Everyone enters Kyoto's famous shrine the same way - but a local showed me a hidden route
Instead of climbing 12,000 steps, we took a leisurely stroll - minus the crowds.
There are more than 30,000 shrines in Japan dedicated to Inari, the deity of fertility, rice, tea and sake. But the most significant is the one in Kyoto. Dating back to 711 CE, Fushimi Inari Shrine is perched on a hill, 233 metres above sea level, with more than 10,000 vermilion torii gates leading to it.
It's an intense climb, with thousands of tourists heading in the same direction. But Nao Yokoyama, the cultural ambassador of Four Seasons Kyoto, where we're staying, has a better plan.
Instead of leading a small group of hotel guests through the front entrance with more than 12,000 steps, Nao - born and raised in Kyoto - takes us on a gentle hike through secluded bamboo forests and storybook bridges, ending up at the shrine's back entrance.
It's busy when we finally get to the heart of it, but even amid a sea of selfie sticks, there are devout pilgrims - like this couple, lost in prayer in a temple under a ceiling of lanterns.
We leave the shrine using the front entrance, so we still get to pass through those mesmerising torii gates. But instead of ascending the steps, we're descending them. A far sweeter trade-off in the end.
The writer was a guest of Four Seasons Kyoto
Akash is the Deputy Travel Editor for Australian Community Media. He has lived and worked in four cities around the world – Sydney, London, New Delhi and New York – and, at last count, travelled to 42 countries.
My all-time favourite destination is ... New York. You can drop a pin anywhere in Manhattan and start walking in any direction, and the sights and sounds of the city that never stops will begin to stimulate all your senses in an instant.
Next on my bucket list is … Scandinavia - at the peak of summer, when the sun almost never sets.
My top travel tip is … If you’re flying to Sydney from anywhere in the world, pick a window seat far from the wing on the left-hand-side of the aeroplane. If the weather gods and flight path align, you’ll have the most incredible views of the Sydney Harbour and Opera House.
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