Tokyo, Japan - September 12, 2014: Resting house at the Happo-en Garden in Tokyo. The garden is a beautiful exapmple of Japanese zen-style gardening with restaurant and teahouse facilities.
473136868
Ornamental Garden, Stone - Object, Environmental Conservation, Seat, Silence, Zen-like, East Asian Culture, Bark, Stone Material, Cabin, Walking, Relaxation, Tranquil Scene, Circle, Green Color, Wood - Material, Japanese Culture, Wet, Tropical Climate, Nature, Minato Ward, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan, Leaf, Branch, Tree, Moss, Fish, Forest, Pond, Lake, Wave, Architectural Column, Window, Footpath, Formal Garden, Park - Man Made Space, Happo-en

© iStock


Three centuries ago this garden, with strolling paths around a large pond (home to many carp), was the backyard of a vassal to the shogun. Today its the grounds of a swank banquet hall, but usually anyone can enter (some areas are occasionally roped off for weddings). Pick up the Garden Walk brochure at the entrance and don't miss the display of bonsai (there's a 520-year-old pine!).

One of the teahouses, Mu-an, serves matcha (powdered green tea) along with a Japanese sweet.

Transportation

  • subway: Namboku line to Shirokanedai, exit 2

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Sengaku-ji

0.36 MILES

The story of the 47 rōnin (masterless samurai) who (cleverly, murderously) avenged their master, Lord Asano – put to death after being tricked into…

2. Hatakeyama Collection

0.41 MILES

Get a feel for wabi-sabi – the aesthetic of perfect imperfections that guides the tea ceremony – at this museum specialising in the pottery and art…

3. Institute for Nature Study

0.48 MILES

What would Tokyo look like were it left to its own natural devices? Since 1949 this park, affiliated with the Tokyo National Museum, has let the local…

4. Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum

0.64 MILES

Although the Teien museum often hosts excellent exhibitions – usually of decorative arts – its chief appeal lies in the building itself: it's an art deco…

5. Beer Museum Yebisu

0.92 MILES

Photos, vintage bottles and posters document the rise of Yebisu, and beer in general, in Japan at this small museum located where the actual Yebisu…

6. Yebisu Garden Place

0.94 MILES

This shopping and cultural centre was built on the site of the original Yebisu Beer Brewery (1889) that gave the neighbourhood its name. Unlike most…

7. TOP Museum

0.95 MILES

Tokyo's principal photography museum usually holds three different exhibitions at once, drawing on both its extensive collection of Japanese artists and…

8. Meguro Gajoen

1.05 MILES

Tokyo's most over-the-top wedding venue is resplendent with indoor waterfalls and gilded friezes (which speaks to the fashion in Tokyo during the height…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "japan/tokyo/ebisu-and-meguro/attractions/happo-en/a/poi-sig/1502735/1323637",
      "position": "superzone"
    }