Experiences / Learning
Visiting the modernist houses
近代住宅を訪ねる きんだいじゅうたくをたずねる
Architecture · History · Learning · Quiet
Tokyo keeps a handful of great houses open to visitors: Kunio Maekawa's own house rebuilt in the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Museum, the Asakura sculptor's house in Yanaka, Kyu Asakura in Daikanyama, the Kyu Iwasaki mansion by Josiah Conder beside Ueno, and the Kyu Furukawa villa with its rose garden. A day of them, in order, is a history of how Japan has lived, and none needs a booking.
- How to arrange it
- Check closing days (mostly Monday); socks for the tatami; the Open Air Museum is an hour west by train.
- Price band
- ¥
- Allow
- 360 min
Where to book it
Ueno & Yanaka
Kyu Iwasaki-tei Gardens (Former Iwasaki Residence)
旧岩崎邸庭園
¥ · 90 min · English: partial
One of the few Meiji-era Western-style mansions in Tokyo still standing with its original Japanese-style annex attached, built for the Iwasaki (Mitsubishi) family and now run directly by the Tokyo Metropolitan Park Association. Free-standing timed tours explain the mix of Jacobean-style woodwork and traditional joinery rather than leaving visitors to read a placard alone.
Nakameguro, Daikanyama & Ebisu
Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum (Former Prince Asaka Residence)
東京都庭園美術館（旧朝香宮邸）
¥¥ · 90 min · English: yes
A complete 1933 Art Deco residence built for Prince Asaka, preserved as a museum rather than reconstructed, so the original glasswork, ironwork and interiors by French and Japanese designers can be walked through room by room, garden included.
Named operators, each verified against its official site. We list the booking route and whether English is spoken; hours and prices live on the official site. All operators