Mount Hiei Private Tour

Mount Hiei (比叡 山) or Hiei-zan is a mountain located northeast of the city of Kyoto. 840 meters above sea level and it houses at its summit the Enryaku-ji temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

With no less than 3,000 temples and nore than tens of thousands of monks, the complex was razed by the daymio (governor) Nobunaga Oda in 1571 to counter the rise and power of the warrior monks. There are now only three centers left, Todo, Saito and Yokawa.

Mount Hiei is also home to the marathoner monks, known as Kaihogyo, who have to perform 1,000 days of intensive walking and prayer over seven years.

Also lying at the foot of Mount Hiei, you can find a town called Sakamoto, with a lot of the priests homes, with incredible gardens, beautiful azalea, designated as a Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings.

Tour Highlights

• Former Chikurin-in Temple, a former monk residence featuring tea ceremony houses & peaceful, moss-clad Japanese gardens
• Kaidan-in, or “Temple of the Ordination Platform”
• Monjuro Gate, the significant entrances to the Enryaku-ji temple complex
• Enryaku-ji temple, not a single temple but a complex of many buildings spread across Mount Hiei
• Amida Hall, dedicated to Amida Nyorai (Amitabha Buddha), who is central to the Pure Land sect of Buddhism