Yoshikien
4.5
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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4.5
215 reviews
Excellent
121
Very good
73
Average
18
Poor
1
Terrible
2
Sivan M
Dallas, TX530 contributions
Apr 2023 • Friends
It’s relatively close to the station in the park so if you were to visit any of the gardens, I would recommend this one. The wildlife is beautiful and there’s also a small restaurant where you can have an authentic Japanese meal alongside the garden. Beautiful place for pictures and sight seeing.
Written 22 April 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sueB2498EU
Adelaide, Australia137 contributions
Nov 2016 • Couples
This amazing garden is a hidden treasure in Nara it is next to the Isui-en garden but they are 2 separate gardens.Both are situated near Nara park.Make sure you take your passport as the entry is free for foreign visitors.
You walk through the entrance into an amazing pool surrounded by trees as we visited in November the autumn leaves were stunning.
There is a restaurant in the building near the pool,we did not eat here but it looked like traditional Japanese food was served in a beautiful location.
There are stone paths in the garden be careful if you are challenged with mobility as the stones are uneven the signs will suggest alternative routes.
I love photography and once the gardeners knew I was interested in plants they started explaining the plants to me which was fantastic you do not need a common language when you love plants and gardens.
Not full of tourists we went on a Tuesday at 11am not very busy many people seem to stay in the Nara Park with the deer so this garden was a break from the tourist crowds.
The garden can be a bit difficult to find we used the local bus from the Nara train station the tourist centre can help you with directions and buses.We got off the bus at the Nara park and walked back to the garden via side streets.
One highlight was standing in a small pergola looking at the views when 6 senior Japanese people played music on their phone and sang a traditional folk song celebrating autumn.
Best time to visit May/April November.
My husband is not into gardens or photography but he really enjoyed this garden.We loved the Isui-en garden next door but both felt this smaller garden was the highlight make sure you visit this one first.Take your time to really appreciate its beauty.
Do not miss this garden a highlight of our trip.
You walk through the entrance into an amazing pool surrounded by trees as we visited in November the autumn leaves were stunning.
There is a restaurant in the building near the pool,we did not eat here but it looked like traditional Japanese food was served in a beautiful location.
There are stone paths in the garden be careful if you are challenged with mobility as the stones are uneven the signs will suggest alternative routes.
I love photography and once the gardeners knew I was interested in plants they started explaining the plants to me which was fantastic you do not need a common language when you love plants and gardens.
Not full of tourists we went on a Tuesday at 11am not very busy many people seem to stay in the Nara Park with the deer so this garden was a break from the tourist crowds.
The garden can be a bit difficult to find we used the local bus from the Nara train station the tourist centre can help you with directions and buses.We got off the bus at the Nara park and walked back to the garden via side streets.
One highlight was standing in a small pergola looking at the views when 6 senior Japanese people played music on their phone and sang a traditional folk song celebrating autumn.
Best time to visit May/April November.
My husband is not into gardens or photography but he really enjoyed this garden.We loved the Isui-en garden next door but both felt this smaller garden was the highlight make sure you visit this one first.Take your time to really appreciate its beauty.
Do not miss this garden a highlight of our trip.
Written 22 November 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tuffet119
261 contributions
Mar 2014 • Couples
Yoshikien is a traditional Japanese garden that features three different types of gardens: a pond garden, a moss garden, and a tea garden. The entire site is small and can be seen in less than an hour. Although it wasn't the most spectacular garden we saw while in Japan, it was probably the quietest and is worth a quick visit during a day trip to Nara.
Visiting is free for foreigners. You just need to fill out a short survey and show your passport. We only saw one other person while we were there, even though it was a Saturday and all the other sites we visited in Nara were very crowded. There are clean bathrooms (with squat toilets) at the back of the gardens.
Yoshikien Garden is one block off the main road on the way to Todaiji and is next door to Isuien Garden, which costs 500 yen per person. When facing the entrances to the two gardens, Yoshikien is on the right. My husband and I both preferred Isuien, particularly the spectacular back garden, but thought it was worth taking the time to visit Yoshikien as well.
Visiting is free for foreigners. You just need to fill out a short survey and show your passport. We only saw one other person while we were there, even though it was a Saturday and all the other sites we visited in Nara were very crowded. There are clean bathrooms (with squat toilets) at the back of the gardens.
Yoshikien Garden is one block off the main road on the way to Todaiji and is next door to Isuien Garden, which costs 500 yen per person. When facing the entrances to the two gardens, Yoshikien is on the right. My husband and I both preferred Isuien, particularly the spectacular back garden, but thought it was worth taking the time to visit Yoshikien as well.
Written 8 June 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nobuko F
Yao, Japan196 contributions
Dec 2019
This garden is situated between Kofukuji Temple and Todaiji Temple (both World Heritages). There is a house with glass doors which were made by hands; therefore the glass planes are not flat and smooth. The garden shows different colors depending on each season.
Written 10 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jueying
across the universe40 contributions
Nov 2019
This was a beautiful find in Nara - it's far away from the crowds and so very peaceful and quiet. We visited when the autumn colours were glorious - beautiful hues of yellow, orange and red. It's free for international tourists - just show some ID!
Written 24 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Maxinejoyce
Toronto, Canada28 contributions
Nov 2019
First, foreigners get a free pass. Second, not overly crowded. Peaceful, lovely rest houses oozed with ambience and charm. Not much colour yet, nor flowers but the mosses were in good form.
Written 5 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
annchgo
Hutchinson, KS90 contributions
Oct 2019 • Couples
Really lovely visit. Near other attractions. And free. No reason not to go. Nice little brochure, too.
Written 15 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
InfinityZero
Bedford, Canada51 contributions
Aug 2019
This was a great introduction to Japanese gardens for me. I was happy to find that this garden is free if you show a foreign passport, and it ended up being one of the best gardens I saw in my time in Japan! The three segments are all beautiful, and the tea house set the perfect atmosphere. The other bonus is that, unlike the nearby Todai-ji Temple and deer-friendly parks that are crawling with tourists, Yoshiki-en is very quiet and had very few tourists. Incredibly relaxing and a good break from the rabble of other Nara sites.
Written 28 August 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ra7v
Bintulu, Malaysia8 contributions
Mar 2019
Came here on a Tuesday (today) was open. While the garden is a standard japanese garden wuth 3 levels (stone, moss and flower), which is pretty as per any old japanese garden, the lady who was admitting guests at the entrance was very unfriendly to me and my family, just coz we were not white people. The people in front of us were from Italy, she welcomed them with smiles and detailed explanations. For us, when she saw that we were from Malaysia, she just put on a stoic face and asked how did I know about this garden. When I said that I just googled gardens in Nara, she blurted out “So you did not know about this garden before right?”. Then she handed me a map and told us to go in. Clearly she has double standards when treating tourists based on skin colour. She even smiled and said goodbye to othe white tourists as we exited, but for us Indian Malaysians, she didnt even look at us just stared into her desk. Rude!
Written 25 March 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Aleksssa
114 contributions
Mar 2019 • Family
The garden is open until 17 and the last entry is at 16.30. As we were approaching the garden entrance at 16.28 or so we saw the lady hanging out the "closed" sign already. A little later, when we tried to enter, I showed the lady at the entrance my phone showing exactly 16.30, but she refused to let us in and was pretty rude to us. As if we wouldn't be able to walk through this little park in 30 minutes. This is the worst customer service we have experienced during our trip to Japan.
Written 24 March 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
is the garden really close on 15 feb-28 feb?
Written 10 February 2018
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