Korakuen Garden

What to know

Korakuen (後楽園, Kōrakuen) is a stunning landscape garden and Okayama's top attraction. Along with Kanazawa's Kenrokuen and Mito's Kairakuen, it is considered one of Japan's three finest landscape gardens. The garden sits right next to Okayama Castle, offering views of the castle from within.

Construction of Korakuen began in 1687 under the orders of the local feudal lord, who intended it as a place of entertainment for his family and for receiving important guests. Occasionally, the public was allowed inside.

In 1884, after the feudal era ended, Korakuen became the property of Okayama Prefecture and opened to the public. The garden suffered flood damage in 1934 and bombing during the war, but thanks to detailed records kept by its designers, it has always been restored to its original form.

Korakuen is a spacious garden featuring classic elements of a Japanese landscape garden: a large pond, streams, walking paths, and a hill with a lookout point. Uniquely, it also has expansive lawns. The garden includes groves of plum, cherry, and maple trees, tea and rice fields, an archery range, and a crane aviary.

There are two entrances: the main gate beside the Prefectural Museum and the south gate near the bridge to Okayama Castle.

Korakuen is about 1.5 kilometers (a 25–30 minute walk) east of Okayama Station. Alternatively, take the Higashiyama Line tram to Shiroshita stop (5 minutes, 160 yen one way, frequent departures), then walk 10–15 minutes to the south gate.