Fushimi -Inari will jog your memory if you think back to many of the scenes from Memoirs of a Geisha. (If you can’t remember – the Youtube clip here may help.)
Reasons I recommend visiting with children:
- Fushimi Inari Shrine is only two local stations ( 5 minutes) from JR Kyoto to Inari station on the Nara line.
- It’s also free to visit (which makes it easy with children because you can easy “pull the pin” and not have lots any money if it doesn’t work out as planned)
- There are lots of yatai food stalls selling lots of yummy and cheap street food at the base of the shrine
- There are lots of restrooms all around the area.
- There are lots of convenience stores near both stations (Inari & Fushimi Inari Stations.)
*Note: this is a sunny day visit only. There really isn’t anywhere to hide from the rain*
I recommend going as early in the morning if possible if you want to escape the crowds. However, if you’re interested in the street food – you may want to arrive after 10am and brave the crowds in order to do so.
I also recommend doing it late in the evening with kids. If you’re staying near Kyoto Station, have baths, put them in their pjs and make it a little night walk – it’s a cute things to do and less busy once the sun starts to go down.
I don’t believe it makes a whole lot of difference as to which station you arrive into. Both Inari & Fushimi Inari are very close to each other. We chose Inari as we were coming from Kyoto Station. Inari Station is right in front of the shrine entrance but we arrived and then walked towards Fushimi Inari Station because I had been googling around about any playgrounds in the area for a wriggle around first.
The roads between the stations are lined with little cafes, food stalls and souvenir shops.
I bought us some inari sushi (it’s slightly vinegar- flavoured rice wrapped in a thin layer of tofu) – mainly because I also like to eat inari in Inari!! They are sold on tables outside restaurants and if you only want a small pack it costs as little as 130 yen.
This is what inari sushi looks like.
Okay … so the playground that we managed to find is NOT beautiful but if , like me, your kids need somewhere to play before or after the shrine this place is handy to have up your sleeve.
It’s right next to the train line at Fushimi Inari Station, on the Shrine side of the railway line.
It’s hidden behind the line of souvenir shops and an open-air coin parking.
There are two swings, a slide and a small lion statue to climb on.
You wouldn’t want to stay here forever but, still, my kids had a great time here.
Okay …so then moving on to the actual shrine…
Yes. I would recommend taking your stroller.
There are ramps up to almost the beginning of the red torii gates.
Before the gates are the food stands and the actual shrine buildings this part of the shrine has ramps / sloped walk ways.
Here there are small torii gates sold for 500 yen.
You can write a prayer and hang or I think they also make beautiful souvenirs.
There are two large concrete staircases just before the torii gates.
Two lots of these steps as pictured below.
And there are bells to ring between the two staircases.
All parents were leaving their strollers at the base of the staircase at this point and I did the same. (Another reason why I don’t recommend bringing your favourite, posh stroller to Japan as I’ve mentioned in my post about preparing for your Japan trip – see here for the post.)
UPDATE: *Warning, a friend of mine visited not long ago said that there are NO STROLLER PARKING signs at the bottom of the stairs now. For that reason, you may want to reconsider a stroller after all OR ‘parking’ your stroller somewhere closer to the station ( it is Japan so unlikely someone will take it, but of course, it is up to you.)
I knew that my 2 year old and 4 year old at the time wouldn’t make it very far through the gates (the actual full walk takes between 2-3 hours so if you’re kids are game and you’re feeling brave – please go for it – I just knew it wouldn’t work for us while my kids are this age) so this is what we did.
Up through the first set of giant red gates.
Then there are two sets of smaller gates and visitors are to walk up the right side and down the left on the way back from the full hike.
So what did we do? At the top of the right side…. we did a u-turn and walked down the left and then back through the big gates and then we were done! This Fushimi Inari torii gate walk took us around 30-40 minutes in total. Then exploring the grounds before the staircase took around 15 minutes. Eating and searching for street food – another 15 minutes.
Of course – you can add more time if you all want to walk further up the hill.
For bigger kids, did you know there is Japanese cafe/ restaurant 20 mins into the walk along Fushimi Inari? If that’s not motivation to keep walking I don’t know what is !!!!!!
This casual restaurant is called Nishimuratei and I recommend the melon soda (called an ice-cream float in some parts of the world and a spider in Australia, where I’m from.)
Please note that this cafe is cash only. The cafe seats 100 so it would be unusual for you to miss out on a spot here. Kids are welcome here. Seating is tatami which, I find, is even easier with kids as they can put their legs out or sit cross legged.
If you decide to eat a meal here (it’s pretty simple food so please don’t get too excited) I would budget for around 1000 yen per adult. Menu options include Inari-zushi, udon and traditional Japanese sweets.
NISHIMURATEI FUSHIMI INARI
OPEN WEEKDAYS 10AM-3PM (LAST ORDER 2PM)
OPEN WEEKENDS 9AM-5PM
The kids really loved exploring Fushimi Inari. More than I thought that they would.
It looks so beautiful inside the red tunnel of torii gates and they really knew that they were somewhere special too.
I think this walk would be sooooo cute with a baby who has just started to walk too! How special would that be? First few steps in this magical spot?!!!
Although I have given the top tips for the short cut way to do the shrine, if your kids can last quite a bit longer up the hill – you will manage to really take in the tori gates without the tourists around ( just by walking an additional 15 minutes.) It does depend on the age of your children. Don’t make life harder than it needs to be.
Before we entered the shrine, we bought some fox masks to wear while we walked around. Foxes are thought to be Inari’s messengers so there are lots of fox statues around the shrine.
My kids loved searching and finding as many foxes as possible.
All-in-all, for us, this was a half-day activity.
WHERE TO EAT NEAR FUSHIMI INARI WITH KIDS
Vermillion Cafe
If you’re looking for decent coffee , avocado on toast or just a really lovely cafe, make sure you check out Vermillion Cafe near the station. The owner used to live in Melbourne and the quality of the coffee shows!
And if you’re looking for a bit of a lush dinner or lunch with a reasonable price tag at a restaurant that also allows children near Fushimi Inari, I recommend Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu Fushimi Inari for Kobe Beef and Wagyu. It’s a Beef Cutlet restaurant. It is high quality beef, crumbed and fried so that the outside is crunchy and served with a range of sauces (dipping sauces) and rice. The restaurant is entirely non-smoking. They have an English menu. They also accept most major credit cards.
Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu Fushimi Inari is 3 mins walk from Fushimi Inari Station. This restaurant welcomes children and babies. They also have a kids menu (750 yen).
Each meal is approx 2000 yen. You can see the full Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu menu here. (Click bottom right to change the language to English) This restaurant is walk-in only.
GYUKATSU KYOTO KATSGYU FUSHIMI INARI
京都市伏見稲荷区深草一ノ坪町38-13 リバーサイドハイツ 1F
GROUND FLOOR, RIVERSIDE HEIGHTS BUILDING, 38-13 FUKAKUSA ICHINOTSUBOCHO, FUSHIMIINARI-KU, KYOTO
OPEN EVERYDAY 11AM-8:30PM
For lunch before or after Fushimi Inari, I recommend Dragon Burger just near Fushimi Inari Station. They accept most major credit cards and are open 11am-8pm everyday. See their full Dragon Burger menu here.
Once you’ve entered the shrine (after the food stalls) is a big public restroom with a change table in the disabled restroom.
I didn’t have any luck with a feeding room so I would recommend just taking a feeding cloth and feeding in a cafe or in a quiet corner of the shrine grounds.
Please see HERE for my other Kyoto with Kids suggestions.
