Koishikawa Kōrakuen (Koishikawa Kōraku Garden)

This 70,000-sq-metre formal Japanese garden is one of Tokyo’s most beautiful and least visited (by foreigners at least) – if you have the slightest interest in gardens, you should make a beeline here. Established in the mid-17th century as the property of the Tokugawa clan, the garden incorporates elements of Chinese and Japanese landscaping, although nowadays the shakkei (borrowed scenery) also includes the other-worldly cool of the Tokyo Dome. The garden is particularly well known for plum trees in February, irises in June and autumn colours. Of special note is the Engetsu-kyō (Full-Moon Bridge), which dates from the early Edo period. Kōrakuen means ‘the garden of later enjoyment’, which comes from a Chinese proverb about maintaining power first and enjoying it later – we assume this sounds better in Chinese.