What is the best time to visit Gion?

Best time to visit Gion can be visited year-round. However, for your best chances of spotting a geiko it's best to head to the district in the early evening. At this time, Gion is at its most atmospheric with bright lanterns and the bustle of the bars, restaurants, and teahouses.



People Also Ask

The best way to spend the evening in Kyoto is to visit Gion Some of Kyoto city's most beautiful areas only truly reveal their beauty at nightfall. Thus, our guides will show you Gion by night, telling you while walking its story in a small group in the calm of the lighted alleyways.

MORE DETAILS

Dubbed by locals as Kyoto's most beautiful street, Shirakawa (??) is a few minutes' walk from central Gion and the Hanamichi (????) area. It is off the beaten path, and there seemed to be no sight of other tourists when we visited it. The street runs into a Y-shape, with a little shrine situated at the intersection.

MORE DETAILS

Being the top geisha in the Gion Kobu district of Kyoto, Mineko Iwasaki mesmerized audiences with her graceful performances in Japan and abroad. Moreover, her talents earned her admiration and praise. But she didn't stop there. Mineko Iwasaki played a significant role in demystifying the world of geishas.

MORE DETAILS

One of Kyoto City's most famous streets, Hanamikoji is situated in the Gion district. This historic area hearkens back to the Japan of yesteryear, with its traditional wooden merchant houses and quaint ochaya, or teahouses.

MORE DETAILS

The most notable and famous ochaya is the Ichiriki Chaya in the Gion district of Kyoto, considered one of the most exclusive ochaya in Japan. The Ichiriki features as a major setting in Arthur Golden's fictional portrayal of a Gion geisha's life, Memoirs of a Geisha.

MORE DETAILS

During World War II craft geisha was banned. Only in 1950, their activities began to revive. Mineko Iwasaki became the most famous and highly paid Geisha. Parents sold Mineko when she was only five years old.

MORE DETAILS

Geisha can be found in several cities across Japan, including Tokyo and Kanazawa, but the former capital of Kyoto remains the best and most prestigious place to experience geisha, who are known there as geiko. Five major geiko districts (hanamachi) remain in Kyoto.

MORE DETAILS

The Japanese word geisha literally means “art person,” and singing, dancing, and playing the samisen (a lutelike instrument) are indispensable talents for a geisha, along with the ability to make conversation. Many geisha are also adept at flower arranging, performing the tea ceremony, or calligraphy.

MORE DETAILS

?There are two easy ways to distinguish between maiko and geisha,? says Lugasi. ?Maiko will have decorations like flowers in her hair, which geiko will not. From behind, the maiko's obi (kimono belt) is long and stretches down almost to the floor while the geiko's obi is folded into a square shape on her back.?

MORE DETAILS