Taizanso, International Christian University
This season's opening
Taizanso special opening
- Hours
- Sun 11 and Mon (holiday) 12 Oct, 11:00–16:00; no entry before 11:00. Kofukyo tours start on the hour from 11:00 to 15:00 (about 40 minutes).
- Admission
- Free (donations towards upkeep are collected)
- Booking
- No bookingThe study hall, waiting pavilion, storehouse, garage and gate can be seen from outside without booking. The Kofukyo hut with the one-mat study (exterior only) is shown only on tours of 15; return-postcard applications closed on 15 Sep, with a lottery if oversubscribed and replies posted by about 29 Sep.
Two days when the closed Taizanso grounds open and you can see the registered study hall, waiting pavilion, storehouse, garage and gate from outside. The Kofukyo hut with the one-mat study is for tour winners only, and from outside.
It is a 15-minute walk from the campus bus stop. The ground is uneven and heels damage the moss, so wear flat shoes. No photos on the tour, and the opening may be called off in bad weather. The waiting pavilion is said to come from the Ikeda villa at Osaki, now Ikedayama Park in Shinagawa, which is lit up in late November: a good pair.
About the garden
Yamada Keisuke, an executive of the Nissan group, built this villa for tea gatherings in a suburb within sight of Mount Fuji; it now lies inside the ICU campus. Six buildings are registered cultural properties, among them the Kofukyo hut that holds the one-mat study of Matsuura Takeshiro, the man who named Hokkaido. The grounds open two days a year.
Where to stand
Stop under the thatched front gate and look up at the crossbeam and the beam above it: old timbers dug out of the earthen base of the Saiwaibashi gate, one of Edo Castle's checkpoints. Then go to the thatched waiting pavilion, said to be the Chitei tea room moved from the Ikeda lords' villa at Osaki. Walk round the tile-roofed study hall and set it against the thatched buildings.
Practical notes
Open only on 11 and 12 October 2026, 11:00–16:00, free (donations welcome). You can walk the grounds and see the study hall, waiting pavilion, storehouse, garage and gate from outside without booking; the one-mat study is shown only on lottery tours, which closed on 15 September. Allow 15 minutes on foot from the campus bus stop, and leave heels at home: they damage the moss.
Tea and food nearby
Small places within walking distance. Check their opening days against the garden's.
- 0 min walk☕ CafeICU tea club's tea gathering (Taizanso study hall and courtyard)
On both open days the university's tea club runs a paid tea gathering in the study hall and the courtyard. The villa was built for tea parties, so stopping for a bowl here, rather than only looking at the buildings from outside, shows you what the place was for.
Order：A bowl of tea at the gathering (details and price on the day)
Held in the study hall and courtyard during the open hours on Sun 11 and Mon (holiday) 12 Oct (11:00–16:00); follow the on-site signs for the gathering's times. No photos of the tea gathering.Paid (the official page does not give the amount)Details ↗ - 15 min walk🍽 FoodMikarino Soba
A roomy soba house with tatami rooms, south of Nogawa Park. The old-style building lets you stay in the mood of Taizanso's thatched roofs.
Order：Soba with tempura
Tue–Fri 11:00–14:45, 17:00–20:00; weekends and holidays 11:00–14:45, 17:00–20:15 (last orders)Closed: Mondays (Tuesday if Monday is a holiday; open on 12 Oct, a holiday)¥1,000–2,000Details ↗