There are three gardens in Japan that are regarded as the “San-dai-teien” – which translates to the 3 most famous gardens in Japan. Once you visit these gardens, you will understand why they were selected as the great gardens – they are calm, peace and beautifully set.
The Kenroku-en garden is located in Kanazawa in the Ishikawa prefecture. Kenroku-en was designed in 1676 by Kaga Hanshu and took almost 180 years to complete. There are approximately 8,750 trees and 183 species of plants in total. It consists of ponds, streams, rocks, mounds, trees, grassy expanses, and footpaths.
Kenroku-en stands for the six attributes of a perfect landscape:
1. spaciousness
2. seclusion
3. artifice
4. antiquity
5. waterways
6. panoramas.
The Koraku-en is located in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture. Korakuen was built in 1700 by Ikeda Tsunamasa, lord of Okayama. The garden covers a total area of approximately 133,000 square meters.
Kairaku-en is located in Mito, in the Ibaraki prefecture.