I don't recall seeing a lot of western tourists anywhere during our trip to Kyoto - even during cherry blossom season. OTOH - there were plenty of tourists/visitors - including lots of groups of school children. Cherry blossom season is - after all - one of the peak tourist seasons everywhere in Japan (we were told there were 50,000+ people at the Osaka Cherry Blossom Festival the night we went there). So going to Kyoto during cherry blossom season and trying to avoid tourists would be as futile as going to New England during leaf-changing season and trying to avoid tourists.

I guess if people want to avoid tourists in Kyoto - they should avoid cherry blossom season. Perhaps go in the heat of the summer - or the cold of the winter. Then they'd only be dealing with some pretty nasty weather. OTOH - they wouldn't be able to see the cherry blossoms or the other wonderful flowers that spring up that time of year. The flowers were one of the highlights of my trip . They were - in some cases - as entertaining - or more entertaining - than the "cultural sites" themselves. I found the gardens here especially spectacular:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ry%C5%8Dan-ji

Also - if one wants to get away from "tourists" in Kyoto - he/she need only visit Kyoto Station. An amazing building IMO:

http://www.jrtr.net/jrtr28/pdf/f18_tir.pdf

Really a small city within a larger one. My husband and I spent hours exploring it and marveling at the architecture. Also the hundreds of stores/shops and restaurants. As well as the number of people who pass through daily (hundreds of thousands). It stands in stark contrast to "historic" Kyoto:

http://www.digital-images.net/Galler...otoscenic.html

Robyn