Footloose Tours

The Best Time of Day to Visit Kyoto’s Temples (And Why Morning Wins)

Most visitors to Kyoto assume crowds are inevitable. They aren’t—if you understand timing.

Kyoto operates on a predictable rhythm. Tour buses begin arriving mid-morning, usually between 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. By noon, narrow temple approaches turn into slow-moving queues, and contemplative spaces feel anything but calm.

Early mornings are different.

Arriving at temples shortly after opening—often around 8:00 a.m.—changes the entire experience. Courtyards are quieter, light is softer, and the atmosphere invites reflection rather than endurance. Weekdays amplify this effect, especially outside peak cherry blossom and autumn foliage seasons.

Late afternoons can also work, particularly in winter or on rainy days, when organized groups thin out. Rain, often seen as an inconvenience, is one of Kyoto’s great crowd filters. Wet stone paths and subdued colors can make even popular sites feel intimate again.

Timing in Kyoto is not a minor detail—it’s the difference between visiting and merely passing through.

For a broader discussion of crowds and pacing in Kyoto, see my full post on temple-hopping and timing: https://footloosetravelguides.com/kyoto-crowds-and-timing-how-to-experience-the-city-without-losing-your-mind/

Back to Iguazu Falls, Argentina -- images from a different route: the Lower Circuit
theworld

Cycling the Wild Atlantic Way: Crossing Connemara, West Coast of Ireland

Pile of turd on the side of the road? No! Slabs of peat! You will see piles of peat in Connemara and all over the WAW. The locals still cut turf from peat for fuel. Traditionally, almost every farmer had its own Turf Bank. A week’s back-breaking work in the Spring provided his family with enough fuel for a year. Using a special two-bladed spade, turf cutters cut slabs of peat and throw them on the side of the bank. Over the following weeks, they rearrange the sods in every larger stack to dry before carrying them home. In the old days, by donkey, cart or in baskets on their backs; today by truck. By the time they are ready for the fire, the sods are half their original size. Creating heat, the hard way!

Cycling Ireland
Just published, my #38.
Cycling the Wild Atlantic Way
https://www.amazon.com/Cycling-Wild-Atlantic-Way-Peninsula/dp/B0DH87RBG3/ref=sr_1_4?

CYCLING MYSORE TO FORT KOCHI: Over the Western Ghats to the Arabian Sea
http://goo.gl/JG8iEh
http://goo.gl/oXBdXa (India)

Losar Tashi Delek!

Losar Tashi Delek! - Footloose Bhutan Losar Tashi Delek! Losar, the Bhutanese New Year - February 19th - 20th, 2015

Cycling West Bengal to Sikkim bicycle tour

Bicycle touring Siliguri to Kathmandu
Cycling across Terai to Kathmandu: Bicycle touring Nepal
http://goo.gl/tSJSMz
http://goo.gl/U7kXna (India)

Bicycle Touring Northeast India: Guide to cycling across Assam, Meghalaya and North Bengal [Kindle Edition]
http://goo.gl/xKIXVv

http://www.pinterest.com/footloosecyclin/bhutan/

Bhutan Pins about Bhutan hand-picked by Pinner Footloose Cycling | See more about cycling, trekking and wanderlust.

Beautiful Cherry Trees in Kyoto, Japan ♥