May is one of the best – if not the best – times to visit Kyoto. It’s less crowded than April (when everyone comes to see the cherry blossoms), the weather is usually warm (but not hot) and lots of plants are in bloom.
1 May-15 June 2025
Event: Special Exhibition Commemorating Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai Japan, an Artistic Melting Pot
Location: Kyoto National Museum, Heisei Chishinkan Wing
Time: 9:00am–5:30pm (entrance until 5:00pm); Fridays, 9:00am–8:00pm (Entrance until 7:30pm)
Admission: ¥700
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Japan has a reputation for being a bit of a Galapagos, but there has always been — to a greater or lesser extent over time — a rich history of intercultural and international exchange throughout history. It’s precisely this dynamic cultural exchange that’s at the heart of this special art exhibition organised by the Kyoto National Museum to commemorate the World Expo in Osaka. Featuring paintings, sculptures, calligraphic works, and decorative arts across a millennia or several, it’s a timely reminder that no nation, even an island nation, is truly an island (in the metaphorical sense, anyway).
1 May-7 September 2025
Event: Yayoi Kusama Print Works: Repetition & Proliferation
Location: Kyoto City Kyocera Museum of Art
Time: 10:00am-6:00pm
Admission: TBC
Website: Official website (English)
Even if you’ve never heard the name Yayoi Kusama, you’ll probably have seen the avant-garde artist’s distinctive polka dots and net patterns somewhere, whether it’s on a sculpture or a Louis Vuitton bag. This exhibition at the Kyocera Museum of Art will showcase a selection of her prints — woodblock, silkscreen, and others — from the artist’s own collection as well as that of the Matsumoto City Museum of Art, which has the largest collection of Kusama prints in the world. Unmissable for Kusama fans.
To-ji temple
1-25 May 2025
Event: Spring Special Opening
Location: To-ji Temple
Time: 9:00am-5:00pm (enter by 4:30pm)
Admission: ¥500
Website: Official website (Japanese)
It’s not normally possible to enter the beautiful pagoda at To-ji Temple, but during this special opening, you can enter the first (ground) floor of the pagoda to examine some of the fine Buddhist images contained therein.
1-18 May 2025
Event: Spring Special Opening
Location: Daitoku-ji Temple, Oubai-in
Time: 10:00am-4:00pm
Admission: ¥800
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Daitoku-ji Temple is actually a collection of subtemples, a walled-in world of miniature Zen paradises. The eponymous Daitoku-ji itself is very fine and is open all year round. However, if you’re here in April or the first half of May, make tracks for the Daitoku-ji complex because this is your chance to see what is perhaps the most spectacular subtemple there: Obai-in (sometimes written as Oubai-in in English). It’s only opened briefly in the spring and fall each year. It’s a collection of fine halls, superb karesansui (Zen gardens) and beautiful vistas from each room and window. Don’t miss it. See also Michael Lambe’s detailed Exploring Daitoku-ji article which guides you around the highlights of the complex.
1 May-15 June 2025
Event: Spring Special Opening
Location: Daitoku-ji Temple, Kourin-in
Time: 10:00am-4:30pm
Admission: ¥800
Website: Official website (Japanese)
This is another lovely small garden in the Daitoku-ji complex (see above for more details). It would make a great addition to a visit to Obai-in (also above).
3 May 2025
Event: Yabusame Shinji
Location: Shimogamo-jinja Shrine
Time: 1:00pm-3:30pm
Admission: Free (a pay seat is also available at ¥2000)
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Yabusame, or horseback archery, is Japan’s most thrilling sport and this is your best chance to see it. Held in the long arcade that runs through the middle of the beautiful Tadasu-no-mori forest at Shimogamo-jinja Shrine, this event allows you to get really close to the horses and riders as they thunder past the targets, unleashing arrows as they go. I cannot stress this enough: If you can possibly get yourself to Kyoto on 3 May, do NOT miss it!
4 May 2025
Event: “Garakuta-ichi,” To-ji Temple Flea Market
Location: To-ji Temple
Time: 7:00am-4:30pm
Admission: Free
If you can’t be in town for Kyoto’s two famous flea markets (Kobo-san Market and Tenjin-san Market), this is a good choice. Like the Kobo-san Market, it’s held on the grounds of To-ji Temple. You’ll usually find a good selection of antiques at this market.
Aoi Matsuri – image © Chris Rowthorn
15 May 2025
Event: Aoi Matsuri
Location: Kyoto Gosho – Shimogamo-jinja Shrine – Kamigamo-jinja Shrine
Time: Around 10:30am-around 3:30pm
Admission: Viewing on the road is free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
The Aoi Matsuri is one of Kyoto’s three most important festivals. The festival commemorates the time when a sixth-century emperor sent a retinue from the Imperial Palace to Shimogamo-jinja and Kamigamo-jinja shrines in hopes of appeasing the deities and ending a series of disastrous crop failures and epidemics.
On 15 May, the festival starts with a procession from the Gosho (Imperial Palace) starting at 10.30am and continuing to Shimogamo-jinja Shrine and finishing at Kamigamo-jinja Shrine (arriving there around 3.30pm). The best places to watch the procession are in the Kyoto Gyoen (Imperial Palace Park) and the Tadasu-no-mori at Shimogamo-jinja Shrine.
15 May 2025
Event: Chion-ji Temple Handicraft Market
Location: Hyakumanben Chion-ji Temple
Time: 8:00am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Chion-ji Temple hosts a fabulous handicraft market on the 15th of every month. It’s a great place to pick up unique, locally made souvenirs during your travels to Kyoto. It’s also a good chance to see Japan’s alternative community and local expats.
18 May 2025
Event: Mifune Festival
Location: Katsura River, Arashiyama
Time: 2:00am-3:15pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
An extension of the Kurumazaki Shrine Grand Festival, this event sees musicians and performers putting on a show from around twenty traditional boats along the Katsura River. Think dances, music, and even poetry recitations. It recreates imperial boating parties once held by the Kyoto Emperor and his court, so if you’ve ever wondered how Heian nobility used to live around 1200 years ago, this might give you an idea. It’s not exactly a lively celebration in the way most matsuri are, but it is stately and beautiful.
21 May 2025
Event: Kobo-san Market
Location: To-ji Temple
Time: 8:00am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Named for Japan’s most revered Buddhist Saint, Kobo Daishi, this market is one of the two best markets in town (the other being the Tenjin-san Market, held on the 25th). You’ll find all manner of goods on sale here including used kimono, antiques, ceramics, food, bric-a-brac, old postcards and books, and assorted Japanalia. In addition to being a great market, this is also a chance to see Kyoto’s foreign community, which turns out in full, along with hordes of locals.
25 May 2025
Event: Tenjin-san Market
Location: Kitano Tenmangu
Time: 6:00am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Like the Kobo-san market (see previous), this is one of the two best markets in town. It’s named for Sugawara no Michizane, a 9th century poet and scholar who is the patron saint of academic pursuits in Japan. Known colloquially as Tenjin-san, the market is a great excuse to visit this shrine and see people, especially school children, rubbing the two stone bulls in front of the main hall of the shrine (doing so is said to make one more intelligent).
As with the Kobo-san market, this is a great chance to buy used kimono, ceramics, antiques and bric-a-brac, along with food and drink. You’ll also rub shoulders with an interesting assortment of expats and locals.
Kyoto Events Month By Month 2025
- Kyoto Events January 2025
- Kyoto Events February 2025
- Kyoto Events March 2025
- Kyoto Events April 2025
- Kyoto Events May 2025
- Kyoto Events June 2025
- Kyoto Events July 2025
- Kyoto Events August 2025
- Kyoto Events September 2025
- Kyoto Events October 2025
- Kyoto Events November 2025
- Kyoto Events December 2025
Kyoto Vacation Checklist
- For all the essentials in a brief overview, see my First Time In Kyoto guide
- Check Kyoto accommodation availability on Booking.com and Agoda.com - often you can book with no upfront payment and free cancellation
- You can buy shinkansen (bullet train) tickets online from Klook - popular routes include Tokyo to Kyoto, Kyoto to Osaka and Kyoto to Tokyo
- Need tips on where to stay? See my one page guide Where To Stay In Kyoto
- See my comprehensive Packing List For Japan
- You can buy an eSim to activate in Japan or buy a data-only SIM card online for collection when you arrive at Tokyo's Narita or Haneda Airports or Kansai International Airport. You can also rent an unlimited data pocket wifi router
- Compare Japan flight prices and timings to find the best deals
- If you're making frequent train journeys during your visit, you might save money with Japan Rail Pass – see if it's worth it for you
- World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world
- Do you want help planning your trip? Chris Rowthorn and his team of Japan experts at Japan Travel Consulting can help
