Koyasan was a mountain that is home for hundreds of temples, just a few hours away from Osaka. It was listed as #1 side trip destination from Kyoto/Osaka in Japan Guide, thus we decided to give it a visit. The temple stay experience was one of the most-sought experience and it certainly didn’t disappoint.
Our journey to Koyasan started from Namba (Nankai) station in downtown Osaka. There are two Namba station in that area, one is the JR Namba and the other is the Nankai Namba. There’s a big Swissotel building beside the Nankai Namba station so you should not get any difficulty to find which one is the correct station. From there we need to take Nankai Koya line all the way to Gokurakubashi station, which was around one hour long. Some trains required a transfer in Hashimoto station, so pay attention to the announcements. Whenever in doubt, don’t hesitate to ask any train officers ‘Koyasan doko desuka?’ and they will gladly point you to the correct train.
Once we arrived at Gokurakubashi station we had to transfer to a 5-minute cable car ride to Koyasan station. The total journey (from Namba to Koyasan) costed ¥1,260 and took around one and half hours. I would recommended not to bring bulky luggage with you if possible, since transferring here and there was quite a hassle.
Koyasan village itself is quite small and simple to navigate, it has a Y shape with Koyasan station and Daimon gate on the two ends of the branch, and Okunoin at the tail end. The middle intersection where most of the temples are located were conveniently accessed by Senjuinbashi bus stop. Our temple was Fukuchi-in, one of the biggest around (and I think the only one with onsen in Koyasan!), was one stop before Senjuinbashi. Overall you will not encounter any difficulties going around Koyasan with their simple and efficient bus network, and most of the places are within walking distance anyway.
A few things to take note when you visit Koyasan:
- Most of the temples have curfew, make sure you check what time they closed the main gate before going out at night.
- Temples are sacred place, obey their rules!
- Wake up early and attend their morning prayer session. It was peaceful and relaxing, although you won’t understand a single word.
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