In preparing for the trip, we read the Lonely Planet Japan guide a lot. Its cover wooed us to visit the bamboo forest at Arashiyama, a place in the far west of Kyoto. After seeing some crowds the previous day, we thought we would be mentally prepared.

The trip from our side of town was via 2 trains, which was easy enough to navigate, but as soon as we arrived at Arashiyama station, we got a feeling that this was a pretty popular spot.

The bamboo forest was a 10 minute walk, which we shared with the crowds. Others seem to have found a quicker way.

And of course, the bamboo forest was also shared with the masses.

Although I was able to take some pretty shots of the bamboo.

I’ve been told that Kyoto gets even more crowded at Hanami (the cherry blossom viewing season in the spring), which I can’t even imagine. So for those thinking about going to Kyoto (or even Japan for that matter) around that time and are wary of crowds, you have been warned!