Imperial Palace & a Sushi Class in One Day

The Imperial Palace sits in the middle of Tokyo, surrounded by moats and old stone walls, a short walk from Tokyo Station. Its gardens are free to enter, and a free guided tour takes you inside the palace grounds. Asakusa, where our studio is, lies on the other side of the city centre, but the two are easy to connect by subway.

This guide explains the three ways to see the palace area, the days each one is closed, how to travel between the palace and Asakusa, and three plans that fit a palace visit and a sushi class into one day.

Three ways to see the palace

The palace area has three parts that visitors often confuse. They have different rules, so decide which one you want before you plan the day.

1. The East Gardens (Higashi Gyoen). These are the grounds of the former Edo Castle, with stone walls, the base of the old castle keep and seasonal planting. According to the Imperial Household Agency, admission is free and you do not need a reservation. Bags are inspected at the entrance, so bring as little as you can.
2. The guided tour of the palace grounds. This free tour, run by the Imperial Household Agency, walks you past palace buildings you cannot otherwise approach. You do not go inside any buildings. The tour information gives the length as about 1 hour 15 minutes, covering about 2.2 km with limited shade.
3. The outer garden and Nijubashi. The wide plaza in front of the palace is open at all times and free, according to the Ministry of the Environment, although access can be restricted during state events. This is where you see the famous view of the bridges in front of the main gate.

Check the closed days first

This is the step that most often goes wrong.

• East Gardens: closed every Monday and Friday, from 28 December to 3 January, and on days with court events. They open on national holidays except the Emperor's Birthday (23 February); if a holiday falls on a Monday, the gardens open that day and close on the Tuesday instead. From 1 November to the end of February, the gardens open from 9:00 to 16:00, with last entry at 15:30. The closing time is later in spring and summer.
• Palace grounds tour: according to the booking page, there are no tours on Sundays, Mondays, national holidays (unless the holiday falls on a Saturday), from 28 December to 4 January, or on days with court events. Afternoon tours are also suspended from 1 July to 30 September.

In November 2026, for example, the East Gardens open on Tuesday 3 November and Monday 23 November, both national holidays, but there are no palace tours on those days, and the gardens close on Tuesday 24 November.

How to join the palace tour

The tour runs twice a day on tour days: in the morning from 10:00 to 11:15 and in the afternoon from 13:30 to 14:45, according to the Imperial Household Agency's visitor information. There are two ways to get a place:

• Online, in advance. Booking opens at 5:00 Japan time on the 1st of the month before your visit and closes at 23:59 four days before the visit.
• On the day. Numbered tickets are handed out at Kikyo-mon Gate, one per person, on a first-come, first-served basis: from 9:00 for the morning tour and from 12:30 for the afternoon tour.

Bring your original passport or other photo ID. Photocopies are not accepted. Also note that you cannot reach Kikyo-mon Gate by walking through the East Gardens, so allow time to walk around the outside.

Getting between the palace and Asakusa

There is no single-seat subway ride from Asakusa to the palace, but the trip is short. Two simple options:

• Via Kanda: take the Ginza Line from Asakusa to Kanda, then a JR train one stop to Tokyo Station. According to the Imperial Household Agency, it is about 15 minutes on foot from the Marunouchi North Exit to Otemon Gate of the East Gardens, and about 15 minutes from the Marunouchi Central Exit to Kikyo-mon Gate for the tour.
• Via Nihombashi: take the Ginza Line to Nihombashi and change to the Tozai Line for Otemachi. Otemon Gate is about 5 minutes on foot from Otemachi Station, exit C13a.

Allow about 40 minutes door to door between our studio and the palace gates, and check a route planner on the day. Once you are back in Asakusa, our guide to walking from Asakusa Station to the studio covers the final stretch.

Choose your class time

Our signature sushi and matcha class lasts 90 minutes. On the mid-November dates we checked, most days had sessions at 10:00, 12:00, 16:00 and 18:00, and some days also had a 14:00 session. Start times vary by date, so check the calendar for your day. We ask guests to arrive 10 minutes early.

Plan A: East Gardens in the morning, sushi for lunch

1. 9:00: enter the East Gardens through Otemon Gate when they open. Walk up to the base of the old castle keep for views over the grounds.
2. About 10:45: head back to Asakusa.
3. 12:00: join the class. You eat what you make, so it works as lunch.
4. Afternoon: explore Senso-ji and the streets around it.

This plan works on any East Gardens opening day and needs no booking for the palace part.

Plan B: palace tour in the morning, class in the afternoon

1. 10:00–11:15: join the morning palace tour from Kikyo-mon Gate.
2. Around midday: walk to the plaza in front of the palace for the Nijubashi view, then have a light lunch near Tokyo Station.
3. 16:00: take the class in Asakusa, then stay for the evening.

Keep lunch light, because the class includes eating everything you make. Our guide to planning meals around a sushi class helps with timing.

Plan C: sushi first, palace in the afternoon

If a 10:00 session is available on your date, take the class first. Then travel to Tokyo Station and see the East Gardens before last entry at 15:30, or simply walk the outer garden, which stays open. Finish at Tokyo Station, whose red-brick Marunouchi building, opened in 1914, was restored to its original appearance between 2007 and 2012. From there, Nihombashi and Ginza are close by: see our Nihonbashi and sushi class guide and our Ginza and sushi class guide.

Autumn leaves and seasonal openings

In late autumn, the East Gardens are a good place for autumn colour. The Imperial Household Agency's garden reports showed ginkgo and maple trees in colour in late November 2025, with leaves falling by early December.

The Inui-dori road inside the palace grounds also opens to the public for a few days each spring and autumn, during the cherry blossom and autumn leaf seasons. In autumn 2025 it opened from 29 November to 7 December. Dates for autumn 2026 had not been announced when we checked, so watch the Imperial Household Agency's Inui-dori page.

Why the palace and sushi fit together

The East Gardens stand on the site of Edo Castle, the seat of the shoguns in the city that gave its name to Edomae sushi. Nigiri grew up as fast food in that same city. Our article on the history of Edomae sushi tells the story, and the class lets you try it with your own hands.

Book the fixed point first

Check the palace closed days, then choose a class session that fits your plan. Book the signature sushi and matcha class in Asakusa and pair Edo Castle's stone walls with a session of shaping nigiri yourself.