honshu34.21° N, 135.59° E
Koyasan
Koyasan is a temple town on a mountain plateau in Wakayama, some 800 metres up, founded in 816 by the monk Kukai as the centre of Shingon Buddhism.
The path through Okunoin, Koyasan
- Region
- Honshu
- Our journeys
- Created for you
Our tours stayA day on tourA Custom Tour of Japan
the place
A town of temples on a mountain, and a path of lanterns among the cedars.
More than a hundred temples stand on the plateau, and around fifty of them take guests for the night, with the vegetarian cuisine of the monks, shojin ryori, at the table. Okunoin, the cemetery that leads to Kukai's mausoleum, runs some two kilometres beneath cedars centuries old, past more than two hundred thousand graves and memorials, the lanterns lit along the path in the evening.
Koyasan is part of the Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range, a World Heritage Site. We plan it as a Custom Tour of Japan, created around your party alone, about two hours from Osaka. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans the days for you.
what we do here
Koyasan, as we show it
Okunoin
The cedar path of moss-covered graves and stone lanterns to Kukai's mausoleum.
A temple lodging
A night at a shukubo, tatami rooms and the monks' shojin ryori.
The Danjo Garan
The sacred precinct of halls and the vermilion Konpon Daito pagoda.
Kongobu-ji
The head temple of Shingon, and its rock garden of granite in white sand.
questions
Questions about Koyasan
How do you reach Koyasan?
From Osaka, about two hours by train and cable car, or by private car up the mountain road.
Can you stay overnight at a temple in Koyasan?
Yes. Around fifty of its temples take guests, and the Custom Tour of Japan chooses the temple lodging for your party.
Can Koyasan be combined with Kyoto and Osaka?
Yes. It sits well between them in a Custom Tour of Japan, created around your party alone. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans the days for you.
Koyasan, created for you alone.
The Custom Tour of Japan is created around your party alone, on your dates, and Koyasan can be any part of it. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans every day for you.