Nature/outdoor
The Kyoto Garden was created to mark the long-standing friendship between Britain and Japan and brings a formal Japanese design of stone lanterns, maples, and a small cascading waterfall into a corner of Holland Park. Peacocks wander the paths freely, and the compact scale makes it feel intimate compared with London's larger parks, though its popularity means it can get crowded at peak times. It's best appreciated as one highlight within the wider Holland Park, which surrounds it with woodland walks and formal lawns.
✨ Reasons to go
💡 Good to know
⏱️ Typical visit
25 min
🕰️ Best time
early morning, morning, lunchtime, afternoon, early evening or evening
🚶 Walking intensity
Moderate walking
What people say
"Located within Holland Park, Kyoto gardens has been a place recommended to me many a time. Unfortunately it did not live up to the hype and praise it gets. The area itself is tiny, a small pond and a decent sized waterfall with on small path that loops around. It is incredibly narrow and I witnessed people in wheelchairs struggling to move throughout the gardens. There is a small spot where a wheelchair can fit and that is where most of the wheelchairs users I saw stayed for the majority of the time. There is absolutely no way a wheelchair would pass across the waterfall which is so unfortunate. Furthermore, the main attraction which is the infamous waterfall is horrendously busy. When I visited on a Tuesday, people were forming a line to take a photo in front of it. The narrow paths which are restricted by a form of railing means the line nearly filled the whole place. The pond is very small and the main attraction there was a bird and koi fish in the pond. There is nothing else. All that said I really do hope they make the area more accessible and make the garden larger because the area itself is beautiful. Personally I found walking around Holland Park far more enjoyable than Kyoto Gardens."
— vanna
