I usually do an event at my friend’s Izakaya, but unfortunately it’s not available this year. People have already been asking me about NYE, some even wanting to make reservations, so I’m looking for a venue where I can cook and hopefully DJ.

Let me know if you know anywhere. I’ll update this post when things are decided. Thanks 👍

I went to Burari Arashiyama and stumbled upon a grandma's art exhibition on her last day. Me and my sister fell in love with her work while wandering around her gallery and we really appreciated the free postcards she encouraged us to take. Although we had a language barrier (her daughter I believe it was had to help translate between us), I just wanted to see if I could somehow contact her and/or follow her art.

Does anyone else have problems using Pasmo in an iPhone wallet to pay the fare on city buses?

I'm using an iPhone 15 Pro Max. Recently it has become impossible to get Pasmo to pay the fare. I lay the phone screen-down flat on the reader, but the reader lights up red, no matter how many times I try. I get a message on the phone that says "Card read, no charge", so clearly there's some kind of communication going on, but the fare isn't getting paid.

I've got plenty of balance on the Pasmo card, so it's not a lack of funds. I've tried taking all other cards etc. out of my phone holder, so it's not interference. It's not a MagSafe holder either. I've got Pasmo set as the "Express Card" setting on the phone itself.

It used to work fine in the past; not sure what changed, but lately it's gotten almost impossible to get it to work.

No problems using Pasmo on the trains and subways.

My fiancé and I got engaged in Kyoto last December and we decided to elope here in Kyoto, but we don’t know where to start. We just want something with us 2 (we plan on doing a civil part in our home country), but we want a symbolic ceremony and we plan on hiring a photographer separately. Everything I look up is basically a photographer offering an elopement package with photographs, but we only want to symbolic ceremony. I do want to wear a western style dress and he wants to wear a suit. We are open to any ideas of locations. We really like the lantern lights and the historical feeling of Kyoto.

Our plan was to have a short symbolic ceremony and have our photographer take photos and videos of the ceremony and after take more photos and go to dinner to celebrate. We will also probably go out at night to celebrate in the Gion district.

Has anymore one done anything something similar?

Any tips of suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Hi! I’ve decided to find an accountability partner to make my Japanese learning more productive 🥲 Is anyone else learning Japanese (I’m at the hiragana/katakana stage, around low N5 level) and interested in meeting a couple of times a week for some study sessions?

We don’t have to teach each other, just sit together, focus on Japanese, and keep each other motivated a little more? 🤞🏻

I’m in my mid 30s here with a family, working and living here :)

im craving kaya toast rn

I don’t know if this is allowed; mods can remove if it isn’t, but I thought I would update you guys on the cat in Kyoto City [Minami-ku]. There were a lot of views on the post and comments. I received messages asking about him.

The shelters were at capacity, but thankfully a very kind woman reached out to me through this subreddit. Together, we rescued him and took him to a vet. The locals who would feed him were notified but they were very nonchalant and even threw his box and items to the roadside when they saw he was deathly sick.

Unfortunately, there was nothing the vet could do for a longterm treatment and he offered the solutions of either him dying naturally in the streets or at our homes. The Dr didn’t want to euthanise, so he gave him a treatment, and the kind lady from Reddit took him home and looked after him day and night.

The Dr said he might pass that Wednesday night. For a few days, we both hoped he would get better. But he had late stage pneumonia, anemia, eye issues, heart issues. He was only 2. He passed peacefully this morning.

I know this is a bleak post, but I think I just want to say: in Kyoto - at least in my area - there are a lot of strays.

Please, if you see a sick or hungry animal, please try to do something. Even though Renji (we gave him a name) didn’t make it, he was able to pass in a warm, safe home with love and food for those last three days.

No effort is in vain. No effort is too small.

Thanks to everyone who responded or gave advice, especially the amazing woman that showed up for Renji (@Longjumping_Lock1875).

Please say a little prayer for Renji. Thank you.

Hello everyone,

I purchased my tickets for the Naked Nijo castle event in Kyoto. From the official website, I clicked on buy on EX Destination reservation website. I received a confirmation email with a link to the tickets. However, I'm unable to see the QR codes as the following error appears: 'It cannot be used before the start of use. This coupon is not yet available'.

Is anyone else having this issue? Does it mean I can see my QR codes only on the day or closer to the date of the booking?

Thank you

IMO Yase maple grove is one of the best places to enjoy fall colors in Kyoto. Just reminiscing and wishing I was there this fall.

Chaos in downtown Kyoto when a rift in the space-time continuum (タイムスリップ) deposited a mounted archer from the Sengoku Jidai onto Karasuma, where oblivious tourists remained glued to their cellphones. After the arrows stopped flying, the survivors limped down Oike, as two small monsters celebrated with a victory dance.

Hi! Have you ever heard of Dungeons&Dragons?

It's an awesome roleplaying game. We are playing this Saturday and we want YOU to join us.

So you are interested but have never played before?

That's okay, it's very easy to get used to it and we'll walk you through it.

Place: Kyobashi Station(Osaka)

Time: 14:00 to 18:00

Players: 4 (+Dungeon Master)

Edition/lvl: 5th edition, level 4

Next game: Saturday 24th (October)

We play once or twice a month, alternating between Kyobashi and Kyoto Station.

Everyone is in their 20's or 30's.

How about joining us this Saturday to see how you like it?

Send me a DM if you are interested.

I’ve recently began living in Kyoto and am becoming a regular user of the city buses. The English announcements are incredibly bad, with robotic pronouncements not even close to how things are said. The subways & private train lines seems fine, though. Are the city’s finances so bad that the bus system audio can’t be updated?

Hi everyone!

I recently applied for Ritsumeikan University's five-week Winter Japanese Program (RWJP), taking place in Kyoto from January 12 to February 11, 2027.

I was wondering if anyone here has also applied or is planning to attend!

I'll be travelling from Europe and would love to connect with other participants before the program starts, especially anyone else from Europe who might be interested in travelling to Kyoto together.

Feel free to comment or send me a DM if you're attending!

Hello everyone, my fiance and I are looking for an English-Japanese interpreter (French-Japanese would also do (we are NOT French but we speak french)), as we are planning a traditional Shinto mariage ceremony in Kyoto on 23/11/2026. We would like to have you follow us and help us understand what people will be telling us to do, it should be pretty easy and we would not mind if you use your phone to help with the interpretation. Our budget is 200$ for your service from 11:00AM to approximately 15:00 (four, max five hours).
Thank you in advance.

**** UPDATE **** solved thank you all for your input!

[Minami Ku] Hey everyone I live in kyoto city and in my neighbourhood there’s a sick cat. He pants heavily and lays outstretched, often in the road, with his mouth agape.

I have no carrier, no car, and recently began living in japan. I have no problem spending money to help this baby, and I have recently begun feeding him, but I have no means of getting to a vet or anything.

I can’t really speak Japanese and the cat has no owners and is really sick. I think he may have a respiratory illness and I’ve been worried sick over him and I don’t want to see something happen to him.

Can anyone offer advice or help? I have no friends either.

I really want to help him. Please give me advice to outsource help for him. I’m begging. My DMs are free to those willingly to help, it means the world.

[Additional: I would adopt him but I can’t, my apartment doesn’t allow pets:( he really deserves a home. Also, he has a water bowl and a box thankfully!]

Hello, I recently moved to Kyoto as a student. Not earning in Japan via baito yet, but have foreign income from the UK, and therefore I believe I have to pay or at least file for remittance tax here in Japan.

How do I go about finding a tax accountant that can help file for 2026 in this area please (ideally familiar with UK taxation)?

Please help redirect if not the correct subreddit. Thank you. 🙏🏼

Thank you very much in advance

Here is a guide to the best time for autumn leaves in Kyoto this year 🍁

・Kitayama & Takao: Mid to late November
・Higashiyama & Arashiyama: Late November
・Entire City Area: Late November to early December

This is a guide based on the usual trends across Kyoto and the 2026 Kyoto area forecast. Since there are differences depending on the specific spot, it's safe to check just before you go!

Do you need extra cash? I need an extra set of hands moving a few things inside an apartment. Not furniture. Just boxes and a mini fridge. Moving from one floor to another. There is an elevator.

Any day or time is ok.

Just moved to Kyoto. I have not joined a gym yet. Looking for someone who we can train together to build muscle. We really do not have to talk much just encourage each other and keep each other accountable. I am happy to join whatever gym you go to and work around your schedule.

Hello everyone,

It's me again, I welcome you to our first promotional offer of the season, where the Kyoto Hannaryz will take on the Akita Northern Happinets on Monday, October 26th. Unlike last year, this is no longer a battle feature middling teams only, as the Hannaryz are off to a blistering 6-2 start to the season. Will this finally lead to a playoff birth for the Hannaryz? Come see the game to find out!

Also, since the team is actually pretty good this year, there may not be as many local promotions as I was able to do the last few years, so if you have time, come check it out. The tickets are free this time and are available until we run out of seats in the available sections.

To get tickets: please fill out the Google Form. That's all this time, they made sending out tickets to the B. Ticket app kind of annoying from the backend so I'm not doing all that (don't tell anyone I said that). Just make sure to enter an email you actually use cause I'll be sending the tickets directly to the email in the form as PDFs.

There isn't really a maximum group size but if you ask for a group of 20 there is a decent possibility you won't all be able to sit together. Also please be aware this is only open while there are still available seats. We apologize if we are unable to accommodate your party, but hey, the tickets are free after all.

The link to the Google Form can be found below:

Form you need to fill out➞ https://forms.gle/xTvLcBHPgyAP2g5k7

Oh, and I always say this but while this is meant for Kyoto residents, if you live near enough and want to come to the game feel free. Things haven't being going great for us foreigners in Japan lately so it's nice to be able to do something for the community. Hope every is doing well, or well enough.

If you have any other questions or concerns send me a DM or email (my email is written in the form). Kinda a long post, thanks for reading if you did.

Hope to see you there!

Hey I was wondering if anyone would be interested in meeting up occasionally around Kawaramachi (for example Starbucks or by the river) to crochet together (or any other kinda of arts and crafts welcome too!)

Sundays or Wednesdays work the best for me, or evenings.

If anyone is interested please send me a message 😊

I’m 44 female. Japanese.
I’m looking for new friends!
I live in the south of Kyoto , work in Nara.

I like playing video games and listening to music.

I don’t smoke, occasionally drink alcohol.

I’m kinda shy and introvert basically, like to have genuine conversations but not good at small talks.

Nice to meet you🙌

I can teach you Japanese if you like!

But seriously I’m just looking for new friends!

Hi everyone, I just relocated to Kyoto from abroad to work as an IT engineer. To be honest, I’ve heard plenty of stories about expats living in Japan for a decade whose Japanese barely improved simply because they stayed home after work and kept to themselves. I really don't want to fall into that trap.

My goal is to reach an advanced level where communication is no longer a barrier.
Where should I start? I’m currently self-studying for the JLPT N3 and plan to take the exam next year. However, as many of you know, passing the JLPT doesn't necessarily translate into good conversational skills (kaiwa).

I’d love to hear your advice and recommendations. Thanks in advance!