Must visit areas in Kyoto: Gion (Geisha District) and Okamoto Kimono rentals

The city of Kyoto is truly the center of Japanese culture; here you may spot the remaining Geishas walking by the streets of Gion, where a number of  temples and shrines are still preserved as part of the 17 World Heritage Sites across Kyoto and the tradition of Japanese stage drama, theater and dance numbers are still showcased.



Gion is the known Geisha district of Japan. The wooden homes are lined up on both sides of the street, restaurants offering traditional Japanese cuisine and entertainment can be found in each corner. The most expensive and exclusive of these restaurants are known as Ochaya (teahouse) where maiko's and geiko's hosts and entertain hundreds of guests that still visit til this day.

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There are also several stores you can choose from that offers whole day kimono/yukata rentals! We tried out a place called Okamoto Kimono which we found over the internet. The streets of Kyoto are a bit confusing since there are not many street signs to guide you, we found that the best way to getting to your destination is asking the locals for help. Some of them would actually walk with you so you wont get lost!

We arrived at the Okamoto branch of Gion after a few minutes. We were greeted with a warm welcome and the store ladies guided us on the process. There were a few locals who were also availing of the services. Most of them were young couples going out on a date.

The store offers different set of rentals ranging from Y3,000 to Y5,000 per person. The cheaper sets can get you limited choices of kimonos to choose from (around 15-25 designs) while the most expensive set includes a wider variety of kimono outfits (600+ outfits to choose from).

The kimono set includes the following pieces: undershirt, kimono, obi (stretchable belt), obi accessories, tabi-socks, geisha bag and traditional Japanese sandals.

After selecting your chosen kimono design, you are ushered to a changing area where you will be dressed by professionals. You literally just stand there while the women do all the dressing for you. It took around 20 minutes for you to get fully dressed. (Scenes of Memoirs of a Geisha come into mind during this whole experience)

FYI. There is an optional geisha hair styling service for an additional Y500 yen. Choices include stylish and modern updo's as well as the traditional geisha hairdo complete with hair accessories. Will definitely avail of this next time for the complete geisha experience!

My set came in socks with panda designs on it (kawaii!), and you get to take home the socks as souvenir afterwards! Plus the shop is picture perfect for that awesome Japanese corridor shot.

We were able to walk around Kyoto for half a day feeling like a proper Geisha, we even had lunch in our Kimono outfits in a nearby Japanese tatami restaurant.

There are so many temples and heritage sites in Kyoto you can visit while wearing the kimono, just be sure that your feet is prepared to walk with the Japanese slippers as it is a bit slippery and hard to walk in. All in all the kimono rental experience was well worth it and actually pretty affordable! Hope to hear all about your geisha experience as well!