Kiyomizu-dera Temple Night Illumination and Night Viewing

Night Illumination and Night Viewing at Kiyomizu-dera Temple is presented here. Kiyomizu-dera Temple offers night illumination (lighting up) and night viewing during the cherry blossom season in the spring, Yoi-mairi (Sennichi-mairi) in August, and the fall foliage season in the autumn. Kiyomizu-dera Temple also holds Pink Illumination (lighting up) in October.

【Kiyomizu-dera Temple Night Illumination and Night Viewing 2023 Schedule】

★Spring Illumination (Cherry Blossoms) : March 25th (Saturday) – April 2nd (Sunday), 2023, 18:00 – 21:30 (Reception closes at 21:00)
★Autumn Illumination (Autumn Leaves) : November 18th (Saturday) – November 30th (Thursday), 2023, 17:30 – 21:30 (Reception closes at 21:00)
★Yoi-mairi (Sennichi-mairi) : August 14th (Monday) to August 16th (Wednesday), 2023, 18:30 – 21:00 (Reception closes at 21:00)
★Pink Illumination : October 1st (Sunday) – October 20th (Friday), 2023, 19:00 – 22:00 (no admission). On Sunday, October 1st, a memorial service will be held at 19:00, and night viewing will be from 18:30 to 21:30 (Reception closes at 21:00).

【Kiyomizu-dera Temple Location Map ＆ Directions】

Address: 1-294 Kiyomizu, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Access (How to get there): Gojozaka bus stop (about 10 minutes on foot), Kiyomizu-michi bus stop (about 10 minutes on foot), Keihan Kiyomizu Gojo Station (about 25 minutes on foot)

【Kiyomizu-dera Temple Night Illumination and Night Viewing brief overview】

Kiyomizu-dera Temple offers night illumination (lighting up) and night viewing during the cherry blossom season in the spring, Yoi-mairi (Sennichi-mairi) in August, and the fall foliage season in the autumn. Kiyomizu-dera Temple also holds Pink Illumination (lighting up) in October. Incidentally, during the cherry blossom season and the fall foliage seasons, Kiyomizu-dera Temple shines a blue light into the night sky, representing the mercy of Kannon Bosatsu.
Kiyomizu-dera Temple is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kyoto, so it is visited by many tourists on a regular basis, but even more tourists visit during the cherry blossom season and the fall foliage season. During the illumination and night viewing periods, it is crowded with tourists not only during the day but also at night.

【Spring Illumination (Cherry Blossoms, 桜) and Night Viewing】

Kiyomizu-dera Temple is one of the most popular cherry blossom viewing spots in Kyoto. Kiyomizu-dera Temple is home to about 1,500 cherry trees, including Somei-Yoshino, Yama-zakura, Benishidare-zakura and other cherry trees, and the best time to see the cherry blossoms is usually around early April. (The best time to see the cherry blossoms depends on the climate of the year.) At Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Hondo (Min Hall) and Kiyomizu Stage (Kiyomizu-no-Butai), which are decorated with cherry blossoms, are said to be beautiful. It is also said that the scenery such as the cherry blossoms and the 31-meter-high Sanju-no-to (three-story pagoda) is also beautiful.
Spring illumination (lighting up) and night viewing (night opening) are held from late March to early April, when the cherry blossoms are at their best. The period is about 1 week. The illuminated cherry blossoms, Hondo (Min Hall) and Kiyomizu Stage (Kiyomizu-no-Butai) can be viewed and photographed from Okuno-in.
Spring illumination ticket price : 400 yen (as of 2023)
清水寺桜ライトアップ (Kiyomizu-dera Temple Spring Illumination)

【Autumn Illumination (Autumn Leaves, 紅葉) and Night Viewing】

Kiyomizu-dera Temple is one of the most popular autumn leaves viewing spots in Kyoto. At Kiyomizu-dera Temple, about 1,000 maple trees such as Yama-momiji and cherry trees are distributed in Kinunkei and other areas, and the best time to see the autumn leaves is usually from mid-November to late November. (The best time to see the autumn leaves depends on the climate of the year.) At Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Hondo (Min Hall) and Kiyomizu Stage (Kiyomizu-no-Butai), which are colored by autumn leaves, are said to be beautiful.
Autumn illumination (lighting up) and night viewing (night opening) are held from mid-November to late November, when the fall foliage is at its best. The period is about 2 weeks. The illuminated cherry blossoms, Hondo (Min Hall) and Kiyomizu Stage (Kiyomizu-no-Butai) can be viewed and photographed from Okuno-in.
Autumn illumination ticket price : 400 yen (as of 2023)
清水寺紅葉ライトアップ (Kiyomizu-dera Temple Autumn Illumination)

【Yoi-mairi (宵詣り, Sennichi-mairi, 千日詣り) and Night Viewing】

At Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Sennichi-mairi is held every year from August 9th to August 16th. August 9th to 16th, when Sennichi-mairi is held, is said to be Kannon’s greatest day of merit, and a single day of pilgrimage will bring benefits for 1,000 days. During Sennichi-mairi, you can specially visit the inner room of Hondo (Min Hall), and you can also dedicate a lamp in front of the main statue, the Senju Kannon statue. Sennichi-mairi has been held since ancient times, during the Heian Period (794-1185) by Murasaki Shikibu, the author of “Genji Monogatari”, and Seisho Nagon, the author of “Makura-no-soshi” is also said to have been there. It then fell into disuse during the Meiji period (1868-1912) and was revived in 1993.
Yoi-mairi is held every year from August 14th to August 16th during Sennichi-mairi period. In Yoi-mairi, you can visit Kiyomizu-dera Temple not only during the daytime but also at night.
清水寺千日詣り (Kiyomizu-dera Temple Sennichi-mairi)

【Pink Illumination (ピンクライトアップ) and Night Viewing】

Pink Illumination (lighting up) is held at Kiyomizu-dera Temple every year around October. Pink Illumination is held at Kiyomizu-dera Temple in support of the Pink Ribbon Campaign for Early Detection of Breast Cancer initiated by Evelyn H. Lauder. During Pink Illumination, Sanju-no-to (three-story pagoda), Nio-mon Gate, Nishi-mon Gate, etc. are lit up in pink. However, night viewing (night opening) is not available.
During Pink Illumination, a memorial service for those who have died from breast cancer is held on the first day of the period. Also, on the first day of Pink Illumination, visitors may be able to see the temple for free.
清水寺ピンクライトアップ (Kiyomizu-dera Temple Pink Illumination)

【Kiyomizu-dera Temple brief overview】

Kiyomizu-dera Temple (清水寺) is said to have been founded in 778 during the late Nara period (710-794) by Enchin (Kenshin), a monk of Kofuku-ji Temple (Nara City) who had been trained at Kishima-dera Temple. Enchin received a message in a spiritual dream and went from Nara to Kyoto, where he found a waterfall on Mt. Otowa-yama. Enchin met Gyoei, who had built a thatched hut on the bank of the waterfall and was training at the waterfall. Enchin received a sacred tree from Gyoei, carved a statue of Kannon, and enshrined it in Gyoei’s thatched hut.
Kiyomizu-dera Temple (location,history)

【Kiyomizu-dera Temple Night Illumination and Night Viewing remarks】
Always check with the organizer for event information. Information on this site is for reference only. Contents of the event may have changed.
京都紅葉ライトアップ2025