Japan · self-catered
Apartments in Nara
Self-catered apartments and vacation rentals in Nara, Japan. Full kitchens, more space than a hotel room, and weekly rates on longer stays. Expedia surfaces apartments across Nara's neighborhoods.
- ✓Full-kitchen apartments and aparthotels across Nara
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- ✓Weekly and monthly rates on longer-stay bookings
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What things cost in Nara
Tōdai-ji's Daibutsuden charges ¥800 and Kōfuku-ji's treasure museum a similar amount, so a full temple day runs ¥2,500 to 3,500. Deer crackers are ¥200 a bundle. Kintetsu from Osaka Namba is around ¥680 one way and takes forty minutes. A kakinoha-zushi box costs ¥800 to 1,400 and a somen lunch under ¥1,200. Nara Park, Kasuga's outer precinct and Naramachi's streets are free.
What to eat in Nara
Nara eats differently from Kyoto. Kakinoha-zushi wraps cured mackerel or salmon in a persimmon leaf, a preservation trick from when the sea lay a mountain range away. Miwa somen, the fine wheat noodle, is said to have started nearby. Narazuke are vegetables pickled in sake lees and smell unmistakably of it. Nakatanidou off Sanjo-dori pounds mochi at violent speed for a crowd, several times an hour.
What first-timers get wrong in Nara
Two stations serve Nara and they are not interchangeable: Kintetsu Nara sits a five-minute walk from the park while JR Nara is a dull twenty minutes further west, and the Kintetsu line from Osaka Namba is both faster and cheaper. A Japan Rail Pass therefore helps you less here than almost anywhere. Bow to a deer and it bows back, then demands food. Keep maps and paper tickets hidden, because deer eat them.
Nara after dark
Nara has close to none, and this is the central planning fact: the park's temples shut by five, the deer settle, and most day-trippers are back in Kyoto or Osaka by seven. What remains is Naramachi's converted machiya townhouses and a handful of izakaya near Kintetsu Nara station. Staying overnight buys you an empty Nara Park at dawn, which is the actual reward. Sanjo-dori quiets early.
Nara with kids, realistically
The deer do the work — well over a thousand roam Nara Park freely, and bundles of shika senbei crackers sell for a couple of hundred yen. Warn children first, because the deer shove, nip and chase anyone holding food, and small children get knocked over daily. Tōdai-ji has a pillar bored with a hole the size of the Great Buddha's nostril that children squeeze through for luck. The park is flat and stroller-friendly.
When to go to Nara
| Best months for apartments | Avg daily high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| November | 17°C / 63°F | 7 days |
| October | 22°C / 72°F | 10 days |
| April | 19°C / 66°F | 11 days |
The month to avoid is January — around 9°C (48°F) with roughly 10 rain days. Prices and crowds track the weather here: November is the sweet spot, January the month most people skip.
Pack for peak season: Layers — t-shirts under a light jacket or sweater, Evenings turn genuinely cool — pack a warm layer for after dark, A packable rain shell or compact umbrella earns its space, Comfortable walking shoes — every guide on this site assumes you'll use them.
Where to base yourself in Nara
- Nara Park — The deer, Tōdai-ji, Kasuga Taisha — the tourist core, walkable end to end.
- Naramachi — Preserved Edo-era merchant houses south of the park — quiet lanes, tiny cafés, artisan shops.