Ritsurin Garden

Takamatsu

Walk around a popular “circuit-style” Japanese garden

Ritsurin Koen is a famous Japanese garden where visitors can stroll through the grounds and savor Japanese aesthetics through its cultivated natural beauty. Acclaimed worldwide for its representative style, historical Ritsurin Garden is a designated Special Place of Scenic Beauty. Created during the latter half of the 16th century, the garden was initially built by local rulers and later nurtured by the Matsudaira family, lords of the Takamatsu Clan during the Edo Era. It has taken over 200 years to grow to exquisite refinement in a spacious setting that once was part of the lords’ estate. As you enter Ritsurin Garden, you can experience the atmosphere of the Edo Era.

A scenic tapestry of six ponds and 13 hills

Ritsurin’s circuit-style design represents a culmination of Japanese gardening traditions and techniques. A network of footpaths threads through the garden, connecting place to place around the large pond. This allows visitors to walk round and view small islands, bridges, and rocks, enjoying landscapes that change with the four seasons. The most popular vantage point is a hill (tsukiyama) called Hiraihou. From there, you can see a postcard-like vista of small hills, arbors, and a bridge. Ritsurin is also celebrated as Japan’s foremost pine tree garden. As many as 1,400 pine trees — an auspicious symbol in Japan — are cultivated here.

Relax in a garden tearoom or go to the Museum

It can take more than two hours to go round this spacious garden, which covers 75 hectares. If you don’t have that much time, you might want to follow a shortcut course that highlights spots of special interest in the garden. And when you are tired of walking, please take a rest in a tearoom — for instance, Kikugetsu-tei faces the beautiful Nan-ko (South Pond). Moreover, Hanazono-tei in-garden restaurant offers a delicious morning okayu (porridge) set (prior booking required). Sanuki Mingei-kan (Sanuki Folk Crafts Museum) is also recommended for its informative exhibition of Kagawa lifestyles several hundred years ago.

For reference

Address

1-20-16 Ritsurin-cho, Takamatsu-shi, Kagawa Pref.
Tel

087-833-7411
Open

7:00-17:00 (during midsummer 5:30-19:00)
Holiday

none
Price

410 yen for entry
Seasons

spring for cherry blossoms, summer for water lilies, autumn for crimson foliage, winter for views of the snow-covered garden
http://www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp/ritsurin/index_e.html