You haven’t seen wisteria until you’ve ogled the giant purple vines of Tokyo. Not only is each plant astoundingly huge and lush with garlands of blooms, the streamers of flowers can be nearly a meter long! Here are my favorite places to see them in Tokyo:
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NISHIARAI DAISHI TEMPLE
This year is the first time I’ve been to the Nishiarai Daishi temple when their wisteria is in full bloom, and all I can say is that I have REGRETS that I haven’t been visiting it every year to bask in it glorious enormousness.
Before now, I thought we had to trek all the way out to the Ashikaga Flower Park to see single plants of this size, but Nishiarai Daishi is just a fifteen minute train ride from Kita-Senju Station.
How big is it? It’s THIS big:
Here’s what it’s like to walk inside it!
As a bonus, it grows right beside a nice little koi pond with greenery, so it’s a very pleasant place to sit and enjoy the purple goodness.
If you want to enjoy it without the crowds, all you have to do is go early-ish. These photos were taken at peak season around 8:00 a.m., and I had the place nearly to myself until 9:00.
And amazingly enough, it’s open 24/7 and it’s FREE (although it’s polite to make an offering at the box in front of the main sanctuary with the big striped awnings). Once you’re there, the wisteria isn’t the only thing worth seeing at Nishiarai Daishi—it’s also home to the Wart Shrine, a lovely garden with a school of colorful koi fish, and other worthy attractions.
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KAMEIDO TENJIN SHRINE
This wisteria spot has been attracting visitors since the samurai era (it’s even immortalized in a famous woodblock print!)
Kameido Tenjin has two claims to fame:
First, it’s got lots and lots of wisteria plants. How many? Let’s just say they go on for trellis after trellis of different varieties.
And second, it has gorgeous red lacquered moon bridges that look awesome with the purple:
There are so many ways to combine the bridges…
…and the red railings
With the grandeur of the purple.
As a bonus, if you’re a Skytree lover, it’s omnipresent from this shrine, especially when viewed from the top of one of the bridges, so you can see the wisteria trellises spread out below.
This spectacular place is also open 24/7 and is lit up until 21:00 during peak season.
It’s also FREE (although it’s polite to make an offering at the box in front of the main sanctuary at the end of the central promenade). If you’d like to see it sans crowds, go early. These daytime photos were taken around 7:30 a.m.
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There are also wisteria worth seeing right in central Tokyo. These are more traditionally sized and trained on long trellises rather than spreading over a city block, but they are well worth seeking out. Here are my favorites:
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HIE SHRINE
Smack in the middle of boring, corporate Akasaka, there’s a venerable island of shrine greatness that’s also home to some snap-worthy wisteria. There’s just one rack o’wisteria at the Hie Shrine, but it’s a choice one, and can be combined with the red and gold shrine buildings in many different ways for fabulous photos.
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KOSHIKAWA KORAKU-EN GARDEN
Two long trellises of wisteria sit between the iris ponds and the plum trees at Korakuen Garden.
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HAMA-RIKYU TEIEN
View-worthy wisteria grows in two separate places at this huge stroll garden. The first is tucked into a beautiful piece of landscaping with a “stream” of iris running beneath it…
and the others provide little islands of shade on the long bridge spanning the big pond
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KYU SHIBA-RIKYU GARDEN
This garden is always uncrowded, even though it’s right next to Hamamatsucho Station. Although it just has one trellis of wisteria, it’s an especially nice one.
The ancient vines at Kyu Shiba-Rikyu Garden shade a really nice picnic area right inside the gate, with a great view of the pond
And if you’re up for a bigger excursion, these four worthy wisteria-viewing experiences are well worth the travel inventment…
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ASHIKAGA FLOWER PARK
These are the biggest, baddest wisteria in all the land, and there are a LOT of them! Each variety is more spectacular than than the last…
and they’re beautiful in the day…
or night! The park is designed to maximize photos, with reflecting pools and walkways all around the beauties, so they can be shot from every angle.
You won’t believe how many colors of wisteria there are, or how many forms this one plant can take!
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ODAWARA CASTLE
If you’re headed to Odawara to see the truly excellent castle and samurai museum…
this fabulously large wisteria’s long purple streamers are well worth a hike to the far edge of the grounds.
It sits next to a lovely reflecting lotus pond…
and there are inviting benches all along the wide gallery of dappled shade it casts.
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YAKUSHIIKE PARK in Machida
This vast wisteria makes a stunning backdrop for Yakushiike Park’s famous bridge (also featured in samurai-era woodblock prints) and lovely wooded landscape.
Its layers and layers of trellis are beautiful against the lush green and the white bridge…
and one of the vast vines is an exquisitely pale pink.
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HITACHI SEASIDE PARK
If you go to Hitachi to see the park’s famous hills of Baby Blue Eyes (which are in full bloom at the same time)…
don’t miss the long trellis of wisteria near the food court, with its unusual display of many colors on the same long trellis
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If you could use more flower extravaganzas in your life…
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Truly remarkable. D
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You have to come see these for yourself! I INSIST (ha!)
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing! You introduced us to Japan (10?) years ago and we love it! I have not been there in the Spring. fabulous! Phoebe
Phoebe! I remember those days together so fondly! It’s too bad I was such a newbie here myself then, and I didn’t realize how many great flower extravaganzas happen throughout the year. I’m happy we managed to see as much as we did, though. So happy I could bring a little flowery joy to your day. Hugs from me, across the sea.
All these pictures make me sit here, thinking wistfully about coming back to Japan…
Get it? Wistfully? Wisteria? Eh? Eh??
Completely agree that Ashikaga is worth the trip! When I visited with my hubs 3 years ago there was a bus to take visitors to the park from the station, too. So, if you’re not up for the walk (I was ready-to-pop pregnant at that time) it is still very doable.
Good to know! I admit I’m unreasonably afraid of buses in Japan because of my uncanny ability to get on the wrong one and/or get on the right one going the wrong direction and end up in uncharted wilderness, but the ones that leave from the train station to destinations like the Ashikaga Flower Park are really handy and the easiest to take. Thanks for reminding me I ought to include them as an option!
Hi thanks for ssharing this
You’re welcome!
You’re welcome! I hope you get to go see them!