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TOKYO TOURS

Panoramic Tokyo
Day Tour

Tokyo Tours

Meiji Shrine, Asakusa Guest House, National Diet Building, Imperial Palace East Garden, Asakusa Temple, Ginza, Tokyo Bay Cruise, Rainbow Bridge & Odaiba.

Cityrama Tokyo
Afternoon Tour

Tokyo Tour

Tokyo Tower, National Diet Building, Imperial Palace Plaza, Asakusa Kannon Temple, Nakamise Shopping Street & Ginza.

Kyoto Highlights Day Tour from Tokyo
Kyoto Tour
The best of Kyoto in one day.
Kinkakuji Temple - Golden Pavilion
Kiyomizu Temple
Kyoto Imperial Palace
Nijo Castle
Heian Shrine
Sanjusangendo Hall
Kyoto Handicraft Center


TOKYO IMPERIAL PALACE

Tokyo Imperial Palace - Kokyo - home of the Japanese Head of State. Imperial Palace Tokyo can be toured by the public.

Tokyo Imperial Palace (皇居 Kokyo) is the home of the Emperor of Japan (the Japanese head of state). The actual Imperial Palace building was part of the Edo Castle. It is surrounded by a moat and a high wall and occupies the most expensive square kilometre in the world. The Tokyo Imperial Palace is located within the Chiyoda ward of central Tokyo.

Tokyo Imperial Palace - Moat, Wall and tower
Tokyo Imperial Palace - Moat, Wall and tower

Tokyo Imperial Palace Tours

The inner palace gardens and buildings are closed to the public except on January 2 and December 23, when the imperial family makes a public appearance; foreigners can also apply online to join a guided tour of Tokyo Imperial Palace at other times, but you must book in advance. Depending on demand, you sometimes can get in at relative short notice. Expect to share your tour with hundreds of other tourists. Tours are conducted in Japanese, but English audio guide is provided free of charge. There is no charge for this tour.

Sculpture in front of Tokyo Imperial Palace
Sculpture in front of Tokyo Imperial Palace

The Tokyo Imperial Palace was destroyed by allied bombing during World War II, even though it was not supposed to be targeted. It was rebuilt in the same style in 1968. It is the fact that the building is relatively new and does not display the beauty one may expect from a royal residence after seeing so many wonderful temples and shrines throughout Japan. While the gardens are beautiful in sections, the best gardens are definitely in the Imperial Palace East Gardens.

Is it worth see the inner Imperial Palace? Yes, for what it represents, but not for its gardens or architecture. If you want to see a beautiful garden, see the Tokyo Imperial Palace East Gardens.

Marking of Sponsor inner wall Tokyo Imperial Palace
Marking of Sponsor inner wall Tokyo Imperial Palace

The above picture is part of the inner wall which provides protection to the Tokyo Imperial Palace. The wall was built as part of the Edo Castle. Various wealthy sponsors provided materials and tradesmen to construct the Edo Castle. To ensure that other people in their society new they made a contribution to the construction of Edo Castle they engraved their mark onto some of the stone blocks that made up the wall.

Tokyo Imperial Palace Map - See the layout of palace and gardens.

Tokyo Imperial Palace Pictures - See many more pictures of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in our picture gallery.

Nijubashi Bridge at the Tokyo Imperial Palace.
Nijubashi Bridge at the Tokyo Imperial Palace.

It is said that the Nijubashi Bridge is the most photographed scene in Japan.

(Article based on Wikitravel article by Based on work by Paul N. Richter and Wikitravel user(s) Jpatokal and Nzpcmad. Article used under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0.)

Tokyo Travel Topics Tokyo Information

Last edited on 23/10/09