Sorakuen Garden
相楽園
A pond-stroll Japanese garden in the city center, featuring relocated foreign-style houses and the ship-shaped Funayagata pavilion, an Important Cultural Property.
Sorakuen was originally the garden of the residence of Kodera Taijirō, mayor of Kobe during the Meiji period. It is known for its cycad garden and about 4,700 azalea bushes, and the pond-stroll garden offers rich scenery in every season. Relocated and preserved within the garden are the national Important Cultural Property “Former Hassam House” (a Western-style residence of a British merchant), the Funayagata (the cabin of the Himeji domain lord’s river barge), and the former Kodera family stable. Here you can see an unusual blend of Western architecture within a Japanese garden. A chrysanthemum exhibition is held in autumn, and the garden is illuminated at night during the autumn foliage season. Admission is about 300 yen. Closed on Thursdays. Located near the prefectural government office, about a 10-minute walk from JR Motomachi or Hanshin Motomachi Station.
Opening hours
09:00–17:00, closed Thursdays
Nearby sights
- Nankinmachi Chinatown
- Ikuta Shrine
- Kitano Ijinkan
- Kobe Former Foreign Settlement
- Kobe City Museum
- Meriken Park & Kobe Harborland
- Nunobiki Falls
- Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens & Ropeway