Japan Heritage

Yokokan Garden

Recommended routes

Stories of stones full of atmosphere used for the ruins of castles and for gardens

5-hour course

01Ex-Genjoin garden

Ex-Genjoin garden

This is a dry landscape garden that features a path around a central pond and spring in the precincts of Heisenji Hakusan shrine built at the end of the Muromachi period. It is said to be the oldest garden in existence in Hokuriku region.Natural stones are skillfully arranged such as a principal stone image of Buddha, a vertical stone stone, a leveled stone, stones used for making waterfall called “takiishigumi”, etc. placed in an artificial mountain in front of the garden. They create beautiful landscape harmonized with green moss.

42 minutes by car

02Ichijodani Asakura Clan Ruins

Ichijodani Asakura Clan Ruins

Over fifteen ruins of gardens have been discovered in Ichijodani. Some of them have a style of garden that features a path around a central pond and spring with magnificent arrangement of garden stones. Others have simple and refined dry landscape garden, etc. Well preserved stone arrangement tells us the garden style in those days. Out of these gardens, four of them, including the largest one called “Ruins of Suwa residence”, are designated as national-designated special scenic beauty.

22 minutes by car

03Yokokan Garden

Yokokan Garden

This is a garden of a villa of the Matsudaira family, the feudal lord of Fukui domain with a grove that features a path around a central pond and spring. Famous stones produced in Echizen are used in various places in the garden such as a stone bridge made of a huge natural stone with 5 meters in length and 90 cm in width, kageishi, a type of stone used in the landscaping of Japanese gardens, vertical stones, a washbasin set called Tsukubai made of Shakudani stone, etc. We can enjoy beautiful landscape created by water and stones while walking around the garden in a relaxed manner.