When to go · Kyoto
Kyoto in August
Avoid month. Extreme heat; Obon rail peak.
Key facts
- Verdict
- Avoid
- Temperature
- 34° / 24°
- average high / low
- Rain days
- 10
- Crowds
- High
- Japan overall
- Prices
- High
- Japan overall
Verdict
Extreme heat; Obon rail peak.
Weather in August
- KyotoHighs around 34 °C, lows around 24 °C, rain on about 10 days
- Honshū cities, Japan · Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshimahot
Rainy season June to mid-July; humid heat July–August; typhoon risk peaks in September.
Summer season
Gion Matsuri floats through July (processions on 17 and 24 July), riverside dining platforms, the Daimonji bonfires on 16 August.
Watch: 35 °C basin heat; June rain.
Festivals and holidays
Dates as our data lists them. Moving holidays (lunar and Islamic calendars, Easter) shift every year: check the date for your year before you build a trip on it.
Gozan Okuribi (Daimonji)
Aug 16
Bonfires on the mountains after dark; riverbanks crowded.
Obon big impact
About 13–16 Aug · Japan
Family travel peak; Shinkansen and expressways jammed; some small shops close.
Crowds and prices
- Crowds · Japan overall
- High
- Prices · Japan overall
- High
- Room rates · Kyoto
- Normal
- Hot; Obon and the 16 Aug bonfires push mid-month rates up.
Japan overall: Hottest month and Obon travel peak: go north (Hokkaidō, Tōhoku) or plan short outdoor windows.
High-price month: see what to book ahead.
What to pack
- Light, breathable clothes, a sun hat and sunscreen
- A rain jacket or umbrella and shoes that dry fast