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Tokyo Free Walking Tour

Free walking tours for foreign tourists and residents

THE WEEKDAY TOUR FOR THE EAST GARDENS OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE (SEP.19,2018)

THE WEEKDAY TOUR FOR THE EAST GARDENS OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE (SEP.19,2018)

Thank you so much for joining our weekday tour to the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace on Sep. 19th. We are very happy to have 11 guests from Israel, USA, Spain, France and India. The weather was very nice. We hope all of you enjoyed the tour!

We started the tour at 10 am from Tokyo Station. We unexpectedly saw the horse carriage parade there two times today. Newly appointed ambassadors (from Senegal and Qatar) were on a horse carriage on their way from the Gyoko-dori Avenue to the Imperial Palace, to see the Emperor to present credentials. We were very lucky to see the parade!

Now it is the beginning of autumn, which is the harvest season with delicious food, and its comfortable climate is good for playing sports. Around the Imperial Palace you can see many people jogging. Along the pathway (about 5 km) there are gates which lead to the Imperial Palace in several places, but there are no traffic lights at all. Therefore it is an ideal course for jogging! Also it is the most relaxing spot in Tokyo. From the sidewalk you can enjoy the great views of the palace surrounded by nature, such as moats, stone walls, trees and flowers. So it is one of the most popular running spots in Tokyo.

We have to follow manners when using the sidewalk along the Imperial palace.

  1. Priority is given to pedestrians.
  2. Large groups should not spread or block footpath.
  3. Be prepared to walk in single file on narrow roads.
  4. Walk or run counterclockwise.
  5. Don’t run too fast.
  6. Stop listening to music, or checking your mobile while walking or running.
  7. Bicyclists must slow down.
  8. Take your trash home.
  9. Be considerate.

If you look down on the sidewalk, you can find many beautiful tiles. There are 50 tiles of flowers on the sidewalk every 100 meters, and we can easily know the distance. The tiles are called “the circle of flowers”. On each tile, symbolic flowers of 47 prefectures and Chiyoda city are depicted. It is really interesting!

Why don’t you try walking or running while enjoying beautiful scenery and finding interesting things around the Imperial Palace?

(posted by Kaori)