How NOT to Travel Kyoto, Japan ⛩🎎

In mid-March, me and my younger brother set out on a trip of a lifetime to explore Japan. From Tokyo, we took the shinkansen (bullet train) to Kyoto – one of the most popular sights in the whole of Japan. We expected it would be busy on the charming streets of the old town geisha district in Gion and all around the most popular sights but nothing can prepare you for the overcrowded landmarks. For someone who loves to take time to admire the architecture and details of everyday life, this was quite unenjoyable.

We quickly learned that Kyoto has so much more to offer than the hyped Instagrammable locations, sometimes just a corner away from the popular sights. We got totally lost in the narrow streets, exploring Kyoto at a much slower pace and really taking in the culture.

There is definitely more than one way to travel and explore Kyoto. You can follow the crowd and wait in line to take those photos or you can venture away and find your own little gems – there were plentiful! In this video, I share some of the tourist traps, my recommendations in Kyoto and my preferred method to really embrace this incredible city.

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Timestamps
0:00 Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto
0:47 Kyoto’s first impressions
8:59 How NOT to travel Kyoto
18:07 Avoid tourist traps in Kyoto
22:40 Kyoto recommendations

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🎥 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXwk1_gRJwM&t=1s&ab_channel=Where%60stheParty%3F

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after our initial three nights in Tokyo we 
headed off to Kyoto we took the bullet train  
the shinkansen which is a good experience 
on its own honestly the most challenging  
thing is navigating the stations that 
can be very busy at times other than  
that the shinkansen is very comfortable and 
obviously very fast but I wouldn’t say it was  
mindblowing experience or anything out of 
the usual we did enjoy it and it gets you  
fast from A to B but it’s also really 
expensive a 2hour trip to Kyo was about
€90 Kyoto itself is one of those destinations that 
you read and hear so much about that get really  
really hyped so I had probably the highest 
expectations before visiting and I have to  
say even though it was raining and it was really 
really cold when we arrived there I was initially  
very very excited and embracing everything 
kich welcome from welcome welcome hello from
Kyo after we checked in to our hotel we went 
straight to the busiest Market that we’ve ever  
been to and we just went into like full-on 
let’s explore Kyoto mode now I don’t know if  
it was because it was Sunday afternoon 
but the market was so busy it was very  
hard to move it was very hard to actually 
see what the Wenders were selling and to  
actually stop and like try stuff so initially 
we actually didn’t try anything we just like  
strolled along and said okay let’s just find 
a place where we can sit down recuperate get  
some beers and just chill because everything 
seemed so so hectic I was really overwhelmed
[Music] Stakes so after checking all the vendors 
and seeing what they have in store for us later  
we found the Craft brewery and just ordered some 
beers now one thing that you have to know about  
beers in Japan is that they’re actually really 
expensive like all alcohol is really expensive  
in Japan we were really surprised we were 
really not expecting that but I think it’s  
because well I don’t know either their taxes are 
like really high or maybe because Japanese people  
don’t really have the end to like break down the 
alcohol so maybe because they cannot drink a lot  
the alcohol is really expensive anyways the 
beers were like sometimes ranging from like5  
to €10 per beer they were usually craft but 
still like really really expensive [Music]  
we continued our exploration around the market 
area and yeah my brother he’s a anime manga fan  
so every time that we saw any like shop that 
were selling any figurines or like any merch  
we had to stop um it was fun for me for about 
2 minutes and then I usually just went on and  
like found something that I am interested in but 
yeah if you’re into that kind of stuff of course  
course Japan is literally like a Dreamland 
you can get everything my brother was like  
yeah he was thrilled because he found 
like some really good stuff for really
cheap we soon got very hungry so we found a very 
cheap Yaki Niko restaurant very close by and we  
said okay let’s give it a shot honestly at the 
time like we were so excited because it was just  
super fun to grill our own meat and the meat 
was so so tasty honestly I don’t know when was  
the last time that I ate meat that was tasting so 
good I’m not a meat person but this was just like  
so yum and it was just so fun we really enjoyed 
oursel and at the time we knew it was good but  
now looking back like after the whole trip in 
Japan this was honestly one of the best meal  
that we had in the whole trip and guys 
the food in Japan is so freaking amazing  
like you can literally go to the most 
lowkey most underrated place and the  
food is still going to be mindblowing so 
this was so so yummy he’s like in seven
heaven I honestly cannot praise it enough 
it’s very good with our stomachs full we  
definitely needed a stroll so we just kind of 
continued to explore the area in the central
Kyoto if there’s a good place to shop for souvenir 
or kimonos especially then that’s definitely Kyoto  
I was so thrilled because I’m obsessed with 
kimonos so for me one of the main goals of  
going to Japan plan was to buy some kimonos and 
I definitely had a big big selection [Music] here  
we didn’t really have a clear plan of where we 
wanted to go or what we wanted to see I kind of  
just wanted to explore the area so we kept walking 
North from the central Kyoto and we stumbled upon  
this really cool area really cool neighborhood 
that honestly now I don’t even know where we were  
walking but it was kind of like a mix of old 
and new there was a lot of really nice streets  
there was a lot of old buildings but mixed with 
the new a lot of like hidden temples and things  
like that a lot of people walking around in kimono 
taking pictures but not really tourist it didn’t  
seem like there was a lot of people so I don’t 
know if it was because of the weather or because  
it was Sunday afternoon but at that initial 
point I really thought that oh my God like you  
is nice like there’s not many people you can just 
freely walk around explore you can see everything  
very clearly you can stop and take pictures 
and just enjoy yourself it seemed very nice  
very lovely that’s until the next day when you’ll 
see what I’m talking [Music] about we did stumble  
upon some busier areas where there was more people 
more Instagram moment kind of situation more girls  
dressed in kimonos but I didn’t really like put 
the two and two together like I wasn’t sure where  
we were walking so we just like passed by and 
then found this like really cool Temple Place  
very chill again not many people so I really 
enjoyed myself every time we stumbled upon a  
park or a temple area where it wasn’t too busy 
it just felt like a moment to take a breather  
because everything else is so busy I personally 
went on this trip as a journalist to write an  
article so beforehand I got collaborations with 
hotels and restaurants to feature them in this  
article what this means is that I got restaurants 
accommodation and sometimes attractions for free  
in this case a hotel wanted to treat us to try 
some sake was very nice because we actually  
haven’t tried real sake before so this was very 
special but for me the most special moment in  
this evening was actually just looking out to 
the street because it seemed such a movie likee  
scene everything was kind of surreal and I just 
really took in the moment to realize where I am
we woke up at 6:00 in the morning the 
next day because of jetl so I was like  
okay we’re up let’s go and explore Kyoto 
let’s go to some of the most touristy places  
the muses the most instagrammable 
stuff which is you know the Tory
Gates very naively we thought we’re gonna be not 
alone but at least it’s not going to be busy well  
surprise surprise probably every other tourist in 
Kyoto that was jet laack woke up at 6:00 a.m. and  
went to see the Tor Gates or the bamboo forest 
we didn’t even bother going to the bamboo forest  
because as you’re going to see the Tory Gates 
were extremely busy I cannot even imagine how  
it is during the day but it was still very very 
pretty I really enjoyed it but I think these kind  
of locations are just they hit you differently 
when you have the peace calm the serenity of  
the place that you can just sit there and meditate 
and be with your own thoughts and like really soak  
it in and not be surrounded by so many people 
who are you know chitty chatty taking pictures  
I completely understand that I’m also contributing 
to this problem but in all honesty this was one of  
the very few touristy places that we actually 
ended up visiting because this experience has  
taught me that there’s so much more to Kyoto than 
just the really famous sites and the really famous  
pictures that you see on Instagram because 
yeah at the end I can say that this was quite  
underwhelming because of the whole essence of the 
place was gone because it was busy because it is  
supposed to be this Zen quiet calm place and it 
was everything but how do you rate the to gate  
pretty very pretty pretty out of 10 pretty out of 
10 I guess what I’m trying to say is that when you  
you are traveling no matter what the destination 
no matter what the location is of course there’s  
always going to be these locations that are like 
super famous and super touristy all the sites  
and all the buildings and temples and pagodas and 
stuff that everybody wants to see because they’re  
just like incredible pieces of architecture 
incredible pieces of art but destinations are  
so much more than that no matter where you go in 
the world the places where you visit are there’s  
someone’s home there’s you know there’s so much 
other things going on there’s the whole culture  
behind it and the whole history and everything and 
of course it’s amazing to see those places but for  
me it has always been more interesting to see like 
the behind the scenes if I can call it that like  
to go and visit the places where the locals are 
having coffee to go and see the back alleys like  
the really dodgy places the very resting and 
like these barely standing together buildings  
I have to admit that I have kind of a soft spot 
for buildings that are kind of like ready to be  
torn down some of my favorite buildings in the 
world are the ones that yeah they’re so old and  
like barely standing together they’re not the 
golden temples and these fancy modern buildings  
or anything like that there are like really really 
kind of like humbling places where you can really  
see how time has influenced and changed and aged 
them that combined with nature and nature taking  
its course and how nature affects everything 
I think what I found very interesting in Japan  
and very and very intrig inging is just how 
they combine and fuse the old and the new the  
the modern the nature versus manb build it the 
whole play and the whole Harmony is completely  
on another level than what we have in the west and 
you can always find neighborhoods of like really  
fancy modern buildings and then just around the 
corner is going to be this like really old Temple  
and no matter where you go there’s always going 
to be a park somewhere nearby where people can  
just kind of step away from the hustle and bustle 
of Tokyo or any other City they are very busy but  
I still feel that people no matter how busy the 
cities may seem they have a different pace like  
I lived in Paris and in London and people here 
just seem more calm like more Serene everything  
is just taken at a slower Pace more considerate 
everyone is like waiting patiently standing in  
a queue like no one is rushing running anywhere 
it’s just a different kind of pace of living and  
I really really appreciated that throughout 
the whole trip and it slowed me down for
[Applause] [Music] sure one of the main missions 
that we had for Japan was to try as many different  
food items as possible we tried everything 
from like the most basic Mochi to street food  
to Micheline star Chef dining everything you can 
possibly imagine because let me tell you the food  
is so different than what we have in the west so 
it’s a Once in a-lifetime kind of opportunity so  
I just want to try as many different things and 
I would say 90% of the time I was completely  
blown away by The Taste and presentation of their 
[Music] food we did go to explore the gion area  
in Kyoto which is very famous it’s the gisha 
district and it’s famous for a reason it is very  
very beautiful but it is also very very busy now I 
was prepared for this I saw the pictures I saw how  
busy it gets and this is cherry blossom season 
mind you the most busiest season everybody in  
Japan is traveling and everybody out of Japan is 
traveling to Japan to see the Cherry BL blossoms  
spoiler there were no shy blossoms but I was still 
quite overwhelmed by how overcrowded it is I’m  
the kind of person who loves to stroll around and 
just observe people watch admire the architecture  
admire the crafts the Traditions the little 
shops I love to take my time and just observe are
overwhelming so this area was definitely the kind 
of place that I didn’t enjoy and I guess it was  
a little bit disappointing because this is the 
main attraction in Kyoto and it was completely  
unenjoyable it was just completely overcrowded 
and if I have the right information they actually  
just restricted tourists from this area if my 
sources are correct then the visitors are now  
banned from visiting this area which I completely 
understand because I cannot imagine living there  
it’s just a river of people endless flow going up 
and down you cannot really stop to take pictures  
or anything it’s just it’s not livable it’s not 
enjoyable I maybe we spent 10 minutes there and  
then we ventured out to find other areas which 
were just as pretty and so much more enjoyable  
and at this point I have to mention that it isn’t 
what you think it is most of the tourists that  
come to this place are actually domestic tourists 
they’re Japanese and they’re all coming there for  
I don’t know what reason but they’re all taking 
pictures and yeah it’s just a lot of them there  
only really a small percentage of tourists 
mostly from China Taiwan and then from the  
West that come there but nonetheless it’s it loses 
its charm it loses its initial Beauty and what it  
is representing and what it was supposed to be so 
I just want to warn you if you are going to Kyoto  
and you have this idea in your head of visiting 
gion and taking all these amazing instagrammable  
pictures of course you can do that I think if 
you wake up at 4:00 a.m. but in the middle of  
the day it looks completely overcrowded kichwa 
from Kyoto we are just walking down the street  
common theme here in Kyoto closed everything’s 
closed trying to find some coffee actually on  
our last on our second and last day here this is 
the first time that I’m actually tuning in because  
guess what I didn’t feel like it the streets 
are so overcrowded with tourists that it’s been  
quite overwhelming uh but finally after being 
in Japan for like what 5 six days I’m starting  
to feel a little bit better I think the jetl is 
easing and uh yeah just feel a little bit more  
up to Adventure and exploring today which 
is good but as you see kyota is not only  
the traditional buildings and temples and pagodas 
but it’s just a lot of blocks of buildings where  
people live and uh I actually prefer this part 
to the over L tourist neighborhoods so yeah the  
plan now is coffee shopping for kimonos and 
then train to Osaka but just wanted to show  
you these cool cars everything here is boxy 
don’t know why but they just like it that way
okay how do you like k everything’s 
boxy everything’s boxy the houses  
the the land they have can build yeah I 
know how do you like Kyoto from 1 to 10
UHA AA is my kind of place who AK Akihabara 
Akihabara yeah that’s my kind of place and  
Koto not to much the long shops were nice 
the The Long Street now with like the street  
vendors was the one the himashi or something 
like that market the market is yeah one thank
you quality food
market we still have halfway to goish
[Music] our last day in Kyoto was actually by 
far my favorite so far I felt like my energies  
were back and my mood definitely improved we 
didn’t really do anything special we were just  
kind of wandering around the neighborhoods and 
randomly stumbling upon cool stuff cool shops  
cool cafes that now I don’t even remember 
where exactly we were sorry about that  
but I guess sometimes you just kind of have to 
get lost to find the cool places at least in my  
experience it’s like that we did find this 
amazing amazing kimono shop in the Central  
Market area they were selling kimonos by the 
grams it was 1 Yen per 1 gam of weight of  
kimonos and most kimonos they weighed somewhere 
between like 700 g and like 1 kilog so we got  
some amazing looking kimonos they are secondhand 
by the way they look nice for a really good price  
now looking back I wish I would bring a bring 
a bigger suitcase so I could buy more kimonos  
because you cannot get this kind of stuff in 
Europe my brother was so Trill he bought a  
yucata for himself and uh I think this was kind 
of like the highlight of the the day [Music]
[Music] schol you can probably see from the 
Smile of my face that I really really enjoy
that after that we were up for some beers and 
we again randomly found this little beer place  
this Brewery we ordered a large and well 
we didn’t quite know what we were getting  
ourselves into but as you will see the large 
beer is actually extra extra large compared to  
what we have here in [Music] Europe wow [Music] 
so after finishing only one beer we were kind of
buzzed finally enjoying Japan because I pooped  
three times and bought some 
[Music] onas and had a large
beer this is the size of 
the beer it’s the same size
as I guess it wasn’t just the kimono 
shopping I think maybe a little bit of  
alcohol had something to do that we actually 
really had an amazing time and I felt like I  
don’t want to leave Kyoto we definitely have 
some unfinished business before heading to the  
station to catch a train to Osaka we couldn’t 
help ourselves but go back to the market to  
try some more street food honestly there’s so 
many options and so many things look so tasty  
everything that we’ve tried was so amazing 
I highly recommend when you are in Kyoto do  
try their meats their beef oh my God the meat 
melts in your mouth and all the sauces are so
amazing we definitely did the most shopping in 
kyoto so I bought kimonos my brother went into  
his anime shops and bought loads of figurines 
I also found a 100 yen shop that I thought was  
really really cool because you can literally 
get anything your heart desires for 100 yen  
so I bought a lot of stationery and just 
like little things little notebooks and  
cards and things like that that I can use 
throughout the year and it’s always going  
to remember me of Japan I just thought 
it was really cool and it was like 100
yen I definitely left Kyoto wanting to see 
and experience more because even though it  
seemed like we traveled Kyoto completely 
wrong and just followed the crowd instead  
of our instincts we kind of turned it 
around and it just turned out to be so  
much more than what you see on Instagram 
and all the travel guides I really do hope  
I get the chance to come back and Discover it 
properly thank you so much for watching bye-bye