Kyoto · NIGHTLIFE
Good nightlife experiences fill up weeks ahead and the great ones go first. Below: the 7 to book early, what each includes and how they differ.
Explore Kyoto’s Kawaramachi and Kiyamachi by night, tasting izakaya food and sake with a local guide for $25, drinks extra.
“Taiga was an amazing host and shared local history and took us to some amazing food and drink spots. I loved the last bar. The vibe was amazing the whole time. Recommend!”
Explore Kyoto’s Pontocho backstreets with a local guide, three izakayas, Kyoto sake, Japanese dishes, and drinks in a small group.
“Food isn’t good compared to every other tour or even street vendors offer. Drinks are fine. Highly unorganized, not a lot of information to learn anything. We did have fun at a karaoke bar though.”
Explore Kyoto after dark with a private local guide, lantern-lit Gion lanes, Pontocho bars, shrines, local drinks, and flexible plans.
“I had a great time at the Fushimi Inari shrine! The guide showed a genuine interest in providing a great experience.”
Explore Kyoto’s Pontocho nightlife with a local guide, three izakayas, Japanese drinks, dinner dishes, and small-group conversation.
“The tour, Hide, was the defining feature of the night. Warm, confident and knowledgeable, easy to speak with Hide genuinely made the night enjoyable with his conversation and engaging manner. Each stop was interesting and each venue visited had amazing food and good drink, each being charming in their own way and the staff of each establishment gracious with their hospitality. The tour selected well, the night enhanced by the guide, meaning it fell much like a friendly get together than anything else. Would recommend my friends to this night, confident their experience would be as amazing as mine.”
Review of KITSUNE Kyoto nightclub, with two music floors, drinks, prices, entry rules, timing tips, and advice on who should book.
Eat, drink, and wander Kyoto after dark with guide Hiro, visiting izakayas around Gion, Pontocho, Kiyamachi, and Yasaka.
“We highly recommend the tour! Hiro is a wonderful guide, who explained us so many details we would never have explored. We saw many beautiful places and enjoyed the lovely athmosphere at night. We had many questions about Japanes everyday life and Hiro answered them all. He speaks english fluently and good german as well (and may be other languages as well) and is a very interessting host. Plus: he took a lot of great pictures and send it to us next morning! We had a fun night!”
Explore Kyoto’s local drinking scene with guide Takeshi, visiting a standing bar, izakaya, and whisky bar in a private three-hour tour.
“Great host who does know places we had never found ourselves. His english is very good and he is informative about everything you ask about.”
