Fushimi

Fushimi is the working, living south of Kyoto, and it carries two of the city's most enduring identities. It is a sake town first of all, fed by famously pure groundwater, its canals are lined with the white-plastered warehouses of historic breweries like Gekkeikan and Kizakura, where you can still tour the cellars and taste the result. And it is a pilgrimage destination, home to Fushimi Inari Taisha and its hypnotic tunnels of vermilion torii gates. Away from the shrine crowds, Fushimi is fundamentally a family ward: affordable, spacious by Kyoto standards, with good schools, riverside parks and reconstructed Momoyama Castle. For buyers, Fushimi is Kyoto's value play, the lowest entry prices in the city and the easiest path to a healthy rental yield, with the trade-off of longer commutes and gentler appreciation than the heritage core.

Fushimi in Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan