The Rakuto area showcased in this article has bicycle rental shops available near Gion-Shijo Station, Kiyomizu-Gojō Station, Shichijō Station, Higashiyama Station, and other travel hubs. Choose your bicycle type and rental time, and don't forget the rider's insurance!

For this course, we chose a three-speed city cycle, which can be rented for the entire day at 1,000 yen (700 yen for half a day).

Japan has some standard rules and manners for bicycle riding. For instance, you should ride on the left side of the street, go slow or push your bike on pedestrian walkways, and use paid parking areas if your destination doesn't have bicycle parking.

Some places just aren't good for bicycling, like amongst the heavy traffic and narrow walkways on Higashioji-dori. If you're trying to make your way toward Kiyomizu-zaka from Gojo-dori, take extra care not to get caught in traffic.

This becomes all the more important in the cherry blossom or fall foliage seasons, when Kyoto tourists are at their most numerous. Be ready to use a parking area so you can explore the more crowded areas on foot.

The site below has information on Kyoto's rental bicycles, including the locations of authorized rental shops.

East of the Kamogawa River is the Rakuto area. Let's see some of its more famous sightseeing points of interest. We highly recommend exploring Rakuto to newcomers to Kyoto, as many of Kyoto's most popular features are here, like Ginkaku-ji and Heian Jingu around the Sakyo area, or Kiyomizu-dera and Yasaka Jinja in the Higashiyama area. In general, you'll get a heavy dose of authentic "Kyoto" here. Our course will first take us to the bicycle rental shops near Higashiyama Station.

Our first real destination is Philosopher's Walk, about ten minutes away from Higashiyama Station by bicycle. This path, about two kilometers long, connects the Gingkaku-ji and Nanzen-ji temples.

A Kyoto University professor and 20th-century philosopher, Kitaro Nishida, walked it every morning in contemplation, and this is how it was given its name. The trees lining the path and the river bank provide excellent views in all seasons: cherry blossoms in spring, fresh greenery in summer, and autumn colors in fall.

Its 400 cherry blossom trees attract crowds of tourists from around the world every spring. Several temples and shrines can be accessed right off the path, as well as some stylish cafes. Enjoy its combination of Kyoto tradition and modern trends.

Leaving the Philosopher's Walk southward, we head along Shishigadani-dori for three minutes to Eikan-dō Temple. The famous autumn foliage here has inspired many classic poems through Japan's history. In mid-to-late November, fall colors can be seen on around 3,000 trees on the temple grounds. Take note of the unique Buddha statue in the main hall, which looks back over its shoulder.

The spacious temple grounds have plenty of unique features, like its majestic tahōtō pagoda and its view of all of Kyoto, and seven spots with seven mysterious attributions. Outside of the autumn foliage season, you can park your bicycle in their parking lot, so take a moment to explore.

Departing Eikan-dō, we next ride our bike for two minutes to Nanzen-ji. This temple is always popular, perhaps the first or second-most popular spot in Kyoto. It has stately temple halls, cherry blossoms in spring, green Japanese maples in early summer, and autumn foliage, but it's thought to be particularly refreshing in summer, with sounds of water flowing through the channel from Lake Biwa-ko. Its sanmon gate (the main gate at a Zen temple), also known as "Tenkaryu-mon," is one of Japan's tallest, at around 22 meters in height.

At Nanzen-ji, you'll want to see its "Hōjō" building - a national treasure with a chapel and reception hall, and the zen garden said to be created by artist and aristocrat Kobori Enshū around 400 years ago. One thing we really want you to see is the Suirokaku Aqueduct. This brick aqueduct was built around 1890 and is 93 meters long and 4 meters wide. Its masterful arches recall ancient Roman architecture. Nanzen-ji also has a useful parking area for visitors where you can stop your bicycle.

Our trip next brings us to a spot three minutes away from Nanzen-ji, Keage Incline. At 582 meters long, this sloped railway was the longest of its kind when it was created. The railway was originally built to carry boats between waterways with a 36-meter difference in altitude between them. You're free to walk along the tracks, and many tourists come to stroll up or down them. However, bicycles are not allowed on the slope, nor are there any parking spots for them, so you'll have to leave your bike at the closest available parking area.

The Biwako channel, built to bring water from Lake Biwa to Kyoto, is a beautiful path to follow. If we follow it for three minutes, we encounter Heian Jingu. This shrine has sub-shrines to multiple deities, and was built in 1895. The red-lacquered main shrine and its ceremonial compound look very much like what you would find in Kyoto 1200 years ago. The crimson hues of Heian Jingu's main shrine are, in a word, gorgeous. The shrine grounds have plenty of natural beauty and lovely views in all seasons.

Of the shrine's 6.6-hectare grounds, half goes to its garden. This massive lake-centered garden is divided into east-middle-west-south sections, and possesses lovely and unique views for each season. You can park your bicycle here beyond the "temizu-ya" fountain by the Ōten-mon gate.

The approach road leading up to Heian Jingu has Kyoto's largest torii gate at its entrance, 24 meters tall and 18 meters wide. It was completed in 1929 and was registered as a Tangible Cultural Asset in 2002. Make sure not to get too close to the torii if you want to capture the whole thing in a picture.

Now we leave the Sakyo area to head towards Higashiyama. Our first stop in this direction is Nene-no-Michi, a road west of Kōdai-ji Temple that was named after the childhood name of Kōdai-ji's founding nun. The granite tiles that pave the entire street make for a very Kyoto-like atmosphere. Temples, confectioneries, and stylish traditional inns line this street, so we recommend exploring around.

You can stop your bicycle in Kōdai-ji's parking area, just off of Nene-no-Michi. Entrance to Kōdai-ji requires a ticket, but you can return your ticket stub later for a refund. Kōdai-ji was founded by the formal wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was once called "Nene" as previously mentioned. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a warring states period (15-mid 16th century) commander, and this temple was constructed to mourn for his soul.

It features many Important Cultural Assets like an annex called "Kangetsudai," which was moved from Fushimi Castle, the Otamaya storehouse and its precious pottery, decorated with images made of gold and silver leaf sealed in lacquer. This temple is a veritable time capsule from the Azuchi-Momoyama period between 1558 and 1600. The temple grounds are also famous as an excellent spot for cherry blossom and autumn foliage scenery.

The main hall's living quarters border the intricately presented "Hanshintei" zen garden, which is lit up fantastically from spring to fall. There are cherry blossoms in spring that strike a wonderful contrast with the white gravel of the Zen garden.

We end our journey at the World Heritage site and Kyoto-defining temple, Kiyomizu-dera. You'll experience a very Kyoto-like atmosphere approaching it from Kōdai-ji, but there will be crowds and narrow paths, so you'll need to get off your bicycle and push it. Kiyomizu-dera is famous for its "stage," a wooden platform jutting out from the main hall over a cliff. The scenery from this platform is beautiful beyond words. Even greater scenery awaits you if you time your trip right: some 1,500 cherry blossoms in spring or 1,000 Japanese maples in fall.

Temples and monuments designated as national treasures or Important Cultural Assets abound among the 13 hectares of the Otowa-san foothills. Kiyomizu-dera is rich with unique features like the invigorating three-way waterfall, Otowanotaki, and the Zuigudō sub-temple and its pitch-black prayer walk. The bicycle parking area for this location fills up quickly, in which case make use of the Kiyomizu-zaka Parking Lot nearby, run by Kyoto City.

Rakuto has many of Kyoto's most famous tourist destinations. Walking between them might be tough, but on a bicycle, you can get around at your own pace. Some alleys or famous spots are easy to miss if you can't stop to take a look – on a bicycle, you can make such discoveries. So if you're touring the Rakuto area, take the time to visit some of the various temples and shops that can be found away from stations.
Follow traffic safety rules, have good manners, and bicycle safely, and your trip will leave memories for a lifetime.

*This article was produced at the request of Kyoto's municipal government to promote bicycle rules and manners to Kyoto visitors.
*This article reflects information available in November 2022. For the latest information, visit official websites.