Kyoto Station Building Art Festival GNE 2026

Dates & time: October 17, 2026 (Sat) - November 3, 2026 (Tue) 13:00–20:00
Price & booking: Free (some workshops, hands-on programs and the special tours are paid) The special tours are sold through Nippon Travel Agency. Ninna-ji tour (Oct 17, 24, 25) / Fukuoji Shrine autumn festival tour (Oct 18) / Keishun-in after-hours tour (Oct 31, Nov 3; 12 per day). Prices are on each booking page. Kimono rental and dressing (Oct 24) needs advance application on the official site
Venue & access: Kyoto Station Building (Station Square, north side of the North-South Free Passage, Muromachi-Koji Square, South Square, East Square) and temples around Kyoto The main venue, Kyoto Station Building, is directly connected to JR Kyoto Station. By car, the complex has the West 1, West 2 and East 1 car parks: 800 yen for the first hour, then 400 yen per 30 minutes.

There are 12 car parks within a 12-minute walk of Kyoto Station Building (Station Square, north side of the North-South Free Passage, Muromachi-Koji Square, South Square, East Square) and temples around Kyoto, and 8 public restrooms within 8 minutes. The map shows each with its walking time.

Facility data comes from OpenStreetMap. It does not include opening hours, fees or availability.

Calendar

Add it to your calendar so you can check back on it later.

Google Calendar Apple Calendar (.ics)

We hope it gives you a reason to head out together.

X FB LINE

Why You Should Visit

For 18 days, Kyoto Station Building turns into an art venue for the second edition of this festival. The 2026 staging theme is NOCTURNE KYOTO: works are installed at five spots inside the complex, including the station square and Muromachi-Koji Square, and after dark the building is given over to light and art. The festival also reaches temples around the city, among them Ninna-ji, Keishun-in at Myoshin-ji and Higashi Hongan-ji. Admission is free, so it fits into a gap between trains.

Programs

Timetable & Map

NOTE

Works

28 pieces in all, including the Grand Staircase illumination, "Unico and the Happy Heart Art", "Choju-giga: a shrine visit", "PIXEL DOT FIELD", "PAC-MAN Kusudama" and the Sagano Torokko "Shunkyo Train"
Featured artist: Shinichi Wakasa (born Hiroshima, 1982; works on Japan's landscape and religious sensibility)

Venues and hours

Grand Staircase: projections 15:00–22:00 at 15-minute intervals; lights off during events
Station Square "Teshigoto no Eki": Oct 17–Nov 3, 13:00–18:00. Traditional craft studios exhibit on rotating days (Kurokoshi Kobo, Mizuhiki Motoyui Genda, Nakajima Zogan, Ijichi Shashinkata, Kyofudo, Kubota Birendo, Ishida Mansenkojo, Tamura Shogundo, Nakers, Senshodo Itohan, Nakamura Rosoku)
Station Square "Subtitling the World" booth: Oct 18–Nov 3, 13:00–20:00
NIWA x NAKED.INC (7F, east zone): Oct 16–Dec 6, 11:00–22:00 (last order 21:00). Bamboo ikebana by the Ikenobo school
North side of the North-South Free Passage: exhibits, plus tastings and sales on Oct 17–18 and Oct 31–Nov 3
Also Muromachi-Koji Square, the Kyoto Theatre entrance hall, ART&CRAFT BOX and East Square
The temple venues (Ninna-ji, Keishun-in, Higashi Hongan-ji) are visited on the special tours; their hours are not listed on the official site

Last year

The first edition in 2025 ran under the concept Mash up KYOTO from the station and drew 320,000 visitors

Culture Art History Heritage Night View Free Cheap Photo Spots

出典: PR TIMES（西日本旅客鉄道株式会社）／第2回京都駅ビル芸術祭公式サイト

Kobe · Gluten-free

Events

Where to go next

View Recommended Events →

10/9 - 1/11

Eureka Evrica × Nidec Kyoto Tower Collaboration

Nidec Kyoto Tower, Observation Deck 1F (Kyoto Tower Building 11F)

10/31 - 12/6

NAKED GARDEN NIGHTS Higashi Honganji 2026

Higashi Honganji Temple & Shosei-en Garden (Kikoku-tei)

Next 11/10 +2 more

Fukuneko Marche at Higashi Hongan-ji

Ohigashi-san Hiroba, Higashi Hongan-ji

9/19 - 2/23

Kyoto University Museums Stamp Rally

17 university museums and partner venues in and around Kyoto

Today 10/31 +41 more

Manpuku-ji Night Illumination & Light Art

Manpuku-ji Temple, Gokasho, Uji

Next 11/7 +9 more

Kobe Port Weekend Fireworks 2026–27 | Weekend Fireworks off Meriken Park

Meriken Park

Today 10/31 +8 more

EAT LOCAL KOBE Farmers Market

Suma Beach, south of JR Suma Station, Suma-ku, Kobe

10/10 - 11/30

Moomin × Kobe Port Tower: a part of KOBE

Kobe Port Tower and 20+ locations across Kobe

FAQ

Is admission free?

Viewing the works at the station building is free. Some workshops and hands-on programs, and the special temple tours, are paid.

What time of day is best?

The festival runs from 13:00 to 20:00. The 2026 edition is themed around the night, so the lighting works come into their own after dark.

Do the temple venues keep the same dates and hours?

Program details and hours for the temple venues such as Ninna-ji, Keishun-in and Higashi Hongan-ji are to be announced separately and were not published as of early September 2026. Check the official site for updates.