Best Temples Spot List

Where the successful Hideyoshi Toyotomi worshipped the three-faced Daikokuten

Two different windows overlooking a garden

A spiritual area surrounding Kobo Daishi’s mausoleum

A temple of the Nichiren sect on Mt. Ogura in Sagano. It is well-known for ”Hyakunin Isshu” (a collection of 100 poems by 100 different poets). In autumn, the nearby mountains awash with brilliant red leaves.

The head temple of the Myoshin-ji Temple school of the Rinzai sect. It is Japan's largest Zen temple, with 46 sub-temples.

Take a stroll through the forest-enveloped grounds

A Zen temple associated with warlord Date Masamune. Visit the main hall, which is a designated national treasure, and the architectural masterpiece that is the Kuri (kitchen building).

A five-story traditional Japanese building, towering in the lush woods, you are sure to find while walking in Ueno Park. It is a National Important Cultural Property.

This is an old temple that is said to have been built in the Kamakura period (1192 to 1333). During the Edo period (1603 to 1868), it became known for the tomi-kuji lottery and was called Edo-santomi (three shrines selling lotteries).

The fierce-eyed Fudo Myo-o (Acala) statue, this Buddhist temple's main object of worship, is really astounding. The backdrop of beautiful red maple leaves is also impressive.

A soto-zen Buddhist temple, better known as Toyokawa Inari, which had been worshiped by both the mighty warriors of each era and common people of Edo-Tokyo. You can make a pilgrimage to the seven lucky gods and enjoy viewing lit paper lanterns.

It is a Buddhist temple in Tsukiji. The exterior of the main worship hall is a stone construction in the ancient Indian style, and the interior of the hall is arranged in the traditional Shinshu-sect temple design and layout.

Famous for the Great Buddha of Kamakura which weighs 121 tonnes, Kotoku-in is a Buddhist temple of the Jodo-shu sect.

Surrounded by nature and visited by many people, Bentendo Temple rises from the center of Shinobazu Pond in Ueno Park.

A soaring five-story pagoda at Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa with magnificent nighttime illumination.

Main priests' residence of Senso-ji complex where the Three Buddha Statues of Amitabha are enshrined. The temple also houses ancestral tablets of Tokugawa Shoguns.

Hozomon Gate houses Nio statues on each side (one called Agyo and the other called Ungyo). The 4.5-meter long giant waraji sandals ward off evil

This is a branch temple of the Naritasan Shinshoji Temple on the land of Kawagoe and is famous for its goma-kito (a ritual of consecrated fire) and the flea market on the 28th of every month.

One of two Daihonzan (head temples) of the Soto school of Zen Buddhism, with modern buildings in the spacious temple grounds. You can practice Zen meditation here.

Legend has it that the temple buildings were built by Emperor Shomu. In addition to the exquisite Kamakura-Period-style Romon Gate (National Treasure) facing the old road, there is a Kamakura-Period-style thirteen-story pagoda (Important Cultural Property) towering at the center of the temple grounds. The temple is also famous for its cosmos flowers.