Timeline
15:52
Stop at Nakamura Tokichi Honten for green tea and matcha desserts. The river-front café is a perfect pre-sunset pitstop.
16:22
Walk to Renge Chaya near the front gate of Byōdō-in. It gets crowded in the early afternoon, so arriving now helps you avoid the rush before the main event.
17:07
Stand before the Phoenix Hall as the sun sets toward the WSW. The golden light hits the temple grounds just as the day ends.
17:37
End your evening with a short walk to Ujigami Shrine. This historic Shinto shrine sits just northeast of the temple and offers a quiet close to the day.
Local tip
The temple grounds close at 17:30 in winter (16:30 in Dec-Feb). Ensure you are inside the grounds before the gates close to catch the final moments of light.
Check before you go
- Byōdō-in Temple hours: Mar-Nov: daily 08:30-17:30, Dec-Feb: daily 09:00-16:30.
- Nakamura Tokichi Honten is open Mo-Su 10:00-17:00.
Built from places in the Wikivoyage guide to Uji (CC BY-SA 4.0), with open map data from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).