Nara was once the capital of Japan in the pre-Kyoto era. This place is a living history museum home to eight UNESCO world heritage temples, shrines and historic ruins. Just 45 minutes train ride from Kyoto, Nara is a favourite day trip option for travellers. Whilst seeing all the historical stops are great, but the reality is; by the time most visitors set foot on Nara soil, they are already so sick of looking at temples, shrines and gardens. For those who want something that has nothing to do with those three things here is a list of activities you can do while still learning about Japanese culture.
Have an Oh-deer Moment – Nara Park (奈良公園)
Deers are synonymous with Nara. These en-deering creatures are one of the main attractions for visitors. Sika deers are considered a sacred animal for the Japanese people; this means they are free to do what they want. You can find them in large groups at Nara Park. There will be the occasional daring one which roams solo around Nara so don’t be too alarmed if you see one. Visitors at Nara Park can experiences what it’s like to be eaten by, I mean, feeding the deers. If you look for a granny or grandpa half dozing on a chair with deer feeding signages near them, then you will have most likely found the kiosks that sell Senbei (deer crackers). Deers love these crackers and can smell them on you from a mile away.
When you are feeding the deers, they will bow to you as a form of asking for cookies. Be warned that once one deer have been fed by you the numbers of deers that will surround you will multiply at lightning speed. Do not keep cookies in your pocket or your clothes will suffer the dire consequences and being eaten in all the madness. Please do not feed the deers anything but the cookies as human food is bad for their health. Once you have finished feeding them, please put the paper cookie wrapper in the bin as deers will eat them off the ground. If you are uncomfortable with coming into intimate contact with medium-sized animals, give the feeding a miss. It can be very entertaining watching other people feed them.
Opening Hours: Nara park is open 24/7, but the deer cookie kiosk is only there during the day.
Price: Admission to the park is free. Deer cookies were about 150 Yen when we were there.
Getting there: Approximately 15min walk from Nara Station (奈良駅)
Tips: Deers love to surround a feeder and can get pretty desperate for the food. I recommend walking away as soon as the number of deers grows past five or you risk being swamped and mistakenly head-butted or nipped. Make sure you hold onto your belongings, anything dropped or expose have the potential to be taken and eaten before you can recover it!
Visit the Famous Mochi Man – Nakatanidou Mochi Shop (中谷堂)
Mochi or Japanese sticky rice cake is not just a delicious snack, but the process of making it is a national sport! Nakatanidou mochi shop is known as one of the fastest mochi makers in town. Run by their current owner, Mitsuo Nakatani, for more than 25 years, this traditional shop has won the national championship title for mochitsuki (mochi making) in bot 2005 and 2006. The neck-breaking speed at which they pound the glutenous rice into mochi is a sight to behold. No wonder these guys went viral on the internet a few years back! The team isn’t always in action but if you are lucky enough to catch them, be in for a long show. Mochi’s take a long time to make with the pounding technique. I highly recommend this as a snack stop on your way to explore Nara.
Opening Hours: 7 Days, 10:00 – 19:00. May close during public holidays.
Price: This is a cash only store. One mochi is around 130 Yen.
Getting there: This shop is approximately 10 minutes walk from Nara Station (奈良駅)
Tip: The specialty of this store is Yomogi mochi. These chewy green treats are made from sticky rice and Japanese mugwort. It comes filled with Anko (sweet red bean paste) made from red Anko beans.
Most Authentic Traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony – Kissano An (喫茶去庵)
I’ve been to many different Japanese traditional tea ceremonies during my trips to Japan, and the most authentic was from Kissano An in Nara. The teahouse master here provided the most insightful, educational and hands-on experience of what an actual Japanese tea ceremony should be. This experience is not just your average touristy, wishy-washy tea ceremony show but a fundamental lesson on what the real thing is. They offer different varieties of matcha to cater to different tea-drinking taste. Accompanying their matcha drink, guests can choose to have wagashi (Japanese tea sweets) or full formal tea ceremony courses which includes a light meal. The price for all this is surprisingly affordable.
The master speaks enough basic English to communicate, and there are english information sheets to make things easier. For those who have knee problems or have trouble kneeling, there are low seats available. The experience is only available by reservation. If you are worried about language barriers when booking, you can head to the Nara visitor centre and ask their tourist information assistants to help you book. Private group bookings are available for groups of two or more. For groups of more than 8, they will change to a bigger tea house nearby and will provide the new venue address during the booking process.
Opening Hours: Depends on bookings. 10:00 – 18:00 (Spring – Autumn), 10:00 – 17:30 (Winter). Close on Wednesdays, year – end and New Year holidays.
Price: This is a cash only store. Price will depend on matcha choice and which tea ceremony course chosen.
Getting there: This shop is approximately 20 minutes walk from Nara Station (奈良駅) or 10 minute walk from Nara Park (奈良公園)
Tip: Get a private tea ceremony session (need 2 or more) to enjoy things at your own pace. This way you can also ask as many questions as you want. If you are curious about Japanese history, art and tea ceremony facts, the master is full of knowledge.
Taste Some Japanese Sake – Harushika Sake (今西清兵衛商店)
Located in Naramachi district of Nara, this is a must-visit stop if you want to sample the famous Japanese rice wine – Sake. Started Originally a residence of a senior monk a Kohfukuji Temple, Harashika sake brewery has been running since 1884. In time, this well known local brewery has produced numerous internationally acclaimed sake. Visitors interested in the historic residence and garden can tour it with a small entrance fee. Brewery tours are only available in limited number on weekends during February each year. If you are curious about the production process of sake, I will highly recommend doing the tour.
If the sake tasting is the only thing on your to-do list, you can do it at the main shop next door. Due to the popularity of this among foreign visitors, there are plenty of English speaking guides to take you through each wine and help answer your questions. Each visitor that does the sake tasting will get to keep their small Harushika sake cup as a souvenir. For ice cream lovers, they have a homemade sake-flavoured ice cream wafers here.
Opening Hours: 7 Days 8:15 – 17:15. Close for summer, year-end and New Year holiday. There are no sake tasting on offer when there are special events taking place.
Price: This is a cash only store. Entry is free but there is a small fee for sake tasting samples. You will get five different samples for around 500 Yen.
Getting there: Approximately 23 minutes walk from Nara Station (奈良駅) or 7 minute walk from Nara Park (奈良公園)
Tip: Highly recommend doing the full tasting menu. They also provide dried Ume and small preserved snacks to accompany the sake. The preserved snacks are part of Japanese drinking and food culture so give it a go. Please don’t scull your shot of sake all at one go as Sake goes down easy but the level of dizziness goes up fast!
Experience an Edo-era House – Naramachi Koshino Ie(ならまち格子の家)
Located not too far from Harushika Sake Brewery is a perfect replica of a traditional Naramachi machiya townhouse. There are not many of these Edo-era houses left in Nara. Visiting here will give you a realistic perspective of what homes and life were like in Edo Japan. This long and narrow council-run house is free to enter. There’s not many English information signage around, but there is information pamphlets at the entrance which will help. If you are lucky enough, there is an old lady attendant who loves origami here. She will give visitors one of her pretty origami creations (I got a sika deer) and if you ask nicely, she will teach you how to make them.
Opening Hours: 9:00 – 17:00 Tuesdays – Sundays. Closed Mondays, Tuesdays if Monday is a public holiday, year-end and New Year holidays.
Price: Entry is Free
Getting there: Approximately 22 minutes walk from Nara Station (奈良駅) or 15 minute walk from Nara Park (奈良公園) or 7 minute walk from Harushika Sake (今西清兵衛商店)
Tip: This is on the same street block as Harushika Sake Brewery, you can explore here before or after you do sake tasting. There are information leaflets provided in English.
When to visit Nara
Nara is great to visit at any time of the year. For photographers who want to capture pretty shots, I highly recommend seeing this old Japanese capital during autumn. November through to mid-December is when you can capture leaves turning golden and brilliant red. Japanese Maples are extra stunning among these changing leaves. The old houses and red temples against the colourful foliage is a breathtaking scene every traveller should see at least once in their lifetime. You can find more of Japan Autumn foliage spots here.
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