Stroll Japan's three classic gardens by season
Kenrokuen in Kanazawa, Kairakuen in Mito and Korakuen in Okayama are known as Japan's three great gardens. Each was built by a daimyo, a feudal lord, as a stroll garden of ponds, lawns, teahouses and trees, so the view changes at every turn of the path and with every season. They are in three different regions, so pick one: Kairakuen is about 70 minutes from Tokyo, and Korakuen under an hour from Osaka by bullet train.
In early winter, ropes are tied from a tall pole down to the branches of each pine in a cone called yukitsuri, which keeps the branches from breaking under heavy snow. Kanazawa is about 2.5 hours from Tokyo by bullet train. Repair work on a stone wall in the garden has been announced, so check the official notices before you go.
Built by a lord of Mito, the garden is famous for its plum trees, which bloom in February and March. You can step inside Kobuntei, the lord's villa that he designed himself, and look out over the garden from its tatami rooms, and in autumn the maple valley is lit up in the evening. Mito is about 70 minutes from Ueno in Tokyo by limited express train.
Built by a lord of Okayama, the garden opens onto wide lawns and a pond, with a teahouse and a stage for Noh, a traditional masked drama, among the trees, and Okayama Castle stands just across the river. Besides the plum, cherry and iris seasons, the garden opens at night on some autumn evenings. Okayama is under an hour from Osaka by bullet train, and the garden is about 25 minutes on foot from the station.