Kōrakuen

photo by 663highland · CC BY 2.5

photo by osakaosaka · CC BY-SA 3.0

Built over 13 years on an island: the black castle is borrowed scenery.

It is a ‘stroll garden around a pond’ (池泉回遊式): the paths wind around ponds and artificial hillocks on an island formed by the Asahi River, and from several points Okayama Castle, on the opposite bank, enters the composition as ‘borrowed scenery’ (借景) instead of being left outside it. The central lawn, which covers a quarter of the garden's 14.4 hectares, is unusual for an Edo-period garden: most use vegetation to screen, not to open up the view.

Built between 1687 and 1700 on the orders of Ikeda Tsunamasa, fourth daimyō of the Okayama domain, to a design by the official Tsuda Nagatada. The name comes from the Confucian principle ‘public concerns first, one's own pleasure after’ (先憂後楽), taken from a Chinese classic. Since 1952 it has been a Special Place of Scenic Beauty (特別名勝), and the Michelin guide gives it three stars. Together with Kenroku-en in Kanazawa and Kairaku-en in Mito, it is counted among the three most celebrated gardens in Japan.

ℹ️ Open 7:30–18:00 (last entry 17:45) from 20 March to 30 September, 8:00–17:00 (last entry 16:45) from 1 October to 19 March. Combined ticket with Okayama Castle 800 yen. Seasonal night illumination (‘Gensō Teien’) on dates that vary from year to year: check the calendar on the official website before planning an evening visit.

🚉 Nishigawara · 18 min walk

Sources: okayama-korakuen.jp · ja.wikipedia.org

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