If you’re looking to experience a serene, ancient temple without the overwhelming crowds of central Kyoto, get off the beaten track and make your way to the mountainside Mimurotoji on the outskirts of Uji City. Founded in 770, this sprawling temple complex is home to an elegant three-tiered red pagoda as well as expansive grounds featuring a dry landscape garden, a pond, and some of the region’s most beautiful displays of seasonal flowers.
Mimurotoji looks especially colourful from late spring through early summer, with azaleas blooming in May, followed by hydrangeas in June and lotus flowers in July. In fact, the temple boasts one of the most spectacular hydrangea sights in the Kansai region, with 20,000 plants across 50 varieties growing under tall cedar trees.
For the most awe-inspiring scenery, visit on a Saturday or Sunday between June 13 and June 28, when the garden comes aglow with illuminations after dark from 7pm until 8.30pm.
Getting there: Mimurotoji Temple is 15 minutes’ walk away from Mimuroto Station, which is reachable from Kyoto Station in approximately 35 minutes (or about 70 minutes from Osaka Station).
