!8: Brand New Braun Pulsonic Series 7: January 2012

!±8± Park in Tokyo - Showa Kinen Park

If you are looking for a great park in Tokyo, look no further! This park may not be as well known as the other parks in Tokyo but it certainly should be! It is one of the largest parks I have visited and, wow, what a great list of activities. This park was formerly the location of the Tachikawa air base (about 566 hectares - 5.66 million square meters!) This park is divided into a series of 5 zones (a, b, c, d and e). The main part of the park is approximately 1.7km by 2.3km.

Getting Around this Huge Park in Tokyo

It has a bicycle path that runs all around the park; an entire 14 kilometers (about 8.7 miles). The park rents bikes and there are several types of bikes to choose from; bikes for children, adult bikes with child seats, tandem bicycles and unicycles. Adult type bikes are Yen 400 per 3 hours while child bikes are Yen 250. I highly recommend renting a bike because this Tokyo part is big and you'll need it to get around to all the wonderful park attractions. Bikes are rented all year round. If you are late returning the bicycle they will charge you proportionally more.

Zone A - The Park Before the Park

Zone A is actually not inside the paid area of the park. Here you have the Hanamidori Cultural Center, The Emperor Showa Memorial Museum, Field of Dreams (25,000 m2 big) and Main Information building. At the Main Information building you can get everything from event information and maps (including English ones) to information as to what flowers are in bloom. If you just want to get into the park, skip to Zone B. You can also get English maps and event info at Zone B.

Zone B - The Main Entrance to Showa Kinen Park

The park is open from 0930 hours to 1630 hours or 1700 hours, depending on the season. There is an admission fee of Yen 400 for adults and Yen 80 for children. If you are travelling by car, the park has many large parking lots. The cost of a normal size car is Yen 800. I recommend parking at the largest entrance, Tachikawa Gate. If you park here, you only be a 200 meter walk away to the main entrance to the park which is just before the "Canal". Also, at this gate, you can rent bicycles from just inside the park.

Zone C - Water, Water, Water and Birds

Boats! That's right! The park comes complete with its only little late, called Waterfowl Lake. Rent a row boat or a pedal boat. On sunny days, the lake can become quite crowed though. Boats are only rented between March 1 and Nov 30th. I recommend just 15 minutes here because if you paddle or row too much, you'll be too tired for the rest of the park! There is a great little restaurant by Waterfowl Lake with both inside and outside seating.

In this zone, there is also a bird sanctuary (35,000m2), tree and flower garden (83,000m2) and my favorite, the Rainbow Pool area (6.3 hectares!). The pool area is of course only open in the summer and has a total of 9 outside pools! That not all, not included in 6.3 hectares is another areas called Water Playland where there are another 5 pools, and one with a waterfall.

Zone D - Sports, BBQ and Flowers

Feeling cramped in Tokyo? This park in Tokyo has a huge field to let go on! Fly a kite, pass the pass around or just round around this 11 hectare field. There is also a Dragonfly Marsh area to the side.

Looking for a place to have a bbq in Tokyo? Not only does the park supply the bbq equipment for you but they also can sell you all the food you need for your bbq. It is best to make a reservation as it does become quite crowed.

This beautiful park in Tokyo has a lot more activities such as petanque, croquet, lawn bowling, horseshoes, futsal court, 3-on-3 basketball court and lots more!

Did I mention there are an ample number of garden flowers, too?

Putter Golf is always fun and yes, Showa Kinen Park has a course! 18 holes, too! Great fun for the family and very well maintained. The park also has frisbee golf (also known as disc golf). The frisbee golf course is a lot more rugged than the putter golf.

Zone E - Children Get Into the Zone Here!

Here the kids will certainly love it. Visit the Children's Forest and the Forest House. If it's summer, I highly recommend the Misty Forest to cool down a bit. Then there is the bouncing dome and the bouncy hammocks

...and this park in Tokyo has...

If you are a plant lover, this park in Tokyo has a lot to offer! From the picturesque flowers and pond at its entrance to the wild flora and fauna growing in and amongst its many groves, it is sure to appease your appetite. The park plants an assortment of plants in 20 different areas of the park and a map showing the location and plant names is available.

Location & How to Get There

Showa Kinen Park is located about 10 minutes away from Tachikawa Station. There are a multitude of different trains you can take to get here. Catch the Chuo Line from Shinjyuku Station to Tachikawa Station. It will take 45 minutes about Yen 450 per adult to get to Tachikawa. There are limited express trains that really cut down the time. If you take the Limited Express Kaiji, it will only take 26 minutes but will cost about Yen 1260 per adult.