Superb panoramic views of 360 degrees Let’s go up to Kyoto Tower!

Kyoto Tower is in front of a central gate of JR Kyoto Station. It’s perfectly a landmark of Kyoto. Many people would feel “I came to Kyoto!” when looking at the tower.
It was made in 1964, as an image of the lighthouse which lights up the town of Kyoto without the sea. The tower is 131 meters high, and it’s the highest building in Kyoto. A lookout point is the highest place in Kyoto; you can watch Kyoto’s beautiful scenery for 360 degrees from 100 meters above the ground.

Welcome to Kyoto Tower

To go to the lookout point, you have to go up to the eleventh floor by the elevator of the first floor. You have to buy a ticket to go to the lookout point. You can buy it with the ticket vendor in front of the elevator platform of the first floor. In the elevator to the lookout point, the announcement of the Kyoto guidance is in a Kyoto dialect in a relaxed mood. It starts with “おこしやす(okoshiyasu)”: it means “welcome”, and it says “ほな、おおきに(hona, ookini)”: it means “thank you” when arrives at a top. It makes you feel comfortable.

At the moment when you arrive at the lookout point, a panorama of 360 degrees jumps into your eyes. It’s surrounded by Kitayama-mountain, Higashiyama-mountain, and Nishiyama-mountain. You can also realize that Kyoto is a basin. Looking at the north direction, you can overlook Higashi-Honganji-Temple and Nishi-Honganji-Temple nearby. You can look over the city of Kyoto: the streets are maintained like a grid.

Face the orderly cityscape of Kyoto Basin among mountains

On the fifth floor of the scenic dome, there are seventeen telescopes which you can watch free. You can look around all directions slowly. On the direction of south, you can see “Abeno Harukas”, the landmark of Osaka, on a sunny day.

There is a JR Kyoto Station on the south side of the tower below. It is an interesting view that various trains coming and going whether you like a train or not. The scenery of the night station is also popular.

Go down the stairs: there is the fourth floor of the scenic dome. Since there is no telescope, the field of vision opens up. You can sit down on a chair and can be lost vaguely.

Let’s go to meet “たわわちゃん(Tawawa-chan)”

“Tawawa-chan” is a mascot character of Kyoto Tower, which was born from an easy light of Kyoto Tower.

Tawawa-chan will appear in the scenic dome from 14:05 to 15:20 of Saturday, Sunday and holidays. You can take a photograph together.

There is a “Tawawa-chan Shrine” in the scenic dome. There are a votive picture tablet and a written fortune, too.

There are goods of Tawawa-chan available. It is good for the souvenir.

Stylish sky lounge is a super little-known spot!

There is a sky lounge “空(kuu)” on the third floor of the scenic dome. It is the lounge fitted with glass in the root part of the tower. It is the little-known spot that you can spend calmly and relax while enjoying a view. It would be lighted up in blue at night: very fantastic and adult. It is a nice place for dating that you can enjoy the best night view. It is open as a coffee shop from 3pm to 8pm, and as a bar from 6pm to 11pm.

Did you know there is a public bath under the tower?

There is a public bathhouse “Yuu” in the basement 3rd floor. Since it opens at 7am, it is popular for the tourist who arrives at Kyoto in the early morning with by the night bus. It’s nice to take a bath before going out for sightseeing.