Tranquility of Shinjuku Gyoen

A sprawling garden and park in central Tokyo

Ben Beechey Jul 28, 2012 - 1 min read

A bridge stretching over the water in the traditional Japanese garden

Large parts of the park are wide open soft green grass, ideal for relaxing and enjoying the sunshine

The park has a wide array of plants from different parts of the world presented in a variety of fashions

It is a popular spot for local artists to come and sketch the scenery

Sycamore trees line the perimeters of the French garden

In the north side of the gardens lies the Taiwanese pavilion overlooking the lake

Looking out at the gardens from the Taiwanese pavilion

It is hard to believe this is in downtown Shinjuku

A bridge crossing from the Taiwanese pavilion to the traditional Japanese garden

The traditional Japanese garden is a great place to relax and unwind

Rakuu Tei tea house offers great Green tea and Japanese sweets

This Japanese sweet 'Mochi' is also available in the tea house

Right in the heart of downtown Tokyo is Shinjuku Gyoen: a large park that spans 58.3 hectares in area, once reserved for royalty.

The park was originally built in 1906, but destroyed in 1945 during World War II, and then rebuilt and opened to the public.

The gardens are vast and boast a vast array of trees and flowers, blending three distinct styles: French Formal, English Landscape and Japanese traditional.

A Japanese tea house can also be found within the gardens. It is hard to imagine you are in the centre of the world's second-most populous city as the gardens are so vast and peaceful.

More info

Find out more about Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden.

Ben Beechey @ben.beechey

I moved to Japan in late 2007 and lived in the beautiful mountainous setting of Nagano-ken for two very fun years. Although the scenery in Nagano was stunning and the snowboarding conditions second to none, I decided to try life in the fast lane and moved to Tokyo in 2009. I have been in Tokyo si...