---
node: spot_tokyo_ueno_park
type: spot
slug: ueno_park
destination: dest_tokyo
title: "Ueno Park"
lead: "Ueno Park holds the greatest concentration of museums in Japan — the National Museum, the Museum of Nature and Science, two art museums — inside what was the grounds of a temple destroyed in the civil war of 1868. Its thousand cherry trees make it the city's noisiest hanami site."
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
image_file: spot_tokyo_ueno_park.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ueno_park.jpg"
image_author: "Bernard Gagnon"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 3.0"
---

## Overview

Kan'ei-ji stood here to guard the north-east of the shogun's castle, and was burned in the battle that ended the Tokugawa; the grounds became one of Japan's first public parks in 1873. The Tokyo National Museum holds the largest collection of Japanese art anywhere, including national treasures rotated through the galleries a few weeks at a time. Shinobazu Pond at the south end is covered in lotus in August and rowing boats the rest of the year.

## Highlights

The National Museum needs half a day on its own; the Hōryū-ji Treasures building beside it is quiet, beautifully lit and free of crowds. In cherry season the central avenue is a party from morning to night — the pond side is calmer if you want the blossom without the tarpaulins. Ueno Zoo, in the same park, is where Japan's giant pandas are.