9 of the Best Museums in Kyoto and How To Visit

The Kyoto National Museum is one of Japan’s four national museums—alongside the nearby Nara National Museum, Kyushu National Museum in Fukuoka, and the Tokyo National Museum. That gives you an idea of the importance of the collections within the red-brick Meiji-era building and a modern wing. Here you’ll find a huge range of artifacts, from calligraphy to clothing, sculptures to ceramics. The Kyoto National Museum is conveniently located in Kyoto’s Higashiyama ward, near several temples and shrines, including the Chishakuin Temple and Toyokuni Shrine, which you could drop in to see before or after.

Don’t miss: Fashion and textile enthusiasts should seek out the 18th-century kimono decorated with a scene featuring a horseback race at Kyoto’s Kamigamo Shrine.

The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto (MoMAK) showcases some 13,000 contemporary artworks from western Japan. It’s a must-visit for anyone interested in Japanese art history as it provides a comprehensive overview spanning four floors. MoMAK is located in large Okazaki Park, where you could easily spend a day exploring several other Kyoto modern art museums and galleries, including the Japan Design Museum, Kyoto Museum of Crafts and Design, and Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art—as well as the must-visit Heian Shrine.

Don’t miss: The building in which the National Museum of Modern Art is housed was designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize–winning architect Maki Fumihiko, so look up from the collections to take notice.

Fushimi, south of central Kyoto, is a renowned sake-making town, thanks in part to its good-quality groundwater. You can learn more about sake-making processes during a visit to Fushimi’s Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum, either on an independent self-guided tour or on a guided tour alongside other breweries and eateries around Kyoto. The company has been making sake since 1637, but the museum is built in an old brewery dating from 1909 and retains its traditional layout, architectural style, and atmosphere.

Don’t miss: The wooden containers, sake barrels, and other tools on display in the museum’s North Exhibit Room.

Japan is renowned for its martial arts and warrior traditions, and it’s easy to imagine feudal-era samurai marching through the old streets of Kyoto. Whether you’re traveling with kids or are just interested in Japanese culture and history, the Samurai and Ninja Museum is a fun destination. You can try on samurai armor and practice martial skills, including sword handling and ninja blowgun techniques. If you’re keen to take your martial arts practice to a new level (or learn a new skill from scratch), martial arts classes are offered throughout Kyoto.

Don’t miss: The 300-year-old Edo-period samurai armor on display.

This one’s for the potters and ceramics collectors: Kyoto’s Raku Museum. Raku is a technique of handbuilding and low firing that’s associated with traditional Japanese ceramics, particularly tea bowls. The technique was developed around 450 years ago by a man named Chojiro Raku—his family continues the tradition, and runs this museum. The Raku Museum is located in a residential neighborhood—the Raku family lives and works right next door—so visiting also gives you a taste of ordinary modern life in this ancient city.

Don’t miss: Among the collection of minimalist and functional tea bowls, the 17th-century chrysanthemum-shaped incense holder, with pearlescent-glazed petals, stands out.

While Kyoto is better known for its traditional and high culture, pop culture enthusiasts won’t miss out when they visit the Kyoto International Manga Museum. The museum displays a permanent exhibit titled What Is Manga? that will fill you in if you didn’t already know. Although the museum displays Japanese-language books and most of the museum is in Japanese, there’s also an international section with some books in English and other languages, as well as some English signage. It’s located conveniently near the must-visit Nijo-jo Castle.

Don’t miss: The manga wall, featuring around 50,000 books.

Period dramas—especially those from the Japanese feudal era—are popular in Japan, and many are filmed at the Toei Kyoto Studio Park. This is a film studio, theme park, and museum dedicated to the Japan of yesteryear, all rolled into one of the best Kyoto cultural attractions. You don’t need to have seen any Japanese historical TV shows to enjoy this place, as there are ninja shows, an open-air architectural museum (and film set), costume rental, a haunted house, and more. It’s a great place to have a private photoshoot, too.

Don’t miss: The realistic replica of an old Edo (Tokyo) street—even though the park is in Kyoto.

An easy day or half-day trip from Kyoto, the beautiful Miho Museum was designed by renowned Chinese-American architect I. M. Pei, perhaps better known for his glass pyramid outside Paris’ Louvre Museum. While the setting of the Miho Museum couldn’t be much different from central Paris—it sits within a forest in the mountains of Shigaraki, east of Kyoto—the angular, light-filled spaces do echo that iconic pyramid. Inside, the Miho Museum displays a fine private collection of ancient artifacts spanning civilizations as diverse as Egypt, India, and China.

Don’t miss: Take time to appreciate the natural surroundings as you stroll from the ticket counter along a pedestrian tunnel that opens out into a gorge.

After visiting museums in Kyoto, you might feel like purchasing a beautifully crafted souvenir to take home with you. While the Kyoto Handicraft Center is actually a multi-floor store selling Japanese arts and crafts—including kimono, woodblock prints, Japanese dolls, ornamental swords, lacquerware, calligraphy, and much more—it’s just as fun to browse as it is to buy, as the collection is so extensive. Visit independently or on a guided shopping tour of Kyoto. The center also features on many guided bus tours of the city.

Don’t miss: The byobu decorative folding screens, intended as room dividers. They’re not practical to stow in your luggage, so admire the artwork in-store.