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Last updated: 05 April, 2024
Expert travel writer: Rob Goss

One of Japan’s better-known sake brands, Gekkeikan was founded in Kyoto’s Fushimi district in 1637, and while they now produce most of their sake on a large scale in Fushimi.

Their Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum is the perfect primer for anyone interested in Japan’s national tipple. Housed in a renovated wooden brewery dating from 1909, the museum’s exhibits document the history of sake, its varieties and how it’s made. Better still, at the adjoining Sakekobo mini-brewery, visitors can see small-batch sake being brewed with traditional methods. If that triggers a thirst, no problem – the tasting area has several Gekkeikan’s brews for sampling.

Logistics

Price from: £4
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 13+
When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

Several train lines connect Kyoto Station to the Fushimi area, but the easiest option for visiting Gekkeikan is to take the Kintetsu Kyoto Line 10 minutes to Momoyama-Goryomae Station. From there it’s a 10-minute walk.

Once at the museum, the tours are self-guided and there’s no need for a reservation. The only exception is the Sakekobo mini-brewery – to visit, make a reservation at least one day before going.

When to do it

The museum and mini-brewery are open all year round, seven days a week.

Who to go with: organised tours

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Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity

3 Hours Kyoto Insider Sake Experience

Kyoto

3 Hours Kyoto Insider Sake Experience
Uncover the little-known sake culture of Fushimi, Kyoto on a 3-hour insider brewery visit + sake tasting and food pairing session with an expert. Deepen your knowledge of sake making process and a bit of history of its production at Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum.  Enjoy the samples of different types of sake as well as leaning details and varieties and personalized attention from your guide on this small-group tour. This is a fun and educational experience to change your way of enjoying sake.   If you love sake but don't know what to select or want to know more about sake, join us and let's deep dive into the world of sake. After you experienced this, you will know which type of Sake actually you like, and you will be able to select your favorite Sake from labels or restaurant's menu even if they are all written in Japanese.

Price: ¥12,700

Min age: 20

Rating 4.97 / 5 [480 ratings]

Tour supplied by:

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Kyoto Sake Brewery & Tasting Walking Tour

Kyoto

Kyoto Sake Brewery & Tasting Walking Tour
-Visit Kyoto's major sake brewery district and the Kyoto Sake Museum- you'll learn the rich history of Gekkeikan and the brewery process of sake by observing sake exhibits. Three kinds of sake tasting are offered. After deepening your knowledge of sake, feel free to stroll around the area and visit the cultural and historical spots, such as liquor stores and Teradaya. - Enjoy Kyoto's local sake samplings!- Deepen your knowledge of sake and appreciate the different aromas and flavors between the 18 of them brewed in Fushimi, Kyoto. -Be a little tipsy- Stop by one of Kyoto's shrines, and get refreshed by drinking exquisite Japanese groundwater at the end of the tour Magical Trip is a local tour operator with the TripAdvisor certificate of excellence that offers various types of small-group tours throughout Japan! Check out our Trip Advisor Page for more tours and our reviews!

Price: ¥12,600

Min age: 0

Rating 4.96 / 5 [245 ratings]

Tour supplied by:

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1.5 Hours Kyoto Insider Sake Experience

Kyoto

1.5 Hours Kyoto Insider Sake Experience
Uncover the little-known sake culture of Fushimi, Kyoto on a 90 min sake tasting and food pairing session with an expert.  Enjoy the samples of different types of sake as well as leaning details and varieties and personalized attention from your guide on this small-group activity.  This is a fun and educational experience to change your way of enjoying sake.    If you love sake but don't know what to select or want to know more about sake, join us and let's deep dive into the world of sake.  After you experienced this, you will know which type of Sake actually you like, and you will be able to select your favorite Sake from labels or restaurant's menu even if they are all written in Japanese.

Price: ¥9,400

Min age: 20

Rating 4.93 / 5 [131 ratings]

Tour supplied by:

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Kyoto Sake Brewery Tour with Lunch

Kyoto

Kyoto Sake Brewery Tour with Lunch
Beginning in the Fushimi district of Kyoto, your guide will take you through the streets of this charming, sake brewing district where you will see various traditional and modern sake breweries and get a sense of the area’s 400-year-old sake brewing tradition. During the tour, you will eat a seasonal lunch in a local restaurant before heading out to the Gekkeikan Okura Sake museum where a brief history of Japanese sake can be understood. Since they have been making sake since 1637, with a nearly 4 centuries-old process, you will really see how things have been done for generations. You will also get a chance to see the Sake brewery and the traditional brewing process which involves a combination of water, malt, yeast and steamed rice. You will visit both a small and large sake brewery to get a sense of the differences of scale and of course try their sake and other products.

Price: $236

Min age: 21

Rating 4.6 / 5 [10 ratings]

Tour supplied by:

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Destination guides

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Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Kyoto

Kansai, Japan

Geisha woman with white face paint

Ancient temples and shrines, sublime cuisine, manicured gardens, colourful geishas and living history in spades – Kyoto is traditional Japan at its best.