Don't-miss location: Kagoshima was THE easiest coastal city we visited. Downtown, hop on the bus just for tourists; stops at all major attractions for under $10 per person. Bring kids to beautiful Sengan-en Garden for outstanding hikes - wonderful trail to a waterfall at the top which you can see if you are not on a cruise tour! Koi ponds, a GORGEOUS palace. Also some of the best shops we saw on our cruise - beautiful, affordable Japanese craft items.
This was of the highlights of our visit in Kagoshima. Very well preserved, Japanese gardens with beautiful trees and flowers. We went there during lunch time and it was very hot, almost annoying walking around with so much heat. The gardens provide fans at the entrance and you can take with you while walking around. That was a relieve along with cool wave machines around the place. Thanks also to the big trees we found some shadow at times. The gardens include little shrines, lakes, waterfalls and a small bamboo forest. Personnel is very friendly and we even had a short conversation with a woman there, not very common in Japan to talk in english and she was excellent in english I have to say! We appreciated a lot! I was impressed by the cleanliness everywhere including the toilets! Although it is a public place toilets were spotlessly clean and well supplied! This is not very common in public toilets in our western cultures... no offense though!
Being quite large, garden offers many different views. You can also climb up the hill (15-20 min) and if weather is good, enjoy Sakurajima's wonderful profile.
This is now my third time visiting the Senganen Gardens of Kagoshima. The beautiful landscape, and history of the gardens is truly magical. English translations are availabe for maNY of the exhibits, and do not miss the Residense tour.
Went to visit the large garden of Senganen in Kagoshima on the East coast of southern Kyushu in May 2016. The park faces the active volcano, Sakurajima on the island just off the coast. The garden is very old and has beautiful rock work, streams and small ponds. This is the most southern major Japanese garden on the main islands of Japan, and has quite a few palm trees as part of the flora. There is a shaded turf area on the upper part of the garden that hosts special festivals beside the meandering stream. There are several Japanese museums located within the garden's confines and require separate fee. The history of the garden is explained in the garden brochure and explains the importance of the garden and the various buildings. The garden faces the sea and choice (limitations) of plants is interesting. Maintenance could be better, but it is well worth a visit.
