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Any advice for visiting Koya and Nara? We're near the Osakajo-Koen station and plan to spend one day each at Koya and Nara.

Or do the prior threads contain everything we'd want to know?

I’m just surprised you’re looking at visiting Mount Koya as a day trip. I booked a stay at a temple there for a colleague (1 night) and it was one of the highlights of her visit (she also thought the railway journey between here and Osaka was stunning). She found the area was particularly serene early in the morning before most of the visitors arrived. Have you considered staying there overnight? It seems a shame to me not to.

I second LapLap's suggestion -- it's very much an overnight place, in a temple of course. Add in a dusk visit to the Hall of Lanterns and the crazy graveyard at Oku-no-In, then join the meditation/chanting session in the early hours of the morning and you'll have an experience you won't soon forget.

Various recommendations:
http://wikitravel.org/en/Mount_Koya

I totally agree. Staying overnight is an essential part of the experience. Otherwise, it's just more temples, and the rail journey, while beautiful, does take time.

All the temples charge the same and are booked through a central office, the contact info for which is given in all major guidebooks. You get an ample vegan dinner, a room comparable to a mid-level ryokan, listening to the monks chant at dawn, and a vegan breakfast. Then you can start your wanderings through the wooded grounds to the Okunoin. Don't miss the often amusing modern cemetery where recent industrialists have bought tombs marked with the symbols of their industries.

Just in case you're becoming interested, my colleague stayed here:
http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/d...hojoshinin.htm

Alas, we are already locked into hotel stays. Would it make sense to arrive very early (or to stay late)? Do trains run at those times?

You could do the mountaintop Kurama-tera ( northern Kyoto ) instead of Koya. Get an early Keihan train from Osaka directly to Demachi-Yanagi station from where the Eizan trains to Kurama depart.

From Kurama station you can get a cab or hitchhike to the village. Spend the morning hiking to the buddhist temple, don't take the easy way by cablecar. The views are spectacular and you would never think of being in the middle of 15+ million people Kansai.

After coming back to the village, get a few sake bottles from the local store and head to the outside "rotenburo" pools. It's great to just lie there and sip a bit of rice wine heated in the pool while watching the scenery.

You can then either have a late lunch at the main building of the spa or return to the city for endless choices. With some shopping added you'll be back in Osaka by dinnertime.

You're talking about Koya san? My first visit was just a day trip (and mainly a hiking trip - we only had a couple of hours at the top). I've since been back and stayed overnight, which was a great experience - but you can certainly get a lot from just a day trip.

Arriving early is a good idea - Although you are unlikely to be early enough to catch morning prayers (around 6am in many temples). On arrival, I recommend taking a bus from the station to the far end of town (Oku-no-in) and walking back through the cemetery. You should be in the center of town by lunch time. There's an expensive but excellent restaurant on the main street that offers buddhist veg. bento lunches and high-end set lunches (I think I had a bento for about 3000yen). That might be a good spot to eat before seeing the pagoda and main temple.

IMHO there is no point staying late unless you're staying overnight. This town shuts early. The overnight experience is highly rated because folks go back to their temple lodgings and enjoy a delicious buddhist vegetarian meal in serene surroundings. Some of the major buildings are beautifully lit up, which can make for an enjoyable evening stroll. Other than that, there's not much going on after dark... and it's cold.

Any suggestions on how to identify this restaurant? Buddhist veg is exactly what we would like to eat. I'd imagine most food in the neighborhood is Buddhist veg, but would like to find a nice version.

Does the Nankai train ticket include the cable car or bus? Browsing the web and guidebooks there is a lot of inconsistent information on pricing and timing of transportation. Everyone seems to agree that there's a train from Namba to Gokurakubashi and then a short cable ride up the mountain, but after that views diverge.

Restaurant name = Hanabishi
You will recognize it from the purple noren curtains and the line of people outside.

http://r.gnavi.co.jp/Mg/50/3006050.html

Bento (not vegetarian) = 2,940yen
EDITED - THE BENTO here are not veg. (My memory let me down before).

The shojin dishes ARE buddhist vegetarian:
Shojin kaiseki lunch set = 2,100yen
Full on shojin kaiseki sets = 5,000 to 10,500yen

It's worth going into the store that sells traditional Japanese sweets, which is on the same road - maybe 50 meters closer to the oku-no-in.
I don't recall the name, but it's the one with all the cakes displayed on wooden box-tray things. There are some tables inside where you can take a cup of hoji tea and a sesame cake or something. Nice.

In fact, as I recall, the last train UP the mountain arrives at about 6PM, although I don't recall when the last train DOWN leaves.

Hanabishi and the tea shop were very tasty. Thanks

FWIW, Kongobuji was a real highlight - wonderful screens and gardens. The fall foliage combined very well with the gardens.

Overnight stay - Mount Koya
 

A short pictorial TR we posted on another board.

http://www.sqtalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2726
posts 1-4.

Would do a proper TR when I'm free (or so she says). :o

Lovely pictures!!!

Which temple did you stay in phaleesy? I can't see it mentioned.

The temple is Eko-In. You can also see the name of the temple in kanji on the lantern by the right pillar of the entrance in the first picture.