Originally Posted by
psychtobe
Thanks for the feedback - a litle confused by the bolded portion - are you saying this because 2 years olds are not allowed in the temples, or because they are not stroller accessible, or...??? We also have and can use a backpack carrier if that would help the situation.
No rules against 2 year olds, Japan is remarkably supportive of children in general and infants in particular. Just noting that it's quite a ways to the two temples we walked to (one in either direction along the mountainside) and further, I suspect, that you'd want to stroller with a 2 yr old. Agree with iahphx about the proximity to green space: the hotel is set in some beautiful gardens, and it would be easy to let a 2 yr old play outside with a little parental supervision.
Also as a note, it was a bit of a surprise to me to learn that Japanese temples aren't like Western churches: they're really large compounds with collections of buildings, some of them open to the elements on all sides, others enclosures with the equivalent of altars and shrines....set within a park and gardens with water and other elemental features. One temple we visited on the outskirts of Kyoto had at least a hundred "gates" in a park that must have been half a mile square - gorgeous, peaceful, and not like Western cathedrals at all - but a good place to contemplate nonetheless. Enjoy your trip!