Sankeien
Sankeien (三溪園) in Honmoku Sannotani, Naka Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, is a garden dotted with historic buildings that Hara Sankei moved here from Kyoto, Kamakura, Hida and elsewhere, beginning with the Tenzuiji covering hall in 1905 (Sankeien). Ten of them, the Rinshunkaku, Gekkaden, Choshukaku, Shunsoro, Tenjuin, the former main hall and pagoda of Tomyoji, the former Buddha hall of Tokeiji, the former juto covering hall of Tenzuiji and the former Yanohara residence, are each designated an Important Cultural Property (Agency for Cultural Affairs). They are owned by the Sankeien Hoshokai Foundation.
The Inner Garden
At the heart of the inner garden is the Rinshunkaku, thought to be a villa of the Kishu Tokugawa, its three wings stepping back along the pond. Around the valley stand the Gekkaden, said to be a waiting hall of Fushimi Castle; the Choshukaku, a pavilion said to come from Nijo Castle; the Shunsoro, a tea room attributed to Oda Uraku; the covering hall that Toyotomi Hideyoshi built over his mother's monument; and the Tenjuin, thought to be the Jizo hall of Shinpeiji in Kamakura (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Sankeien).
The Outer Garden
In the outer garden, the Muromachi pagoda from Tomyoji in Kizugawa, Kyoto, stands on a hill as the oldest designated pagoda in the Kanto region. The main hall from the same temple, the thatched Buddha hall from Tokeiji in Kamakura and the gassho-style Yanohara farmhouse, moved from Shokawa ahead of the Miboro Dam, are also here (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Sankeien). Each building and its history of moves is described on its own page.
Visiting
According to the Sankeien website, the garden is open from 9:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:30) and closed from December 26 to 31; admission is 900 yen for adults (high-school age and over) and 200 yen for primary and junior high school pupils. The interiors of the Rinshunkaku and Tenjuin are not normally open, and the Yanohara house interior has been closed since August 1, 2025. Buses run from Yokohama, Sakuragicho and other stations.
References
- Rinshunkaku (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/576
- Gekkaden (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/579
- Choshukaku (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/582
- Shunsoro (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/580
- Tenjuin (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/586
- Former Tomyoji Temple Main Hall (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/575
- Former Tomyoji Temple Three-Storied Pagoda (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/584
- Former Tokeiji Temple Buddha Hall (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/583
- Former Tenzuiji Temple Juto Covering Hall (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/581
- Former Yanohara Family Residence (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/585
- Sankeien (official website, in Japanese)
- https://www.sankeien.or.jp/
- Admission (Sankeien, in Japanese)
- https://www.sankeien.or.jp/price-service/
Last verified: 2026.10.26
Basic Information
| Name | Sankeien |
|---|---|
| Location | Honmoku Sannotani, Naka Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture |
| Owner | Sankeien Hoshokai Foundation |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (10) |
| Coordinates | 35.41655, 139.65843 |
