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When do Kyoto Imperial Villas tickets go on sale?

Tickets go on sale on the 1st of each month at 05:00 JST, for visits in the month 3 months later.

Katsura Imperial Villa, Shugakuin Imperial Villa and Sento Imperial Palace in Kyoto can only be seen on timed tours run by the Imperial Household Agency. All three share one booking rule: a whole month of tours opens at once, three months ahead, and a few same-day places are handed out each morning.

Where

Kyoto: three separate sites

Price

Katsura ¥1,000 for ages 18 and over (13 to 17 free); Shugakuin and Sento free

Book ahead

Three months: the whole month opens on the 1st at 05:00, three months before

Confirmed on the official site Last checked Oct 17, 2026, 12:00 JST

How hard to get: Usually sells out within days or weeks. Why we say this

Official booking page ↗

How to book, step by step

1. Apply on the Imperial Household Agency's visit website, the same site used for the Tokyo Imperial Palace tour. Choose Katsura, Shugakuin or Sento.
2. From 05:00 Japan time on the 1st, you can apply for any day in the month three months later. For example, January visits open on October 1.
3. Enter your nationality, name, email address and age, and list everyone in your party.
4. Applications are handled in order of the day they arrive. If one day's applications are more than the places available, the places are drawn by lottery.
5. Results come by email. Only successful applicants get a permit number.
6. Online applications close at 23:59 three days before your visit date.
7. On the day, bring photo ID for everyone in your party. At Katsura, visitors aged 18 and over pay the ¥1,000 fee at the villa.

Good to know for overseas visitors

• There is no need to apply at exactly 05:00. All applications made on the 1st count the same, and a lottery decides if there are too many.
• Age limits differ. Katsura: junior high school age and above only. Shugakuin and Sento: 18 and over only, even as companions.
• Katsura has English guided tours for foreign visitors at 9:20, 11:20, 13:20, 15:20 and 16:20.
• No booking? Same-day tickets are handed out from 8:40, first come, first served: 70 a day at Katsura and 50 a day each at Shugakuin and Sento.
• Shugakuin tours start at 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 13:30 and 15:00. In July and August, usually only the 9:00, 10:00 and 15:00 tours run.

Where it is

Sold out? Other ways in

• Get a same-day ticket at the site from 8:40: 70 a day at Katsura, 50 a day at Shugakuin and Sento
• Kyoto guided tours on Klook (Klook)

FAQ

Sources

• kyoto-gosho.kunaicho.go.jp: “受付期間：参観希望月の 3 ヶ月前の 1 日 5 時～希望日の 3 日前 23 時 59 分まで” (checked 2026-10-17)
• kyoto-gosho.kunaicho.go.jp: “※申込日（郵送の場合は消印日）の早い順に受け付け、同日申込分で定員を超えるお申込みがあった場合には抽選となります。” (checked 2026-10-17)
• kyoto-gosho.kunaicho.go.jp: “受付期間：参観希望月の 3 ヶ月前の 1 日 5 時～希望日の 3 日前 23 時 59 分まで” (checked 2026-10-17)
• kyoto-gosho.kunaicho.go.jp: “受付期間：参観希望月の 3 ヶ月前の 1 日 5 時～希望日の 3 日前 23 時 59 分まで” (checked 2026-10-17)
• kyoto-gosho.kunaicho.go.jp: “The following time slots are English guided tours for foreign visitors only.” (checked 2026-10-17)

Read from the Imperial Household Agency's official application guides for Katsura, Shugakuin and Sento, which state the same rule.

How hard to get (“Usually sells out within days or weeks”): Estimate, not measured: tours are small, and the official guide says a day with more applicants than places goes to a lottery. The official pages don't say how fast dates fill.

Rule changes

• 2026-10-18: Added. Katsura, Shugakuin and Sento: 05:00 JST on the 1st, for the month three months later; lottery if a day is oversubscribed (official pages).