Japan Guide
Kyoto
Arrival
Most visitors arrive at Kyoto's impressive JRtrain station. The city is linked by Shinkansen to Tokyo and Nagoya to the east and Ōsaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka to the west. If you're coming direct from Kansai International airport the quickest and easiest option is a JR Haruka Limited Express train, which whisks you direct to Kyoto in just over an hour (¥3490 reserved, ¥2980 unreserved); JR rail passes are valid on this service for unreserved seats. For those not travelling with a JR rail pass, a cheaper option is to take an express from the airport as far as Ōsaka Station, changing there to an express train on the JR Kyoto line.
Alternatively, comfortable airport limousine buses do the journey in under two hours, traffic permitting, terminating on the south (Hachijō-guchi) side of Kyoto Station (1–2 hourly 6am–8pm; ¥2300). Discounted return tickets (¥3800) are also available, but are only valid for 14 days. Limousine buses also run direct from Ōsaka's Itami airport to Kyoto Station (every 30min 6am–7.30pm; 55min; ¥1280), from where local buses and a two-line subway system fan out to all destinations around the city.