Kinryu Park (Kinryuzan Ikoi no Hiroba), Saga

A large park at the foot of Mount Kinryu, north of Saga city: cherry blossom and rapeseed in spring, cosmos in autumn, and views over the Saga Plain.

Mount Kinryu rising behind a grassy meadow in Kinryu Park — Photo: Pekachu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Patches of cherry blossom on the forested slopes at the foot of Mount Kinryu — Photo: Pekachu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A park of flowers and greenery below Mount Kinryu

Kinryu Park is a large city park in the north of Saga city, at the foot of Mount Kinryu. It covers 27.4 hectares in total and spreads out around the Kinryu Service Area (a motorway rest stop) on the Nagasaki Expressway.

Inside the park are the Jofuku Longevity Hall, a medicinal herb garden, a cosmos garden and the Kinryuzan Ikoi no Hiroba. Ikoi means "relaxing", and the hiroba (open space) is a place where families can take it easy.

Ikoi no Hiroba: a hilltop overlooking the Saga Plain

Kinryuzan Ikoi no Hiroba lies at the foot of the mountain about 8 kilometres north of Saga Station, on a site of about 5 hectares. From here you can take in the whole of the wide Saga Plain.

The grounds have bungalows (small cabins to stay in), barbecue pits, a centre house, big play equipment and a natural-grass ski slope. The grass slope is 30 metres wide and 80 metres long, and you slide down it much like sledging. According to Saga Prefecture's tourism website, the grass ski slope is open from mid-October to February, and the bungalows can be used during the Golden Week holidays in May and from 1 July to 30 September.

Seasonal flowers: cherry blossom, rapeseed and cosmos

There are about 5,000 cherry trees in and around the park, and in spring it fills with people out for hanami (cherry blossom viewing). In the cosmos garden, Kawazu-zakura (an early-flowering cherry) bloom in early March, and in late March the Somei-yoshino cherries flower alongside about 300,000 rapeseed plants, turning the ground into a yellow carpet.

The autumn highlight is about 330,000 cosmos. Saga City's guide says they are usually at their best from late October to early November. Entry to the cosmos garden is free.

The legend of Xu Fu and the herb garden

The Jofuku Longevity Hall is the main building of the medicinal herb garden, with "health and long life" as its theme. Jofuku (Xu Fu in Chinese) is said to have crossed the sea from ancient China on the orders of Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of Qin, in search of the elixir of eternal life. Legend has it that Mount Kinryu is where he arrived looking for it, and on the mountain is Kinryu Shrine, which enshrines him. The hall displays materials on the Xu Fu legend.

To get there, it is about 25 minutes by car from JR Saga Station, or about 35 minutes on a city bus bound for Kinryu Ikoi no Hiroba from the Saga Station Bus Centre. If you are driving on the Nagasaki Expressway, you can walk into the park from the Kinryu Service Area. Opening days and periods differ from facility to facility, so check the official website.

Tips

You can walk in from the Kinryu Service Area on the motorway, which makes the park an easy break on a driving trip around Kyushu.
The best time for cosmos (around late October to early November) and for rapeseed and cherry blossom (March) shifts a little from year to year. Check Saga City's tourist information for blooming updates before you go.
The grass ski slope is open from mid-October to February. Outside that period you cannot use it.