Garden · Ryogoku

Kyu-Yasuda Garden 旧安田庭園

A free Edo-period stroll garden hidden directly behind the Ryogoku Kokugikan sumo hall, a pond once fed by the tides of the Sumida River, stone lanterns, and almost no one else there.

About

Laid out at the end of the 17th century for the Honjo Matsudaira daimyo family and later owned by Yasuda Zenjiro, founder of the Yasuda zaibatsu, this compact garden is built around the Shinji-ike pond, which in its heyday rose and fell with the Sumida River's tides. Today the water is pumped, but the design survives: a central island, a moon-viewing bridge, a dry waterfall, snow lanterns and carefully clipped pines, all ringed by Ryogoku's low buildings. Sumo fans pour out of the Kokugikan next door and the Edo-Tokyo Museum is across the street, yet most never step inside. It costs nothing, opens until the evening, and the koi practically come to greet you.

Highlights

• Edo-period tidal-pond garden design around Shinji-ike
• Central island, arched stone bridge and snow lanterns reflected in still water
• Free entry, right behind the Ryogoku Kokugikan
• Evening light-ups in season, open until 18:00–19:30
• Large, friendly koi and herons in the pond

Tips

• The small gate sits on the street just north of the Kokugikan, it is easy to walk past.
• Perfect 20-minute calm-down before or after a sumo tournament day at the Kokugikan.
• Opening hours are longer in summer (to 19:30) than in winter (to 18:00).
• The adjoining Yokoamicho Park has the moving Tokyo Memorial Hall for the 1923 earthquake and 1945 air raids.

Open in Google Maps · Info checked 2026-10-09

Nearby

• Japanese Sword MuseumMuseum · 60 m away
• Sumo MuseumMuseum · 110 m away
• Ryogoku KokugikanSports & Sumo · 160 m away
• Ryogoku Station & Edo NorenTransit Hub · 230 m away
• Tokyo Memorial Hall (Tokyo Irei-do)Statue & Monument · 240 m away
• Skytree from Kuramae-bashiPhoto Spot · 250 m away
• Ryogoku Tourist Information CenterTourist Info · 250 m away
• Edo-Tokyo MuseumMuseum · 250 m away