Hogon-in Fall Foliage: Beautiful But Not the Best Spot in Kyoto

Hogon-in, a sub-temple of Tenryu-ji, is known as one of the best spots for fall foliage in Arashiyama. While it has its own beauty, there are a few aspects that made us rank it lower compared to other fall foliage spots in Kyoto.

Before touring Hōgon-in, I recommend briefly taking a look at this page about the temple garden. It provides a visual overview of notable elements, helping you better appreciate the site during your visit. At the entrance, you will also receive a small pamphlet about the temple and its garden.

Fall colors above the dry pond "sea of suffering" at Hogon-in in Arashiyama, Kyoto.

In autumn, Hogon-in showcases vibrant foliage with the borrowed fall scenery of Arashiyama mountains as a backdrop. The seasonal colors blend with elements of the dry landscape that features thick moss carpets and carefully placed large rocks. In the photo above, the dry pond filled with rocks symbolizes the sea of suffering of human life.

During our visit, the foliage was not as dense as we had hoped, perhaps due to unfavorable weather this year. Our visit was on November 26, 2024 when the color progress was about 60%. I guess the scenery would look more stunning a week later.

To the side of the dry pond, you will see three larger stones representing the Buddha Triad, a common element in many Japanese temple rock gardens, such as the one at Konchi-in.

Buddha triad in Hogon-in garden with fall foliage backdrop. — Buddha Triad

The central, tallest stone symbolizes the Buddha, while the two shorter stones represent his disciples. On the grounds, the smaller stones represent animals swimming toward the Buddha.

The temple grounds of Hogon-in are fairly small with a linear, winding walking path that limits the space for visitors to spread out. Although the number of visitors was not as high as at Kiyomizu-dera or Eikan-do, the compact layout made us feel crowded and harder to fully enjoy the scenery.

Hogon-in garden with vibrant fall foliage in Arashiyama, Kyoto.

Red maple leaves fall foliage in Hogon-in garden, Kyoto.

Additionally, the terrain is flat, so there are not many viewpoints or dynamic perspectives compared to other sites we have visited. In Arashiyama area, we found the foliage at Arashiyama Park, Okochi Sanso Garden and Jojakko-ji Temple more beautiful. Those places are larger and more interesting to explore than Hogon-in in our opinion.

For photography lovers, don’t miss the Arashiyama Rakans just outside Hogon-in’s gate. These stone rakans with varied poses and expressions create fascinating compositions when framed against the vibrant reds, oranges, and yellows of the garden in the background.

Arashiyama rakans outside Hogon-in in Kyoto. — Arashiyama rakans

Also in front of the temple’s main gate is Yudofu Sagano, a restaurant specializing in tofu set meals. The restaurant is spacious and features its own garden, which is quite pleasant to walk through.