Tokyo has many beautiful gardens which come to life with the colors of red, orange and yellow. You don't even need to leave the city, as Tokyo has it all! From city parks to landscape gardens, Tokyo is a wonderful place to experience fall.
Enjoy nature in the middle of the city at Tokyo’s version of Central Park The term gyoen refers to a garden for the Imperial family. Only a 10-minute walk from JR Shinjuku Station (South Exit), this quiet and lush garden is loved by many who head there to take a break from the city and indulge in some relaxation.
More about Shinjuku Gyoen Shinjuku Gyoen was originally created as a garden specifically for the Imperial family. The Old Western-style Imperial Rest House was build for recreation and guests of the family, and was designated as an Important Cultural Property. Shinjuku Gyoen boasts a size of 58 hectares and consists of 3 types of gardens: English Landscape Garden known for its spacious and flat lawns, French Formal Garden with sycamore trees and Japanese Traditional Garden with a central pond. Cherry blossoms at Shinjuku Gyoen Shinjuku Gyoen...
A park facing the Tokyo Bay with vestiges of an Edo period shogun’s hunting field A garden uniquely designed to draw seawater from Tokyo Bay, Hamarikyu was built over a long period of time by successive shoguns of the Edo period. The garden appears dramatically different depending on the time of the day and the season.
A feudal lord garden designed with creative ideas and arrangements During the Edo period (1603 – 1868), feudal lords across Japan had second houses in the capital Edo (present day Tokyo) because they were obliged to be in Edo for certain periods to engage in public services (the sankin-kotai system). They built beautiful gardens for these second houses where they entertained guests. For this reason, much passion was put into these gardens by feudal lords who competed with each other to prove that their clan was the best by creating the...
After shopping in cute and poppy Harajuku, relax in Yoyogi Park. An urban park that has been loved for years as a daily resting area for Tokyo citizens, which holds concerts and many events. If you’re tired of the city’s hustle and bustle, take a break in this huge park.
Since Yoyogi Park is close to Harajuku Station, getting there after a round of shopping is simple. Take a break there once your shopping in Harajuku is done. You can take it easy just like a resident of Tokyo by walking among the trees or lying down on the fields of grass. It is the perfect park after feeling the everyday hustle of the metropolis. Yoyogi Park was once the parade grounds for the Imperial army, and then following World War II, it was used as the US military barracks known as Washington Height...
Enjoy your day at the Tokyo’s vast historical landmark, The Imperial Palace East Gardens The Imperial Palace East Gardens is located on the inner east grounds of the Imperial Palaces and is reminiscent of New York’s Central Park. Although neighboring the bustling Tokyo Station, it is a miracle that you cannot feel the hectic energy of the metropolis when within the grounds of the garden.
Imperial Palace East Gardens On the grounds of the Imperial Palace East Gardens, which has been open to the public since 1968, stand the innermost circles of defense for old Edo Castle: the honmaru, ninomaru and sannomaru. At the sannomaru, there are also handicrafts that are open to the public, where you can gain insight into Japanese history. The castle tower also remains and visitors can climb up the stone-paved path. The tower was built to have a view of the entire area and so you can have a panoramic view of the Imperial Palace. C...
A park filled with cherry trees where you can enjoy museums, a zoo and boat-riding Ueno Park, a place also of culture and art, where you can see popular art presentations and other exhibitions of note. Not only can you enjoy the turning of the seasons here, but you can also tour some important historical buildings.
Experience history as well as culture in nature What makes Ueno Park special is that it is not just simply a park; you can experience history, science, and culture, and you can also spend time with animals. The park was originally part of the grounds of Kaneiji temple but was designated as one of the earliest public parks in Japan in the Meiji period (1868 – 1912). The park started out mainly as a place for viewing Kaneiji temple, Toshogu shrine and their cherry blossom trees. Subsequently, facilities were built one by one, including muse...
A delicately designed garden is truly a work of art. Landscapes of every season allow visitors the luxury of experiencing through all five senses the changes brought about by time. A Japanese garden with a three-hundred-year history, Rikugien suffered great damage from numerous natural disasters in order to survive to the present day. Here, visitors can feel a sense of the Edo Period’s splendid gardening culture
Rikugien In the pursuit of a world of beauty, it is said that one daimyo garden sets the standard for comparison. Among other things, Rikugien is an example of a strolling, mountain and pond-style landscape garden , a garden for enjoying changes in scenery from not just one location, but also while walking along the garden paths. From all vantage points, the garden has been meticulously planned so that visitors can see a beautiful landscape. One feature of the garden is that, by placing waka, a poetic form unique to Japan, around the garden...
The feeling of a lord at the most fashionable garden in the Edo Era, Koishikawa Korakuen Garden In the ever-changing international metropolis of Tokyo, there is Koishikawa Korakuen Garden, which has preserved its serenity. The garden of the illustrious family of the Mito branch of the Tokugawas, which has received both Special Historic Site and Special Place of Scenic Beauty status, was the most fashionable green space.
Korakuen, the garden for the Edo (Tokyo) residence of the Mito Tokugawas (Ibaraki Prefecture) Take a step outside, and you’ll see Korakuen Amusement Park and Tokyo Dome. Inside this bustling and lively area for young people and families, there is Koishikawa Korakuen which was built in the Edo Era. It was built in 1629 in the early Edo Era as the Edo residence garden for the Mito Tokugawas, one of the three branch families retaining status just under the Tokugawa shoguns. Afterward, under the aegis of the second leader of the Mito Tokuga...
A place where aquatic birds flock and koi frolic. Feel at home in a garden once belonging to feudal lords (daimyo) Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden is a Tokyo daimyo garden that has survived to the present day. Cutting-edge ideas were applied, such as the then-trendy Chinese-style design. That beauty has had the garden designated as a National Place of Scenic Beauty.
A surviving daimyo garden of Edo in the metropolis In the early part of the Edo Era in the year 1678, shogunate elder statesman Tadamoto Okubo set up a residence in the capital, and in 1686, a garden was built on the site which was the origin for Kyu Shiba Rikyu. The garden, originally called Rakuju-en, was a circuit-style garden centered around a pond and could be enjoyed for the changing vistas during a walk there. At the time, the garden was near the ocean, so the pond was created with seawater that was placed onto the reclaimed land. The...
