Large open spaces, rose gardens, ponds, restaurants, outdoor stage, etc.
Just south-east of the Imperial Palace
A park with some of the best facilities (restaurants, parking, etc) in Tokyo
Variegated: plenty to see and do
Bicycle-friendly
Hibiya Park is a big, beautiful, mature park, 16 hectares (40 acres) in size, and radiating a warm cosmopolitan - almost debonair - charm. It is as close to the center of Tokyo as you can get - bordering the southern moat of the Imperial Palace.
It is packed with places to hang out and relax - even dine - in comfort and style, while enjoying very naturally landscaped, elegant garden-style views, without the "coiffured" look of so many Tokyo's famous gardens.
With no less than 6 restaurants and 4 shops, not to mention tennis courts, an outdoor stage, and a museum, this is truly a park designed for ease, fun and pleasure.
Hibiya Park is very centrally located, flanking not only the Imperial Palace east gardens to the north, but Japan's center of government, the Kasumigaseki area, to the west, and the trad high-class shopping zone of Ginza to the east.
History
Hibiya Park has a more colorful history than most of Tokyo's parks and gardens. Its origins as the grounds of a feudal lord's palace are par for the course with Tokyo parks. Of slightly more interest is its use as a military parade ground during the early years of Japan's modernization in the late 19th century. It was then made a public park in 1903.
However, Hibiya Park's very civil demeanor belies its most infamous historical role as the site where the 1905 Hibiya Riots were sparked. This 30,000-strong popular protest was against the terms of the Portsmouth Treaty, the peace treaty brokered by the US between defeated Russia and victorious Japan.
A newly nationalistic Japanese public believed the treaty was a sell-out, spurred on in this opinion by a largely vitriolic press (at least one paper even advocated the assassination of the Cabinet!). The ensuing riots spread over Tokyo, with 17 killed, hundreds injured, nearly every police box (koban) in the city destroyed, a pro-Treaty newspaper's offices burnt down, and martial law imposed for almost 3 months.
This marked the birth of a decade of violent mass political action in Japan, as well as of Japanese nationalism.
World War Two
During World War Two, nearly all the trees in the park were cut down for timber and the fences, etc. melted down for steel. Post-war restoration work was crowned in 1961 with the construction of the big 30m-(90 ft) diameter fountain.
two large Western-style flower gardens, one of mainly tulips - with a large fountain, the other of roses.
six restaurants
four stores selling snacks, etc.
two outdoor music domes, one large, one smaller
a small Park Museum
Hibiya Library
a public hall
a large lawn
a tennis court
underground car parking.
One of Hibiya Park's most attractive features is its spaciousness. It is as much a place for being active in as for relaxing, and is very easy, and pleasant, to cycle through.
Hibiya Park also features a surprisingly rich assortment of seasonal flora and fauna, including, if you're lucky enough to spot any, kingfishers!
There are scores of varieties of trees in the park, the most notable being Ginkgo biloba (AKA maidenhair trees), which form an avenue in the very middle of the park. The crowning glory of the avenue, right next to the Matsumotoro Restaurant, is the massive "Kubikake-itcho" ginkgo, 6.5m (21 ft) in circumference and 24.5m (80 ft) in height and about 400 years old. Incredibly, it was moved there in 1899 from its original location about 450m (0.3 mile) away to make way for roadworks - the moving process taking almost a month.
An especially beautiful sight is the pond with the bronze crane (bird) fountain in it, dating from 1905. Keep an eye out for live cranes, too, that make the park home.
What also gives Hibiya Park its charm are the momentos from around the globe that litter it: a piece of stone money from Yap Island, a block of gneiss from Antarctica, a Viking stone epitaph, and a statue of Remus and Romulus donated by Italy in the 1930s, to name a few.
Hours
Open 24 hours, 365 days.
Admission
Free
Access
From Kasumigaseki station (Hibiya & Marunouchi subway lines), Exit B2.
From Hibiya station (Hibiya & Chiyoda subway lines), Exits A10 or A14.
From Yurakucho station (Yurakucho subway line), Exit B2, go left and walk 150m (500 ft).
From Yurakucho station (JR Yamanote line), 8 minutes walk.
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Hibiya Park
One of Hibiya Park's most attractive features is its spaciousness. It is as much a place for being active in as for relaxing, and is very easy, and pleasant, to cycle through.
