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Edited by: Declan Murphy
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"Evening began to fall. "The Gion music will soon begin," said the elder daughter. "I can't imagine living any place where I would be out of earshot of the Gion music in summer." That rules out the rest of the world, and even most of Kyoto, other than a few square blocks."
Alex Kerr, Lost Japan

Introduction

On both sides of the Kamogawa river, between the area contained by Sanjo-dori (3rd street) and Shijo-dori (4th street) is Kyoto's traditional pleasure quarter. Kabuki had its start here, and there have been ochaya (teahouses) and Geisha here since the late 1500's. The narrow laneways of Pontocho offer many bars and riverside dining in the summer, while further west - the area bounded by Karasuma-dori (west), Oike-dori (north), the river (east) and Shijo-dori (south) - is the shopper's paradise with department stores and specialty shops to keep any avid consumer busy. Yasaka Shrine, popularly known as Gion-san, is on the east side. It is here that the Gion festival begins each July, and it is also the center for New Year revelry each December 31st.

Yasaka (Gion) Shrine | Gion Festival | Maruyama park | Pleasure quarters | Pontocho | Teramachi | Shijo Street Shopping

Shijo Street Shopping

The area from the river west to Karasuma-dori, roughly bordered by Shijo-dori (4th Street) and Oike-dori is where Kyoto's main shopping streets are located. In addition to the great department stores and the enormous number of small shops and specialty stores, there are major arcades. The arcades are covered roads from which cars and vehicles are banned - making it easy to walk and window shop regardless of the weather. The covered arcades are on Kyogoku-dori and Shinkyogoku-dori between Shijo-dori and Sanjo-dori (4th and 3rd Streets) as well as in Teramachi-dori between Shijo-dori and Oike-dori.

This area also has excellent public transport (buses and subway), so its also a good transit spot. You can buy just about everything (from a wide range of budgets). Naturally it is a great place for doing a bit of people watching, just observing the shoppers of Kyoto. Plus there are also many movie theaters, restaurants (and in the narrow laneways closest to Pontocho - there is a discreet red light district).

Yasaka (Gion) Shrine | Gion Festival | Maruyama park | Pleasure quarters | Pontocho | Teramachi | Shijo Street Shopping



How to get to Gion?

1: From Kyoto Station:

Take the XXXX subway line to XXXX Station or take the #206 or #207 bus to the Gion bus stop.

2: From Okazaki:

Take the Kaisoku (Express) from JR Okazaki Station to JR Mikawa Anjo (10 minutes) or JR Nagoya Station (28 minutes). Change to a west bound Kodama shinkansen. Then take the XXXX subway line to Shijo Station. As of writing, the tickets cost XXXX yen one way and the journey takes about XXXX minutes not including the train change.

Tours - The Japan Discovery Tours visits the Shijo Shopping district
Click here for more information regarding when Discovery visits this destination.

Photographs and contributions

Do you have good photographs or a story to share about Kyoto?   Please share it with us.

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Disclaimer and Request:

Opening hours, prices, booking procedures, schedules etc are subject to changes beyond our control. This site is just a guide, and we advise that you always check and confirm in advance. Suggestions, additions and correction of errors are always welcome. Please contact us.

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