Kofuku-ji

興福寺

Home of the Ashura statue; the pagoda is under wraps until 2031

⚠ Pagoda covered for repairs

Hours

Central Golden Hall, Tokondo and museum 9am–5pm (last entry 4:45pm); grounds always open

Tickets

Museum ¥900, Central Golden Hall and Tokondo ¥500 each, combo ¥1,600 (sold until 4pm); cash only

Address

48 Noborioji-cho, Nara

Climb the steps out of Kintetsu Nara Station and you're already in the precinct, which makes this the opening scene of most Nara trips. Its symbol, the roughly 50-metre five-storey pagoda, has been enclosed in a huge temporary shed since 2023 for its first major repair in about 120 years, with completion planned for March 2031. Right now you see a white steel box rather than a pagoda. The Ashura statue in the National Treasure Museum is reason enough to come anyway: three faces, six arms, a boyish frown, and people stand in front of it far longer than they planned.