Omiya Bonsai Village
Omiya Bonsai Village
4
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
About
Omiya Bonsai Village is an area encompassing 6 Bonsai gardens, located in the north of Tokyo, accessible within 30 minutes by train. Known as the mecca of bonsai, Omiya Bonsai Village is visited by numerous bonsai lovers not only from all over Japan but also all over the world. Omiya Bonsai Village was formed around 1925 by bonsai gardeners who moved from Tokyo due to the damage caused by the Great Kanto Earthquake. Today, there are 6 bonsai gardens in Omiya Bonsai Village. You may discover the distinctive characteristics of each bonsai gardener by browsing their collections and elaborate works. *Mansei-en: Moved to Omiya in 1925, *Kyuka-en: Since 1929, *Toju-en: Since 1931, *Fuyo-en: Since 1939, *Seikou-en: Moved to Omiya in 1943, *Shosetsu-en: Since 1977. Come and explore the magical beauty of bonsai in Omiya Bonsai Village!
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
84 reviews
Excellent
33
Very good
39
Average
9
Poor
1
Terrible
2
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akashi-rokuro
16,639 contributions
Jan 2024 • Family
Omiya Bonsai Village is an area of bonsai gardens located between Tobu Omiya Koen Station and JR Toro Station. It is said to be an ideal place for bonsai traders that was established after the Great Kanto Earthquake. At the time, in order to live in Bonsai Village, there were four conditions: 1) own more than 10 bonsai pots, 2) keep your gates open, 3) do not build two-story houses, and 4) have hedges. Perhaps for this reason, the houses in Bonsai Village are all large and impressive. Even if you are not planning to buy bonsai, it is nice to stroll around and look at them.
Written January 20, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bruce I
Perth27 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
We were a little disappointed because only 3 of the nurseries were open on the day that we visited. The bonsai’s that we saw were lovely, and the Bonsai museum was very good with some of the trees over 1,000 years old. It was definitely worth going, but maybe our expectations were a little too high.
Written May 22, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sriver
Hobart, Australia181 contributions
A friend of mine is a keen bonsai person and he mentioned this village before I left on my trip to Tokyo. It is about 40 min from Tokyo. I went by train from Ikebukuro to Akabane then took a train to Toro. The Bonsai museum is a short walk to the station. Some of the nurseries are not far away. They are closed on Thursdays. There is a person at the museum that 'loves bonsai' and can explain what is on display. They can also direct you to the nurseries. One I visited had a bonsai class in progress. They had hundreds of bonsai on display and were watering them at the time. You could spend a day in this peaceful neighborhood exploring.
Written June 3, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
forensicsgirl
San Antonio, TX1,598 contributions
Apr 2015 • Friends
We booked a tour of Masahiko Kimura's garden through Yoshihiro Nakamizu. Yoshi arranged to meet us at JR line's Toro station in Saitama.
After visiting Kimura's garden, we had lunch at Bonsai Restaurant Omiya. Omiya Bonsai Village has five bonsai gardens and a museum featuring bonsai trees. Each bonsai garden is different. Before arriving at Omiya Bonsai Village, I didn't realize there were different styles between coniferous and deciduous bonsai trees.
I wish there was a way to enjoy a pot of tea while sitting amongst the bonsai trees. The bonsai trees are beautiful and wonderful to admire.
After visiting Kimura's garden, we had lunch at Bonsai Restaurant Omiya. Omiya Bonsai Village has five bonsai gardens and a museum featuring bonsai trees. Each bonsai garden is different. Before arriving at Omiya Bonsai Village, I didn't realize there were different styles between coniferous and deciduous bonsai trees.
I wish there was a way to enjoy a pot of tea while sitting amongst the bonsai trees. The bonsai trees are beautiful and wonderful to admire.
Written May 1, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rudi S
Benitachell, Spain574 contributions
Nov 2014 • Couples
Located in Omiya Toro is the Bonsai Museum (closed Thursdays) and 4 Bonsai nurseries within 5 - 15 min walk which display hundreds of amazing Bonsais. Phantastic ! If you are coming from Ueno JR station take the Utzunomiya JR line which starts in Ueno and leave the train one station after Omiya: called Toro. Well worth a visit not just the Bonsais but also the high class environment of people living there.
Written November 30, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
weboflifeDelhi
Delhi60 contributions
Apr 2017
If you are interested in bonsai among everything else to discover and learn about in Japan, visiting this bonsai village for a day is recommended. It is nice to do it on a weekend. It is a day trip by train and is very accessible from Tokyo. The village is at a very short walking distance from the station where you get down. You can walk through the village and see bonsai in homes, nurseries and an excellent museums. There are small restaurants in the village where you can have lunch. It is possible to return to Tokyo by around 5 pm
Written March 1, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bronwyn H
Dunoon, Australia27 contributions
Nov 2015 • Couples
The day we visited was very quiet and sunny. The village doesn't seem to be advertised at all, especially to tourists generally. We found out about it through a friend. It is a little outside Tokyo city but easily accessed by Shinkansen in half an hour with JR. pass. We got a map from the Bonsai museum and spent a very inspiring couple of hours cruising the excellent nurseries, all open to visitors for free. If you are into bonsai, the proprietors are very helpful and let you watch artists at work. A great day, and absolutely no crowds!
Written December 1, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jansje S
Paris, France203 contributions
Apr 2015 • Couples
We took the train from Akinhabara station to Toro Station in Omiya, about a 45 minutes ride. Omiya is the Bonsai Village of Japan and gives a feeling of a village rather than a town. After a 10 minute walk we arrived at the "Bonsai Museum", a small museum with a beautiful garden showing off trees of over 100 years old. Spectacular! It sets the standard for our visit to some bonsai nurseries. Omiya seems a relatively well off community where the Bonsai nurseries look from the outside like private homes. Once there you step into a whole different world where 80 year old trees are only 60cm tall and considered very tall...The gardeners use different sheers to snip away a small branch or a new shoot knowing that it never can be replaced in the evergreens. We saw quite some gardeners who were busy snipping away at new small roots, scraping away hard soil and replacing it with nice fresh one before repotting the trees. Many of the bonsai trees had a sort of wire around its branches to force it to grow in a certain way. Old bark of old trees were somehow kept and shaped in sculpturally shapes. Hundreds of plants were set on shelves, vendors were busy either talking to clients or getting bonsai trees ready for shipment around the world. We had lunch in the "Bonsai" restaurant across from the Bonsai museum before returning to Tokyo. A very special day spent in a very special world. A wonderful experience!
Written May 7, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MichelleDandMichaelW
Perth, Australia44 contributions
Feb 2015 • Couples
We visited the Omiya Bonsai Village in early February 2015 and found it exquisite. To see so many amazing bonsai in one area was incredible. We also visited the Bonsai Museum which was fantastic. We had lunch at the Bonsai Restaurant in Omiya and the food was beautiful. We would thoroughly recommend doing a tour with Mr Yoshihiro Nakamizu of the Bonsai Network Japan. He arranged an amazing tour for us and we got to visit many places in Omiya and Tokyo that we would never have been able to find on our own. The tour went for approximately 8 hours and was very professional. Highly recommended.
Written February 25, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Honestcouple
Lancashire133 contributions
Nov 2019
A relaxing mid morning walk in this tranquil setting. Even with the map from the Bonsai Art Museum and my Google Map we managed to walk past 2 gardens/nurseries without realising it. Good news is that’s a reason to return.
Written December 22, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Suze H
Oakville, Canada
Is it much of an attraction in the fall months (September-October)?
Written June 2, 2015
Late October/Early November it could be even prettier. In any case the exhibition is just too magnificient for you to bother about weather...
Written June 3, 2015
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