Nabana no Sato - A One-of-a-Kind Feast for the Senses!

Imagine an endless field of flowers painting the landscape in swathes of bright red, yellow, and white, with cherry blossoms framing the horizon against a brilliant blue sky. As dusk falls, paths lined with flowering trees illuminate the night. Is this reality or fantasy? Welcome to Nabana no Sato, the sprawling garden park in Mie Prefecture, where each season brings new delights: the spring Flower Festival, sparkling summer fireflies, vibrant fall foliage, and, of course, winter illuminations that grow bigger, brighter, and more spectacular each year. Top it all off with a soak in an outdoor volcanic hot spring bath followed by a cold glass of local craft beer, and it’s easy to see that life doesn’t get much better than this little slice of paradise on earth.

Written by Ren Wong

The floral season opens in early February, as plum trees, weeping plum trees, and Kawazu cherry trees all blossom simultaneously to reveal nature’s finest artistry until late March, their pale pink petals swaying gently over the walking paths under night lights. But this is just the prologue to the Flower Festival, held from late March to mid-April, when myriads of tulips burst open in bold colors, carpeting one of the largest gardens nationwide, “Hana Hiroba.” This radiant brilliance gives way to the subdued burgundy beauty of autumn Japanese maples, exquisitely reflected in the Kagami-ike (Mirror Pond). Fall also brings lovely dahlias and cosmos, as well as the blooming of 5,000 roses from 900 species in the Rose Garden, whose flowering brackets the year in both spring and autumn.

The shining star of the annual line up, however, is the electric spectacle of one of Japan’s largest winter illuminations. From far and wide, people come to stroll through the 200-meter long “Tunnel of Light” and emerge into the “Cloud Sea of Light,” a glittering ocean of LEDs that suffuse the entire garden. Afterwards, follow the path of lights reflected over streams of water in “Hikari no Taiga” (Great River of Light) before finally reaching the main attraction, the immense, immersive, and otherworldly “Panorama of Illuminations.” As the park is dotted with many illuminations, they can be viewed up close, from the park café, or from Island Fuji, the giant rotating observatory rising 45 meters above the ground.

Regardless of season or weather, perennial blooms await to dazzle your senses. Roughly 12,000 breathtaking blooms are on display all year-round in the “Begonia Garden,” a complex of four massive greenhouses where state-of-the-art climate control systems allow a diverse array of begonias and other species from around the world to thrive. Wandering through this 9,000-square-meter space is like stepping into a painting, especially at “Mikaeri no Ike” (Reflection Pond), dotted with floating flowers worthy of Monet’s brushstroke. It is nothing short of a floral feast for the eyes.

Beyond the flowers, visitors can choose from a wide array of dining options, from refined full-course kaiseki dinners to casual yet irresistible pizzas and sandwiches. After indulging your taste buds, surrender yourself to serene luxury at the spa within the park, Sato no Yu, and sink into the spacious outdoor bath flowing with natural hot spring waters, surrounded by the elegance of a Japanese garden. After that, you can treat yourself to a frosty local craft brew at the Nagashima Beer Garden or a seasonal soft-serve ice cream, each bite a sweet, fleeting pleasure that perfectly complements the splendor of Nabana no Sato.

A Japanese saying, “hana wo soeru,” or “add a flower,” means to add beauty to something already beautiful. At Nabana no Sato, this philosophy comes to life. Each garden, each blossom, is a layer of beauty upon beauty, a fragrant, visual, and emotional indulgence. Here, every step is a sensory pleasure, a feast for the eyes and soul, leaving you utterly enchanted by a floral experience that transcends the ordinary.

[Access]
Nabana no Sato
270 Urushibata, Komae, Nagashima-cho, Kuwana City

By car
Isewangan Expressway → Wangan Nagashima IC → 15 minutes by car

By direct shuttle bus
30 minutes from Meitetsu Bus Center (JR Nagoya Sta., Kintetsu Nagoya Sta.) or 20 minutes from Kintetsu Kuwana Station Bus stop

*Prices subject to change, so please check the homepage beforehand.