Shrine
Hirakawa Tenmangu
Chiyoda•1.0km(13 min walk)
Tokyo Imperial Palace
皇居Tokyo
Sight
What makes this place special?
At a Glance
Tokyo Imperial Palace combines the Emperor’s residence with moats, stone walls and gardens inherited from Edo Castle. Its wooded grounds form a striking contrast with the office towers of central Tokyo, while the East Gardens reveal former castle foundations and landscaped areas.
Choose the kind of visit before planning your route. Viewing the exterior from public areas, entering the East Gardens and joining an official guided tour are different experiences with different gates and rules. The residential buildings are not generally open as a walk-through attraction. The map pin represents the palace area, so use the official map to reach the gate for your chosen visit.
- Edo Castle moats and stone walls
- East Gardens and former castle grounds
Goshuin within a short walk
Temples, shrines and castles near Tokyo Imperial Palace that give goshuin, closest first.
How do I visit?
Admission
Free
The public East Gardens and the official palace guided tour are free; the residential palace is not a general-admission interior attraction. Separate museums, special events and commercial tours have their own conditions. A tour application or same-day registration is required for the guided route, not for ordinary East Gardens entry.
Know before you go
For the guided tour, online applications open at 05:00 JST on the first of the previous month and close at 23:59 JST four days before the visit. The Tour Office channel instead opens at 08:45 on that first day and closes seven days before. Walk-in numbered tickets at Kikyo-mon start at 09:00/12:30 until allocated capacity is exhausted; bring original ID, not a copy. The route is about 2.2 km/one hour. East Gardens visits use separate gates and need no tour booking; you must leave the gardens to reach Kikyo-mon. Check the separate garden and tour calendars.
Tip from Goshuin Atlas, Source-based travel guidance
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