Beat Autumn Leaves Spots in Japan – If you are asking when is the best time to visit Japan, one of the popular answer is : autumn. In fact, it’s my personal favourite season in Japan!
The weather is great, not too hot, not too cold. The humidity level is low. But most importantly, from October, the leaves will start to turn yellow, orange, yellow and even red, giving amazing colours to the beautiful natural landscapes of Japan.
This season is called Koyo in Japan, which literally means “red leaves” and one of the most appreciated type of leaves is the Momiji, the maple leaves.
To help you enjoy the autumn colours in Japan, we made a selection of our 10 best spots nationwide. Have a read and visit the ones you prefer! 🙂
The 10 Best Autumn Leaves Spots In Japan
Here’s our selection of the 10 most beautiful autumn leaves places in Japan. Make sure you add them to your itinerary if you are in Japan during autumn season!
- Kegon Falls in Nikko
- Mount Takao in Tokyo
- Meiji Jingu Gaien in Tokyo
- Chureito Pagoda in Yamanashi Prefecture
- Lake Kawaguchi in Yamanashi Prefecture
- Tofukuji Temple in Kyoto
- Eikan-do Temple in Kyoto
- Daigo-ji Temple in Kyoto
- Katsuoji temple near Osaka
- Minoo Park near Osaka
For your information, we tried to select spots that are easily accessible with public transport. Please also note that we specified below the best time to visit these places but the exact dates may change from one season to the other.
For more details, check out: Autumn Foliage Forecast Japan 2021.
1. Kegon Falls in Nikko
Without any doubt, Kegon falls is one of the most amazing autumn leaves spots in Japan! It’s located near Nikko which is easily accessible from Tokyo (2h by train). All Nikko area is actually a fantastic place during the Koyo season so make sure you check it out!
If you want to stay over night near Nikko, we highly recommend you to stay at this Ryokan in Kinugawa Onsen. It’s a small and charming hot spring town just next to Nikko.
For more recommendation, check out this post about the 7 Most Beautiful Ryokans In Kinugawa Onsen.
Best time to visit: Nikko is known as an early autumn spot in Japan cause the best time to visit this area is usually from mid-October to end of October.
2. Mount Takao in Tokyo
Mount Takao (also called Takao-san), located in the west side of Tokyo, is one of the most popular autumn spots in Tokyo! It’s around an hour away from Shinjuku station and if you are into hiking, you are going to love this place.
To enjoy your visit, I would recommend to get to Takaosanguchi station and then hike to the top of the mountain. On your way down, I would suggest to take the cable car to slowly enjoy the mesmerising view!
Best time to visit: From early to end of November.
3. Meiji Jingu Gaien in Tokyo
Let’s switch from red to yellow! As I said in the introduction, Momiji (red maple leaves) are super popular in Japan but a strong contender is the beautiful yellow Gingko leaves. To make sure to see them, go to Meiji Jingu Gaien in Tokyo.
These yellow tunnels are perfect for a photo session! Check it in this Instagram reel.
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
4. Chureito Pagoda in Yamanashi Prefecture
The Chureito pagoda is a gorgeous place to visit at any season, specially because it’s one of the best Mt Fuji viewpoints in Japan! But in autumn, this area becomes even more magical with the Momiji leaves.
All you need to know about this place here: Chureito Pagoda.
Best time to visit: Mid October to mid November.
5. Lake Kawaguchi in Yamanashi Prefecture
We stay in Yamanashi prefecture with the stunning lake Kawaguchi! The best photo spots are probably in the north side of the lake where you can find a lot of Momiji. You will also be able to capture the beautiful Mount Fuji in the background.
You can combine the visit of the Chureito pagoda and the Kawaguchi lake in one day trip from Tokyo.
Best time to visit:Â Mid October to mid November.
6. Tofukuji Temple in Kyoto
We will continue this list of the best autumn leaves spots in Japan with the Kansai area. And we start with Kyoto and its lovely Tofukuji temple. It gets a bit busy in autumn, specially during the weekend or public holidays, so try to visit it during a weekday.
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
7. Eikan-do Temple in Kyoto
We stay in Kyoto with the Eikan-do temple, located in the East side of the city. This place is pretty big so make sure you spend at least two hours here. Please also note that Eikan-do displays amazing autumn illumination by night. Don’t miss it out!
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
8. Daigo-ji Temple in Kyoto
Located a bit outside of Kyoto, in the East part of Fushimi ward, Daigo-ji Temple is definitely one of the best autumn leaves spots in Kyoto! Even if it’s listed as a world heritage site, this place is still a hidden spot so don’t hesitate to get there!
The most popular photo spot here is the Bentendo hall that you can see in the picture above.
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
9. Katsuoji Temple near Osaka
Let’s check now what are the best Koyo spots around Osaka. And we start with the unmissable Katsuoji temple! We wrote a full blog post about it, including how to get there, so make sure you read it here: Katsuoji temple.
Note that Katsuoji is also famous for the hundreds of Daruma dolls that you can find in the temple.
Check out Katsuoji temple in this short video.
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
10. Minoo Park near Osaka
We finish this selection of the best Koyo spots in Japan with the beautiful Minoo park. If you are into hiking, you can actually visit Minoo park and Katsuoji temple during the same day.
Follow the river until the end to finally see the 33-meter waterfall!
Best time to visit: Mid November to early December.
I hope you enjoy this blog post! If you have more recommended places to visit during autumn in Japan, feel free to send them over in the comments!
Happy travels!
Sugoii Japan Team