Shinjuku Gyoen Japanese Garden Poolside Architecture

DAY 08 / SHINJUKU GYOEN

Shinjuku Gyoen and the End of the Journey

Save the Imperial Palace and the Art Museum for next time, and spend the last full day slowing down near Shinjuku.

On the eighth day, we originally planned to visit the Imperial Palace and the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo. However, considering my family’s physical strength, we decided to visit the nearby Shinjuku Gyoen instead, allowing for a more leisurely pace.

OkuboShinjuku GyoenShinjukuPacking

Route Map

Day 8 route

The map is presented with main moving routes that can be stably calculated: Okubo, Shinjuku Gyoen, around Shinjuku Station and back to the apartment; the timeline on the right retains teahouses, Starbucks and shopping nodes.

Open the complete route on Google Maps

Okubo Morning

Apartment before check out with GO Mobile

As the journey comes to an end, I tidy up the apartment in the morning. Most urban areas in Tokyo rely on GO ride-hailing services, allowing families of all ages to walk a lot.

Shinjuku Gyoen

Shinjuku Gyoen entrance and Japanese garden

The original itinerary of the Imperial Palace and Art Museum was left for next time, so we changed it to Shinjuku Gyoen this day, which made the last day more leisurely.

Garden Break

Tea house, snacks and garden rest

Stop for hot drinks and snacks in the park, and relax your body as the journey comes to an end.

Red bean tangyuan dessert — 13:28 JST / Red bean tangyuan

Garden Starbucks

Starbucks in the Royal Garden

After the tea house, we walked along the garden. The Starbucks in the glass house gave the garden scenery a little more urban feel.

14:01 JST / Starbucks Shinjuku Gyoen exterior

Royal Garden / Starbucks glass window perspective

Garden Seasons

Grassland, cherry blossoms and the sense of four seasons

Japanese gardens, English lawns, flowers and trees intersect, and the open space next to the city makes people want to stay a little longer.

Royal Garden / Close view of flower branches

Imperial Garden / Lying down and resting

Lunch Around Shinjuku

Return to Shinjuku shopping district from the park

After leaving the Gyoen Garden, we returned to the area around Shinjuku Station, had lunch first, and then left the afternoon to the places we wanted to visit.

Shinjuku Afternoon

Blue Bottle Coffee and Shinjuku Station Shopping District

The kids walked into Tower Records again, my wife and I went shopping at Isetan, and my parents took a break at Blue Bottle Coffee.

17:19 JST / Sunset on high-rise buildings

Final Shopping

Isetan and final purchase

The final shopping time fell in Shinjuku. The street scenes, department stores, shopping malls and the crowds of people inside the stores made the trip to Tokyo a city afternoon.