Attractions · Nara
Things to do in Nara.
Most of Nara is walked for free; what sells here is the deer crackers, the kimono, and the packaged day tour that brings you.
Nara Park and the deer
Twelve hundred semi-tame deer roaming the park between the great sights, bowing for the crackers sold everywhere.
How to book: Free. The deer crackers (shika senbei) are the only food to feed them.
Todai-ji and the Great Buddha
The largest wooden building in the world, holding a 15 metre bronze Buddha in place since the 700s.
How to book: Tickets at the gate.
Kasuga Taisha
The shrine of three thousand lanterns, bronze inside the halls and stone along the forest paths.
How to book: The outer grounds are free; the inner areas charge a small fee.
Mount Wakakusa
The grass hill behind the park with the whole Nara basin below it, set alight on purpose each January for the Yamayaki festival.
How to book: A small entry fee in season.
Nara National Museum
Buddhist sculpture and temple treasures, with the celebrated Shosoin exhibition each autumn.
How to book: Tickets at the door; closed Mondays.
Kohfukuji Temple
The five-storey pagoda over Sarusawa pond: the postcard of Nara, once the Fujiwara clan's temple.
How to book: Grounds are free; the treasure halls charge entry.
Toshodaiji Temple
The quiet masterwork of eighth-century temple building in the west of the city, away from the park crowds.
How to book: Tickets at the gate.
Horyu-ji Temple
The world's oldest wooden buildings, southwest of the centre: the founding temple of Japanese Buddhism.
How to book: Tickets at the gate; pair it with Chugu-ji next door.
Ikoma Sanjo Amusement Park
A mountaintop funfair reached by cat-shaped cable cars: retro rides and the whole Osaka plain below.
How to book: Cable car and ride tickets at the station; closed in winter.
Kimono rental in Nara
Kimono for the day among the deer and the old town lanes, often with a photo shoot.
How to book: Booked online by the day.
Naramachi
The old merchant quarter south of the park: machiya townhouses, sake tasting and small museums.
How to book: Free to wander.
Nara day tours from Osaka and Kyoto
The packaged way in: Nara Park and Todai-ji bundled with Fushimi Inari or Arashiyama in one guided day.
How to book: Full-day tours run daily from both cities.
Planning the stay itself: the city guides cover what is on, and the hotels page covers where to sleep near it.