Forge a blade at a smith's furnace
Knife making at a blacksmith's forge in Kyoto
★ 4.9 · 800 opinions
- Pricefrom $152
- Length3 hrs
- If plans changeIncluded
Secure your spot
Select a day. Check the price.
Choose your date and head count: the total updates as you adjust, and the next page shows the current price and the open departure times.
- Free cancellation, up to 24 hrs prior
- Reserve now and pay later
- Books out about 6 days ahead
What to expect
Inside the price, your packing list, extras
Included4
- Time at a real furnace and anvil
- Instructors who speak English and Japanese
- A finished knife of about 13 to 15 cm, yours to keep
- A smith's uniform and a safety briefing
Bring3
- Extra water, because the forge room runs hot
- A change of clothes for after the class
- A route by the Eizan train to Yase-Hieizan
Excluded3
- Cover for accidents: the listing says guests bear that risk
- Solo places for children under 15: adults must stay with them
- Details on step-free access: ask before you book
800reviews
guest reviews of this knife class
3hours
the listed length of the class
15cm at most
the finished knife is about 13 to 15 cm long
24hours
free cancellation window before the start
Other options
Four ways to spend a few hours on a blade in Kyoto
Shape and polish a knife in an hour
Kyoto: Japanese Knife Craft and Sharpening Workshop in Gion
★ 4.9 · 279 opinions
- Pricefrom $61
- Length1 hour
- If plans changeIncluded
Sharpen a knife and fit its handle
Kyoto: Beginner Knife Sharpening and Handle Fitting Workshop
★ 5.0 · 169 opinions
- Pricefrom $159
- Length2 hrs
- If plans changeIncluded
Learn to sharpen in an hour
Kyoto: Japanese Knife Sharpening Class with Expert Guide
★ 4.8 · 24 opinions
- Pricefrom $63
- Length1 hour
- If plans changeIncluded
Reading the figures
The forge class, a one-hour knife craft workshop, a sharpening and handle-fitting session and a beginner sharpening class, set side by side.
Live GetYourGuide data: starting prices per person.
Testimonials
In guests' own words
4.8
★★★★★800 real-guest reviews
Hammering raw metal until it looked like a blade was a joy. The instructors steered us well, and after some filing we ended up with a knife we like.
RaviJuly 2026, with family
A working forge beats any classroom. Starting from a block of metal, we finished with a sharp knife quite quickly, and keeping something useful made it special for me.
KevinJuly 2026, as a couple
Watching raw metal become a blade I can really cut with felt thrilling. The work is tough, but all of us had a good time as a family.
LeonieJuly 2026, with family
I learned a lot and would call it amazing. Expect a very hot room, although in my view the heat is a fair price for what you get.
LyndenJuly 2026, as a couple
My son and I enjoyed crafting knives together. Bring extra water and spare clothes because the room is hot, and the hosts were knowledgeable and quick to answer messages.
LesleeJuly 2026, as a couple
Making something by hand felt good. Early hammering tires your arms quite a lot, while the polishing at the end was calm and easy.
RichardJuly 2026, as a couple
what the class is
A working forge in Sakyo Ward, and a knife to take home
The class we list is a blacksmith experience in Kyoto's Sakyo Ward. It runs about 3 hours, the instructors speak English and Japanese, and a small-group option exists. It starts from $152, carries 800 reviews and is rated 4.8. You do not watch a demonstration. You heat the steel, strike it and shape it yourself.
The session opens with a smith's uniform and a tools and safety introduction covering hammers, tongs and grinders. Then the steel goes into the furnace until it glows, and you strike it with a hammer under close guidance. Afterward the blade is cooled and checked for shape, the rough edges are refined, and you sharpen it with stones and grinders before the final polish.
What you carry out is a working knife about 13 to 15 cm long, made by the same traditional process as Japanese kitchen knives. The listing offers it as a gift or an everyday knife and calls blacksmithing extremely rare even in Japan. Photos and videos are welcome throughout, and there is time to ask about technique, history and knife care at the end.
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See Kyoto optionsSee the photos
Sparks, steel and a knife of your own
Photos from forge classes and knife workshops
which class
A forge, a bench or a sharpening stone: choosing your hours
A Kyoto knife making class does not have to be a forge, because Kyoto also offers shorter ways to work on a knife. A workshop in Gion lasts 1 hour, takes up to 10 guests and has you shape, assemble, sharpen and polish a kitchen knife, from $61. A finishing workshop on Viator lasts 1 hour for up to 6 guests, from $68.
A 2-hour session for up to 3 guests covers sharpening and fitting a handle, and lets you ask for engraved letters in advance, from $159. A 1-hour beginner class concentrates on sharpening alone and takes up to 6 guests, from $63.
The forging class asks for the longest time and puts the most of the knife in your hands, because you start from raw steel and a furnace. The comparison block lower on this page puts four of these classes in one row each, and the guides on this site go through the choice in detail.
Reserve and cancel for freeBest months
Temperatures and rain in Kyoto
The temperature highs and lows and the count of rainy days are NOAA readings from its Kyoto station, 3.3 km from the city-centre point we used, averaged over 1971 to 2020, while we calculate day length ourselves.
Tap any month for temperature and rain details.
Mean daytime highOne dot stands for 20 mm rainNOAA 1971 to 2020 · Station Kyoto
where it is
Yase, Sakyo Ward, and the train that reaches it
The class has two forging studios in Sakyo Ward, Studio NIN Yase by default and Studio NIN Kendo depending on bookings. The staff message guests beforehand if the location changes, so read your booking messages the night before.
The Yase meeting point is a one-minute walk from the Yase-Hieizan exit of the Eizan Electric Railway, and the listing recommends coming by train, with taxis also possible.
A reviewer who missed the message about the move to the other studio still found the event fantastic, which says something about how the instructors handle the day.
Reserve and cancel for free
Your turn at the anvil
Heat the steel. Forge the blade.
Choose a date and a group size. Cancellation stays free until 24 hours before, and you can pay later.
heat and safety
Hot room, hard hammering and a safety briefing
A forge is hot, and guests say so. Reviewers advise extra water and a change of clothes because you are certain to sweat. The listing itself says the work includes some danger, and that guests are responsible for an injury if one happens.
The class takes safety seriously in its structure. You are introduced to the hammers, tongs and grinders before you touch the furnace, the instructors explain how each step changes the steel, and the hammering is guided closely, with correct angle, rhythm and precision.
Choose the class for what it is: a real forge, with heat, noise and sparks, not a bench in a classroom. If heat is a worry, a 1-hour workshop in Gion is a lighter way to spend time on a knife.
Reserve and cancel for freeRatings
Judged by 800 guests
4.8
Excellent★★★★★
- Rated five100%
- Rated four0%
- Rated three0%
- Rated two0%
- Rated one0%
We chart the 10 latest reviews from our dataset; the booking site itself starts with the top-rated. All 800 reviews together average 4.8.
Pick your date, see spots
from $152 · free cancelling
No waiting for confirmation · GetYourGuide
voices from the room
What the newest reviews keep returning to
The ten newest English reviews on file, all from July 2026, give five stars each. Guests call it satisfying to turn a piece of steel into a real knife, mention friendly and knowledgeable instructors, and describe it as a good activity for families and couples.
They are candid about the effort. One notes that the first hammering was hard on the muscles and that the polishing afterward was easy and relaxing. Another warns that the forge room is hot, so you should bring extra water and a change of clothes.
One reviewer found that a grinder rather than a whetstone was used for the sharpening, and another lost a message when the class moved to the other studio but still called the event fantastic. The rating and review count on this page come from GetYourGuide itself.
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FAQ
Ask first,then book.
Is this a real blacksmith's forge?
Yes, a working studio with a furnace.
The listing describes heating steel in a furnace and striking it with a hammer under close guidance.
How long does the class take?
About 3 hours.
The listing gives the duration as 3 hours.
How much does the knife class cost?
The price begins at $152.
The live price and open dates appear in the booking panel.
What do I take home?
A knife of about 13 to 15 cm.
The listing describes a working knife you can use every day or give as a gift.
Do I need blacksmithing experience?
Close guidance is part of the class.
The class opens with a tools and safety introduction and the hammering is guided closely.
Is the forge room hot?
Yes, guests say it runs hot.
Reviewers suggest bringing extra water and a change of clothes.
Can children join the class?
Under 15s must be with an adult.
The listing says children under 15 should be accompanied and protected by adults.
Where does the class meet?
At a studio in Yase, Sakyo Ward.
The Yase meeting point is a one-minute walk from the Yase-Hieizan exit of the Eizan Electric Railway.
Can I carry the knife in my cabin bag?
No, put it in your checked bag.
ANA bars all blades from the cabin, and Kansai International Airport asks passengers to check in knives.
What if the studio changes on the day?
Staff message you beforehand.
The class uses two studios in Sakyo Ward, and the staff contact guests if the location changes.
from steel to blade
How a bar of steel becomes a Japanese knife
Many traditional Japanese kitchen knives forge-weld a hard carbon-steel edge to a softer iron body, while some are forged from a single piece of steel. The class follows the same traditional process used for Japanese kitchen knives.
Japan's tourism board says that when demand for swords fell after the Meiji Restoration, craftsmen turned their efforts to knife making, and it calls Japanese cutlery a direct descendant of sword making.
That is the history behind the furnace you stand beside. You heat, strike, cool, refine, sharpen and polish, in the same order that a smith would follow on a small scale.
Reserve and cancel for free800reviews
A forge with a following
800 guests have reviewed this knife class on GetYourGuide, rating it 4.8.
That compares with 279 reviews for the Gion workshop and 359 ratings for the Viator finishing workshop, which our comparison block sets next to this class.
what to wear
What to wear, and what to bring
You change into a smith's uniform on arrival, so wear comfortable clothes beneath it. Reviewers suggest bringing a change of clothes for afterward, because the forge room is hot and you will sweat.
Bring extra water. Guests report that water is available, but the room is hot enough that more is welcome. Photos and videos are welcome throughout, so a charged phone is useful.
The finished knife is about 13 to 15 cm long and needs wrapping for the trip home. ANA bars all blades from the cabin, and Kansai International Airport asks passengers to check in knives at the counter, so keep space in your hold bag.
Reserve and cancel for freeSteel, fire, Kyoto
Heat in the furnace.A hammer in your hand.A knife to take home.
This is the knife making class we list for Kyoto, at a blacksmith's studio in Sakyo Ward. You change into a smith's uniform, heat steel in a furnace, forge the blade under close guidance, then sharpen and polish it. It lasts about 3 hours and starts from $152.
No fee to cancel until 24 hours before; pay later if you wish.
seasons
Kyoto's seasons and the forge
Kyoto sits in a basin of mountains, which gives it hot, humid summers, chilly winters and changes in between. The monthly NOAA figures in the weather block lower down show how temperatures and rain vary through the year.
Every one of the ten newest reviews dates from July, and several mention the heat of the room. If that worries you, look at the monthly highs in the weather block and choose a cooler month, or an early session if the dates allow.
The class runs inside a studio, so rain does not cancel it, but cold mornings in winter or heat in summer will shape how you feel at the furnace. Dress for the season under the smith's uniform.
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rules and groups
Children, groups and what the listing asks
Children under 15 must be accompanied and protected by adults. The listing also says that some of the work involves danger, so a family should read it fully before booking.
A small-group option exists, and the instructors speak English and Japanese. The platform shows open dates and the price for your group size in the booking panel.
Free cancellation runs up to 24 hours before the start, for a full refund, and you can reserve now and pay later. That makes it low risk to hold a date while the rest of your Kyoto plan settles.
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Dates, spots and booking
Live figures taken directly from GetYourGuide, same as on its page, with nothing entered by us.
Check open dates
- Free cancellation, up to 24 hrs prior
- Reserve now and pay later
- from $152 a person
Local time in Kyoto: --:--
other ways in
Other ways to spend time on a blade
If the forge is not for you, the Gion workshop lasts 1 hour from $61, and the sharpening class lasts 1 hour from $63. The handle-fitting session lasts 2 hours from $159 for up to 3 guests.
Outside Kyoto, a 3.5-hour Sakai walk from Osaka starts from $64, and a one-day Seki experience for up to 5 guests starts from $318.
The guides on this site cover the steel, the knife types, sharpening, storage and where to buy a knife in Kyoto, so the class can be one part of a longer interest in Japanese knives.
Reserve and cancel for freeis it for you
Who this class suits, and who should skip it
It suits people who want to make something with their hands and do not mind heat. The listing describes a practical knife you can use or give as a gift, and guests call it satisfying to turn steel into a real knife.
It suits families and couples, according to the newest reviews, as long as every child is under an adult's eye and the group accepts the heat of the forge room.
Skip it if you dislike heat, noise or hammering, or if you only have an hour. A 1-hour workshop is a better fit, and the comparison block shows how the options differ.
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