Getting there
Getting to Gojō station
How to reach the maiko tea ceremony near Gojō Station on Kyoto's Karasuma subway line: the exit to use, the stairs, timing and what to bring.
Choose a date for the tea ceremony ↗Quick answer
Take the Kyoto Municipal Subway's Karasuma Line to Gojō Station and leave by Exit 1. The venue is a short walk away, in a building whose entrance faces Gojō-dōri. The Karasuma Line meets JR lines at Kyoto Station and the Hankyu Kyoto Line at Shijō. There is no lift in the building, so expect stairs.
The station
Gojō Station is on the Karasuma Line of the Kyoto Municipal Subway, in Shimogyō ward. It has an island platform serving two tracks. On maps and signs the line is coloured green and its stations are numbered with the letter K, which makes the stop easy to find on a platform board.
The line
The Karasuma Line is one of the two lines of the Kyoto Municipal Subway. Between Kitaōji and Jūjō it runs beneath Karasuma Street, which gives the line its name.
Exit 1 and the entrance
Leave the station by Exit 1. The venue is a short walk away, and its entrance faces Gojō-dōri, a major street that crosses the centre of Kyoto from east to west. Look for the building entrance on the main road rather than in a side lane. Your booking confirmation carries the meeting-point details.
Stairs and timing
The building has no lift, so every room means climbing stairs. Allow a little time for the climb and for finding the right entrance, and be there ahead of the start time printed on your booking. Only people booked on the programme may go in, so anyone not joining should plan to wait elsewhere.
What to bring
Bring your booking on a charged phone, and some cash if you might want a front-row seat upgrade or a snack, both sold at the venue. Write two or three questions for the maiko or geiko in advance. If you arranged the paid English translation guarantee with the provider, keep that message to hand too.
Seats, snacks and children
Seat upgrades for the first three rows and a snack can be bought at the venue, so carry some cash. Children under two who sit on a parent's lap go free; older children need their own booking. Only people booked on the programme may enter, so anyone travelling with you who is not joining should plan to spend the ninety minutes elsewhere.
If plans change on the day
Cancelling is free only up to eight days before your date when booked through GetYourGuide, and a change of date or time counts as a cancellation. If you are running late, contact the provider through your booking at once rather than heading straight for the venue without a word. If you need help with the booking itself, GetYourGuide's customer service handles it, not this site.
Read next: Tea with a maiko: worth it?
Afterwards
The rest of your day decides where you head next. If you have booked a Gion walk for the evening, check its meeting point and start time before you leave the venue, and give yourself time to cross town; the walks start in Gion, in Higashiyama ward. If you are planning the full-day coach tour to Fushimi Inari, Kinkaku-ji and Arashiyama, keep it for another day: it departs from Kyoto Station in the morning and fills eight and a half to nine hours.
Read next: Maiko tea or a Gion walk?
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