During our visit to Japan, we spent 24 hours on Mount Koya and slept in a monastery. The town is located on a mountain, with one main street with active temples on both sides of the road, where monks live, and some of them offer overnight stays. The accommodation included dinner and breakfast – traditional, vegetarian/vegan meals, and participation in an early morning prayer with the monks. The monks are also the ones who run the monastery, and they are the ones who serve the meals and are responsible for managing and operating the guesthouse in the temple. There are bathhouses in all the temples, our family had a large traditional Japanese-style room with a private bathroom, but this is not necessarily the standard in the town.
During the day, it is worth wandering the main street, and taking a look at the temples, most of which have beautiful, well-kept gardens and wonderful views of the mountains. As night falls, it is a must to visit the most famous cemetery in Japan, which contains the tombstones of important Buddhist monks, most notably Kubo Daishi, who founded the place. The beautiful cemetery is located in a dense, pastoral forest, and Kubo Daishi's grave is at the end of the long path in the cemetery. To get there, you need to take a train from Osaka to the town of Gokurakubashi, and from there take a special funicular train. From the top station of the funicular, you can take a local bus or taxi to the temple where you will spend the night. It is recommended to leave most of your luggage at your hotel in Osaka/Kyoto and arrive with a small bag for one night. This is an authentic and interesting experience like no other.
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