What other travelers are saying about Tokyo Imperial Palace
The palace grounds are absolutely beautiful and stunning. Along with admiring the gardens, a visit inside the palace walls was also a neat experience, though it requires some work well in advance to achieve. Months in advance, you can apply to visit the inner walls on their website and provide a lot of your personal information so they can verify you. Pretty much no slots are ever open for this on site. I felt like a vip during this experience as this is not available to the general public. Our guide did a great job and answered any questions throughout the tour. This tour has many guides that speak all different languages that you can choose from and best of all is that it’s free.
I went on one of the official group tours of the Tokyo Imperial Palace. This is the only way you can visit as they obviously don’t want people walking randomly around the palace grounds. There were some cool sights, but a lot of the buildings were not what you might expect to see as they were rebuilt after World War 2 to follow a more modern architecture style. Also, the tour guide did talk a little more than I might have liked but did have some good information regardless. If you’re into history, though, I’d recommend checking out this as well as the imperial palace east gardens, where you can see the ruins of the Edo castle. I wouldn’t say this is a high-priority place to visit, though.
Absolutely beautiful palace and grounds. The gardening and landscaping is a sight to behold! The trees and flowers on display are lovely and the old fortifications are incredible for both casual viewers and those with a passion for history. Take time to appreciate the scenery. It is a privilege to be allowed to walk through here so please show respect!
Visiting the Imperial Palace Gardens was a beautiful and peaceful experience. We arrived early, which I highly recommend, as it allowed us to enjoy the scenery before the crowds arrived. The gardens are stunning, with well-maintained paths and a serene pond filled with colorful fish. One of the highlights was the iconic bridge located about a 10-minute walk outside the garden, offering a picturesque view of traditional Japanese architecture. The whole visit can take around 1.5 to 2.5 hours depending on your pace. A must-visit spot for nature and culture lovers in Tokyo!
Beautifully kept grounds outside the palace and the most and walls are really impressive. Tried to show up a half hour early for the free tour and they were all gone. Think they were gone hours before. Not really necessary as the free entry to the grounds gives you access to the same areas. The inside of the palace is not as impressive as the outside but there are some cool things to see and it is definitely worth a visit. If you want to get one of the tours definitely need to reserve it ahead of time.
