Tokyo: Shinjuku Gyoen Guide – Cherry Blossoms, Hanami Spots & Perfect for Dates

Shinjuku Gyoen is a wonderful space where you can enjoy cherry blossoms in full bloom—a place where blooming trees and carpets of petals put you firmly in cherry-blossom mood. A Gyoen stroll filled with cherry blossoms—one of Japan’s great spring pleasures—and the charm Shinjuku Gyoen holds is just right for a pleasant day in March or April. Here’s how to enjoy Shinjuku Gyoen.

Highlights of Shinjuku Gyoen

A Spot Where You Can Calmly View Beautiful Cherry Blossoms

Shinjuku Gyoen is a cherry blossom viewing spot away from the hustle and bustle of the city, despite being close to Shinjuku Station. Inside the vast park grounds, over 1,000 cherry trees of about 70 varieties—from early-blooming to late-blooming—are planted, and its major charm is being able to enjoy peak viewing over a long period. Because the lawn plazas are kept spacious, there’s enough room even when spreading out picnic sheets, so you can gaze at cherry blossoms at ease without worrying about crowds.

The scenery is varied too—large weeping cherry trees that look great in photos and Somei Yoshino that look picturesque in the Japanese garden. Shinjuku Gyoen is especially recommended for people who want high-quality cherry blossom viewing while avoiding crowds.

No Alcohol Allowed, So It Isn’t Noisy

One reason Shinjuku Gyoen is ideal for cherry blossom viewing and strolling is that bringing in alcohol is prohibited.

At typical cherry blossom viewing spots, loud voices and a cluttered atmosphere from banquets can sometimes be a concern, but at Shinjuku Gyoen there’s no such worry. Quiet, calm air is maintained inside the park, so families, couples, and people who want to take photos at a leisurely pace can spend time with peace of mind.

Calmly strolling while gazing at cherry blossoms, spending time leisurely on the lawn—the charm is savoring the beauty of nature itself. For people who want to avoid hustle and bustle and feel spring calmly, Shinjuku Gyoen is an ideal setting.

Paid Admission, So It Doesn’t Get Overly Crowded

Because Shinjuku Gyoen is a paid national garden, excessive crowding is less likely than at parks you can enter casually for free.

Many people visit especially during cherry blossom season, but with an admission fee in place, visits for banquet purposes and use by large groups are naturally kept down, maintaining the park’s calm atmosphere. Having room to spare even in the large lawn areas and the Japanese garden—making photo-taking and strolling easy—is another delightful point.

It’s set up so you can spend time at your own pace—gazing at cherry blossoms at ease or enjoying a quiet date. Shinjuku Gyoen is especially recommended for people who want high-quality time without getting worn out by crowds.

Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom at Shinjuku Gyoen: Experience Report

March 2023 Cherry Blossom Season (Weekdays)

Shinjuku Gyoen’s Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom—Exceptionally Beautiful in Shinjuku

Boasting a size of 58.3 ha (approx. 180,000 tsubo) and a perimeter of 3.5 km, Shinjuku Gyoen is a wonderful space where you can enjoy cherry blossoms in full bloom—a place where blooming trees and carpets of petals put you firmly in cherry-blossom mood.

Entering the Gyoen, numerous cherry blossoms are in full bloom and beautiful on the wide lawn. In Shinjuku, in the great metropolis of Tokyo, there is such a wonderful space of cherry blossoms and nature. That, too, is one of the charms of Tokyo—and of Japan.

On a pleasant holiday in March or April, at Shinjuku Gyoen where you can admire cherry blossoms and stroll through the park, eating tea sweets at a tea house inside the Gyoen is the best.

A Day Enjoying Shinjuku Gyoen’s Cherry Blossoms

Shinjuku Gyoen’s cherry blossoms in full bloom—one of the famous cherry blossom spots—create a world so wonderful that your heart fills with cherry blossoms. It feels like walking under a roof of cherry blossoms, with blossoms spread overhead in full bloom—cherry blossoms overhead; truly a rivalry of cherry blossoms.

The cherry blossom petals scattered and covering the ground beneath your feet feel as beautiful as a carpet of cherry blossoms that adds flavor to the stroll.

Colors bloom vividly—pink cherry blossoms; flowers bloom gorgeously—full-bloom cherry blossoms are beautiful. Shinjuku Gyoen’s cherry blossoms let you truly feel how good cherry blossoms can be, in a space enveloped by cherry trees.

Entering Sendagaya Gate from JR Sendagaya Station Is Recommended

Shinjuku Gyoen is in Shinjuku, but how you get there needs care. Shinjuku Gyoen has 3 gates: Shinjuku Gate, Okido Gate, and Sendagaya Gate. Shinjuku Gate requires quite a bit of walking from Shinjuku South Exit and is hard to find; Okido Gate is on the opposite side from JR, so entering Sendagaya Gate from JR Sendagaya Station is 100% overwhelmingly recommended.

Please note that advance reservations are required for entry on weekends and holidays during cherry blossom season! (For advance reservations, please check the Official Website – Here)

Shinjuku Gyoen’s biggest merit is that an admission fee is charged! This is important.

The admission fee is 500 JPY for general adults—by no means cheap, but not an amount you can’t pay either. Precisely because there is an admission fee, people can enjoy the beauty of cherry blossoms with respect and consideration. Many visitors come looking forward to the cherry blossoms, and precisely because of that, it’s comfortable—such a wonderful famous cherry blossom spot is Shinjuku Gyoen.

Bringing alcohol into Shinjuku Gyoen is prohibited. Precisely because there’s no alcohol, the Gyoen has become a garden where you can fully enjoy cherry blossoms. Bringing in bento lunches and sheets is OK, so for couples and families, viewing cherry blossoms while eating a delicious lunch out on the lawn is also good.

Even by mistake, hiding alcohol at the bottom of a backpack or putting it in a water bottle to bring it in goes beyond a breach of manners—so please be careful!

Entering Shinjuku Gyoen from Sendagaya Gate, a grove of cherry blossoms spreads out all at once right in front of you, and if you walk farther toward the center of the Gyoen, there’s a lawn area with all-you-can-picnic. Saturdays and Sundays with cherry blossoms in full bloom are packed with people who spread out mats in the bento lunch zone, but because it’s quite wide, being unable to sit almost never happens. You can picnic to your heart’s content.

Beauty of the Japanese Garden and the Pond Sides

At Shinjuku Gyoen, ponds line up from Kami-no-ike to Naka-no-ike to Shimo-no-ike, and you can enjoy collaborations between ponds and cherry blossoms. The ponds and cherry blossoms seen from the pondside or from bridges form photogenic compositions.

Collaborations between the Japanese garden and cherry blossoms are also beautiful, and the pairing with Yoyogi’s famous pointed building (NTT Docomo Building) is another unique view from Shinjuku Gyoen.

Hydration and Restrooms

Things you worry about when visiting facilities and parks like Shinjuku Gyoen are restrooms and hydration—but outdoor bottle water refillers are installed inside the park.

Next to the outdoor bottle water refiller, a “tap water you can drink” fountain is also installed. Drinking from either is free—and it has its charm.

Restrooms are placed at reasonable intervals inside the park, so basically you won’t be stuck. The restrooms of Shinjuku Gyoen are marked with red circles, so please use them as a reference when strolling the park.

Starbucks Has a Long Queue; the Free Area Below Starbucks Is Comfortable

There’s a long queue for something—it’s the line for Starbucks. The 2nd floor with clear glass windows is Starbucks, and if you could get in and relax, it would be wonderful.

The area below Starbucks is a terrace with benches anyone can sit on, and you can use it without entering Starbucks—so taking a breather with tea in hand (PET bottle) or similar is fully enough here.

There’s a Peculiar Tree Called Cockscomb Coral Tree

At Shinjuku Gyoen, where diverse trees line up and diverse flowers bloom, the rivalry between flowers is also worth seeing—but occasionally you find a “This tree, what tree, curious tree~♪”.

It’s a tree called Cockscomb Coral Tree (Amerikadeigo); there are thorns on the branches and petioles, the flowers are red, and the petals are round. It was introduced to Japan around the middle of the Meiji period.

Strolling Path on the Shinjuku Side—and Nostrils, Not Flowers, Getting Itchy

The Shinjuku side is a strolling path where you can walk while gazing at trees, with fewer people—just right for a trek-like walk. Walking through the northern area “Mother and Child’s Forest,” your nostrils get itchy, and you realize the pollen flying around is no joke.

Σ (๑ °꒳° ๑) Startled!!

Those with hay fever, by all means take precautions!

Slowly Enjoying Tea Sweets at the Eatery Tsuburano

Once you’ve enjoyed everything, there’s the eatery Tsuburano, where you can have light meals and also take a breather with coffee or matcha and sweets.

Cherry blossom roll cake and matcha eaten while gazing at cherry blossoms are the best. Please spend a wonderful day at Shinjuku Gyoen enjoying Japanese beauty and cherry blossoms. Enjoy a nice time in Shinjuku Gyoen’s sakura garden.

Location and Access for Shinjuku Gyoen

Location

Shinjuku Gyoen has 3 entrances: Shinjuku Gate, Okido Gate, and Sendagaya Gate. Which entrance is closest depends on which station you get off at.

How to Get from Shinjuku Station to Shinjuku Gate

From Shinjuku Station, exit at the South Exit and walk along Koshu-kaido for 7 minutes. Walk straight, cross the intersection, and a large entrance comes into view.

How to Get from Sendagaya Station to Sendagaya Gate

From Sendagaya Station, it’s about a 4-minute walk after exiting. This route lets you get there smoothly without getting lost, but Sendagaya Station is served by local trains.

Meiji Jingu Is Also Recommended If You’re Enjoying Tokyo

An oasis in metropolitan Tokyo, the power spot Meiji Jingu has many charms besides worship. For those who like the atmosphere of Shinjuku Gyoen, a Meiji Jingu stroll is also recommended.

Deliciousness is Justice