The spring illuminations of the Rikugi-en garden
The illuminated cherry trees of Rikugien
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When hanami is celebrated under the stars
Every year, Rikugi-en holds its spring illuminations. Ten days of festivities during which the cherry blossoms reveal their most beautiful colors under the nocturnal lighting of the garden!
Rikugi-en, a garden very popular for its illuminations
Located a stone's throw from Komagome station, the Rikugi-en garden was laid out during the 18th century by the 5th shogun of the Tokugawa clan, Tsunayoshi Tokugawa.
A lover of fine literature and especially classical poetry, Tsunayoshi endeavored throughout his shogunate to reproduce landscapes drawn from Japanese poems and traditional Chinese tales in the gardens he had laid out. This is why Rikugi-en takes its name from the famous traditional poem Waka or "garden" which means "Garden of six poems".
- Read also: The "stamp rally" of the gardens of Tokyo
Rikugien under the koyo
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If even today its poetic arrangement still fascinates visitors, it is above all its trees that attract crowds during the change of seasons. And for good reason, whether during the Koyo season (reddening of the leaves) in autumn or during the cherry blossom season in spring, Rikugi-en adorns itself with a thousand lights every year upon sundown!
A spectacle that Tokyoites would not miss for anything in the world, and which has greatly shaped the reputation of this garden as one of the most beautiful in the city.
- See also: Autumn illuminations in Rikugi-en Park
Rikugien under the sakura
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Cherry trees, lights, and moonlight
From late March to early April, Rikugi-en opens until 9 p.m. Nocturnal hours which thus offer visitors the possibility of admiring the cherry trees from a new angle: the softness of night lighting.
Indeed, on the occasion of the flowering of the sakura, the entire garden is illuminated!
Shades of pink, bluish tones, and lavender hues, it's a multitude of pastel colors that come each evening to illuminate the petals of cherry trees. A bucolic spectacle that ends at the back of the garden with the beauty of Rikugi-en's Shidarezakura, a pretty cherry tree 15 meters high and 20 meters wide!
The spring illuminations of Rikugi-en
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Spring equinox obliges, and the spring illuminations of Rikugi-en also offer the opportunity to admire the sakura in the shadow of the moon. If you are lucky, you will be able to observe the lunar star in the clear sky of Tokyo (if the latter does not play hide and seek with the branches of cherry trees of course).
cherry tree and moonlight
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Visitez les jardins de Tokyo avec un guide !
Address, timetable & access
Address
Price
300 yen ($2.25/2€)Access
from March 21 to April 3, 2019, from 9 am to 9 pm.
