip.
Plan how to tackle Kyoto in 1 day if Kyoto is part of a larger Japan trip. Or see how to confidently plan your first trip to Kyoto if you want tips on how to incorporate these day trips into your Kyoto dream trip.
The right Kyoto day trip for you should complement your journey; not become another item to check off a list. And it should leave space for you to make discoveries that later become your favourite travel memories.
