One of the Three Great Gardens in Japan
Main path with Okayama Castle in the background.
Korakuen Garden is one of the Three Great Gardens in Japan, the other two are Kenrokuen in Kanazawa and Kairakuen in Mito. It dates back to the 17th century as a private garden belonging to the daimyo, it was attached to Okayama Castle. On certain days members of the public could enter the garden, in 1884 the ownership of the garden was transferred to the Okayama prefecture and the garden was opened to the public. It was badly damaged twice, from floods in 1934 and bombing (which destroyed the castle) in 1945, but thanks to the excellent records kept by the original family who owned the garden as well as paintings and other documents the garden was reestablished along its traditional lines.
The garden was established as a 'walking' garden so there are paths that take you around the different parts of the garden. Something that makes it somewhat different from other Japanese gardens are the large areas of lawn. (As someone who is used to western style gardens, it didn't register with me as being different until it was pointed out!)
I had been to the garden before and on I my last trip to Japan I was revisiting my favourite locations, I stopped by again. Okayama is close to Kurashiki so I spent the morning and early afternoon there, took the train back to Okayama (I was based in Kobe) and headed off to see the garden. On previous occasions I had walked from the train station, this time I was tired and the thought of a 20 to 25 minute walk didn't appeal so I caught the bus! There's a helpful tourist information office at the train station that pointed me in the direction of the correct bus. The stop you need to get out at is called 'Korakuen mae' which means 'stop infront of Korakuen' (!)
There's a park that surrounds the garden and that's free to enter.
Dancing ballerina statue in Korakuen Park.
The garden itself has an entrance fee.
Once inside the garden, walking along the main path you can see in the distance, Okayama Castle. The original castle was burnt to the ground in a bombing raid in June 1945 so what's there now is a concrete replica built 1964 to 66. (Most Japanese castles were rebuilt during that time) It has a modern museum inside with elevators to different floors, unlike the historic castles that are around and have very steep stairs!
I was there in April and so was able to see the azaleas blooming, I love the way azaleas are used in Japan as hedging plants and are sculptured into rounded shapes.
The garden has different areas and you can walk around to experience them.
The Cycad garden.
Japanese maples
Tea plants
This photo took some trial and error as had to I lift the camera over a fence to get the sculptured rows of tea plants so I couldn't see exactly what the camera was capturing. (There were quite a few deleted photos!)
Lake paths with teahouses and small lake islands.
There's a small hill that you can climb to look down on the garden and see a traditional bridge leading to a teahouse.
The lake
In the shallow ponds you can see koi.
Korabuen garden would be a must see destination for anyone who loves gardens, not necessarily Japanese gardens. It's quite large, 133,000 square metres, and it's very pleasant to stroll around and discover all the different parts to the garden. You get a map with the admission price and that makes it possible to plan your visit.
Korakuen Garden is one of the Three Great Gardens in Japan, the other two are Kenrokuen in Kanazawa and Kairakuen in Mito. It dates back to the 17th century as a private garden belonging to the daimyo, it was attached to Okayama Castle. On certain days members of the public could enter the garden, in 1884 the ownership of the garden was transferred to the Okayama prefecture and the garden was opened to the public. It was badly damaged twice, from floods in 1934 and bombing (which destroyed the castle) in 1945, but thanks to the excellent records kept by the original family who owned the garden as well as paintings and other documents the garden was reestablished along its traditional lines.
The garden was established as a 'walking' garden so there are paths that take you around the different parts of the garden. Something that makes it somewhat different from other Japanese gardens are the large areas of lawn. (As someone who is used to western style gardens, it didn't register with me as being different until it was pointed out!)
I had been to the garden before and on I my last trip to Japan I was revisiting my favourite locations, I stopped by again. Okayama is close to Kurashiki so I spent the morning and early afternoon there, took the train back to Okayama (I was based in Kobe) and headed off to see the garden. On previous occasions I had walked from the train station, this time I was tired and the thought of a 20 to 25 minute walk didn't appeal so I caught the bus! There's a helpful tourist information office at the train station that pointed me in the direction of the correct bus. The stop you need to get out at is called 'Korakuen mae' which means 'stop infront of Korakuen' (!)
There's a park that surrounds the garden and that's free to enter.
The garden itself has an entrance fee.
Once inside the garden, walking along the main path you can see in the distance, Okayama Castle. The original castle was burnt to the ground in a bombing raid in June 1945 so what's there now is a concrete replica built 1964 to 66. (Most Japanese castles were rebuilt during that time) It has a modern museum inside with elevators to different floors, unlike the historic castles that are around and have very steep stairs!
I was there in April and so was able to see the azaleas blooming, I love the way azaleas are used in Japan as hedging plants and are sculptured into rounded shapes.
The garden has different areas and you can walk around to experience them.
This photo took some trial and error as had to I lift the camera over a fence to get the sculptured rows of tea plants so I couldn't see exactly what the camera was capturing. (There were quite a few deleted photos!)
Korabuen garden would be a must see destination for anyone who loves gardens, not necessarily Japanese gardens. It's quite large, 133,000 square metres, and it's very pleasant to stroll around and discover all the different parts to the garden. You get a map with the admission price and that makes it possible to plan your visit.
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