Yoyogi Park - The largest park in Tokyo

If you are traveling through Tokyo, the Yoyogi Park or Yoyogi Koen (代々木公園) is an essential place to visit on your trip. Its location is great, situated between Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Harajuku, the 3 most popular tourist neighborhoods in Tokyo. In other words, the park is located amidst many prominent tourist attractions, such as the Meiji Shrine, shops and cafes, Hachiko, and others.

Yoyogi Park is quite peaceful, with plenty of green space, a lake with light shows and water jets. There are several vending machines for drinks, cute dogs walking around, and an NHK building, which may give you the opportunity to see a Japanese artist. The park is enormous, taking up almost half of the neighborhood with its 540,000m². The park is divided into a forest area with trees that can reach up to 30 meters, with 3 fountains and lakes to enjoy nature. The other part of the park is a place with sports facilities, athletics stadiums, and baseball fields.

In addition to enjoying nature and wildlife, various events are celebrated in the park throughout the year. On weekends, there are many street performers, families, and friends enjoying picnics and sports. It is worth walking through all the trails and feeling nature. Despite being the largest and greenest park, some may find it monotonous and prefer smaller and colorful gardens.

Curiosities about Yoyogi Park

Yoyogi Park is located where the first airplane flight in Japan took place in 1910. Over time, it was used as a military area, in 1945 it was used for the Olympic Games, and in 1967 it began to be transformed into a park.

If you go to the park on a Sunday, you will find various types of people, dancers practicing, actors rehearsing a scene, drunk people, parties, lovers making out, tourists with giant cameras, fashion events, dog races, rockers, etc. In the center of the park, you will find Chuo Hiroba, a grassy area with a large pond with fountains, a clock tower, and a flower garden with more than 30 different varieties.

At the gate next to the park office, you will find a monument with 14 members of Daito-juku. A right-wing organization that committed group suicide at the site on August 25, 1945.

The site of the Olympic Village remains in the southeast corner of the park. There you will find the Sample Garden with trees cultivated by Olympic athletes who brought seeds from their countries. Yoyogi Park is well known for its relaxed and friendly international atmosphere. Here is the place where Japanese people open up and do what they want despite Japan’s rigidity.

My visit to Yoyogi Park

My experience was not one of the best; I was alone and it was raining. I got off at Shibuya station and took a photo with Hachiko, then went to the busiest crossing in the world, which was empty due to the rain and it was morning. I bought some clothes and then took the long route through the park, through Harajuku until I reached Shinjuku…

I recommend taking this route, so you have the opportunity to see all the places in one day. If you want to access the park quickly, we recommend getting off at Harajuku station. Have you visited Yoyogi Park? What was your experience? We would love to hear in your comment, and we appreciate your sharing.