While Himeji Castle was very pretty on the outside and offering varied perspectives there but not nearly as interesting on the inside for us, Koko-en was a different thing altogether: the garden was drop-dead gorgeous through and through! Just look at these pictures below: they were taken from around 3:45PM onward:
The beauty of Koko-En isn’t where Okayama Korakuen is, but it’s still really pictureseque and has the benefit of being compact. I read that the garden is a fairly recent construction from 1992, with its designe based on the Edo Period of 17th to 19th century. The centerpiece of the compound is the garden of the Lord’s Residence – which is where the above three pictures were taken. The garden has a suggested pathway for visitors to follow too, and there are really pretty perspectives to be had at various vantage points. It might had also been because of the timing of our visit – late afternoon – so the garden wasn’t crowded at this point. There is also a tea garden that was unfortunately closed today.
Pictures of the kids exploring the garden on their own too:
Admission to the castle and garden can be purchased as a combo ticket at ¥1,050. I really recommend you opt for that combo admission. And try try try to squeeze in at least 30 minutes to visit the garden, and preferably an hour to really take your time in it.
Continuing onto Day 05 next !