Imperial Palace East Gardens

皇居東御苑

Edo Castle walls and lawns, free, in the middle of downtown

⚠ Closed Mondays and Fridays

Hours

Opens 09:00; closing varies by season (16:00 Nov–Feb, 17:00 Mar–mid-Apr, 18:00 mid-Apr–Aug, 17:00 Sep, 16:30 Oct). Last entry 30 minutes before closing. Closed Mon, Fri and 28 Dec–3 Jan

Tickets

Free

Address

1-1 Chiyoda, Chiyoda-ku

Pass through Otemon Gate and the street noise simply switches off. Walls of house-sized stone blocks rise ahead, and the stone base of the keep of Edo Castle, once the tallest building in Japan, still stands above them. The buildings burned down, but the grounds are so big that getting lost costs you nothing. Further in there are ponds, a bamboo grove and flower paths that change with the season. Entry is free, which makes it the easiest thing to do when you have a gap near Tokyo Station.