Ibaraki
茨城県
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What to know about Ibaraki
Embraced by the Pacific Ocean and the Kanto Plain, Ibaraki Prefecture is a land where sweeping natural landscapes and deep history exist side by side. From Kairakuen Garden, counted among the Three Great Gardens of Japan, to hillsides blanketed in flowers, a 120-meter waterfall, and a peak celebrated in the Man'yoshu — the sheer range of attractions is what sets this prefecture apart. Its accessibility, just over an hour from Tokyo by limited express train, is another point well worth noting.
Kairakuen Garden and the Mito Plum Festival
Kairakuen Garden, located in the heart of Mito City, is one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan alongside Kenrokuen Garden in Kanazawa and Korakuen Garden in Okayama. It was established in 1842 by Tokugawa Nariaki, the ninth lord of the Mito domain, guided by the ideal of creating a place of enjoyment to be shared with the people. The garden is home to approximately 3,000 plum trees of around 100 varieties, with early-blooming types beginning to flower from late January.
Held annually from mid-February through late March, the Mito Plum Festival is Ibaraki's largest spring event, with a history spanning more than 120 years. Walking among the interplay of red and white plum blossoms, you catch the sweet fragrance of the flowers drifting through the air. From the Kobuntei pavilion within the garden, you can take in a panoramic view of Lake Senba, with the plum groves and the lake surface forming a striking tableau. In the evening, the trees are illuminated, lending the garden an ethereal atmosphere quite different from its daytime charm.
Hitachi Seaside Park
Stretching across approximately 215 hectares along the Pacific coast in Hitachinaka City, this expansive park welcomes visitors with seasonal flower displays throughout the year. The most breathtaking sight comes from late April into May, when roughly 5.3 million nemophila (baby blue eyes) blanket Miharashi Hill in blue. The seamless expanse where sky and flowers seem to melt into one another has become widely known overseas through social media.
In autumn, the same hill is set ablaze in crimson by approximately 32,000 kochia (summer cypress) plants, and the gradation from summer green to autumn red is a spectacle in its own right. Beyond the flower fields, the park features an amusement area and cycling courses, making it a place where families can easily spend an entire day. The open setting overlooking the Pacific is yet another quality unique to this park.
Fukuroda Falls
Fukuroda Falls, located in the town of Daigo in northern Ibaraki, is one of the Three Great Waterfalls of Japan. Water cascades down a 120-meter-high, 73-meter-wide rock face in four distinct tiers. This four-tiered descent gave rise to the name Yodo no Taki (Falls of Four Times), and legend has it that the poet-monk Saigyo once declared that one cannot appreciate the falls' true beauty without visiting once in each of the four seasons.
At the first observation deck, reached through the viewing tunnel, the sheer force of the falls can be felt at close range. An elevator carries visitors up to the second observation deck, which offers a full view of the entire cascade — the chance to experience two very different perspectives is part of what makes this waterfall special. In autumn, the gorge framed by colorful foliage is particularly stunning, and during the coldest months of winter, the entire falls occasionally freezes over into a magnificent wall of ice.
Mt. Tsukuba
Standing at 877 meters, Mt. Tsukuba is known as the lowest peak among the One Hundred Famous Japanese Mountains. Celebrated in no fewer than 25 poems in the Man'yoshu, Japan's oldest anthology of poetry, the mountain's distinctive twin-peaked silhouette — formed by Nantai-san and Nyotai-san — commands attention from anywhere across the Kanto Plain. A cable car and ropeway provide easy access to the summit, making it a favorite among beginner hikers as well.
The view from the summit of Nyotai-san is exceptional: the Kanto Plain spreads out below, and on clear days you can see as far as Mt. Fuji and Tokyo Skytree. Partway up the mountain sits Tsukuba-san Shrine, and hiking trails that wind past curious rock formations — including Gama-ishi (Toad Rock), said to bring luck in matchmaking, and Benkei Nana-modori (Benkei's Seven Returns) — are a popular draw. During the autumn foliage season, evening illuminations transform the mountainside, with the glowing, color-drenched canopy and the glittering night view below creating an unforgettable scene.
Location
Where is Ibaraki?
Ibaraki Prefecture is located in the northeastern part of the Kanto region, with its eastern side facing the Pacific Ocean along a coastline stretching approximately 190 km. The prefectural capital is Mito. As of 2024, the population is around 2.8 million, ranking roughly 11th among Japan's prefectures.
The majority of the prefecture consists of a vast flatland forming the northeastern edge of the Kanto Plain. To the northwest, Mt. Tsukuba (877 m) and the Yamizo Mountains rise above the terrain, while the Tone River flows through the southern portion, lending variety to an otherwise level landscape. Spreading across the central and southern areas is Lake Kasumigaura, the second-largest lake in Japan by surface area after Lake Biwa. The lakeside scenery is one of the prefecture's great attractions.
The climate belongs to the Pacific side pattern, with hot and humid summers driven by southeasterly sea breezes. Winters bring dry, clear skies carried by northwesterly seasonal winds, and snowfall is rare. Ibaraki enjoys some of the longest sunshine hours in the Kanto region and benefits from relatively mild weather throughout the year.
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Access
Getting to Ibaraki
Ibaraki Airport sits in the central part of the prefecture, serving domestic routes as well as international flights to Taiwan and China. Buses connect the airport to central Mito in about 40 minutes. The southern tip of the prefecture is also close to Narita Airport, reachable in roughly one hour by car via the Ken-O Expressway.
By rail, the JR Joban Line runs north to south as the prefecture's main artery. The Limited Express Hitachi from Ueno Station in Tokyo reaches Mito Station in about 1 hour and 10 minutes, and Hitachi Station in approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. For the Tsukuba area in the south, the Tsukuba Express from Akihabara Station gets you there in as little as 45 minutes. Being within easy day-trip distance from central Tokyo is one of Ibaraki's advantages.
Getting around the prefecture is easiest by car. Renting a car is recommended for visiting major sightseeing spots efficiently. Within Mito and Tsukuba, local buses and community buses are available, but public transit runs less frequently around Fukuroda Falls in the northern part of the prefecture and along the coastal areas. Checking schedules in advance is a good idea. While roads in inland areas can freeze in winter, snowfall itself is light, making Ibaraki a comfortable region to drive in year-round.
Local pride
Specialty Products
Blessed with the fertile plains of the Kanto region and a mild climate, Ibaraki Prefecture is one of Japan's leading agricultural powerhouses. Its agricultural output consistently ranks around third nationwide, and the vast flatlands yield a wide variety of crops, particularly leafy greens and root vegetables. The prefecture holds the top production volume in Japan for several items, making it a major supplier that keeps kitchens across the Tokyo metropolitan area well stocked. Along the Pacific coastline, coastal fishing thrives as well, with winter catches of prized deep-sea delicacies and small fish bringing lively energy to the local ports. In the northern part of the prefecture, freshwater fishing takes place in clear mountain streams, making Ibaraki a land fortunate enough to receive bounty from both sea and river. Long-established traditions in pottery and silk weaving also run deep here, and this culture of handcraft adds a distinct character quite different from the prefecture's agricultural and marine riches.
Food
Crafts & Others
Through the ages
History of Ibaraki
People have inhabited the land of Ibaraki since ancient times, and under the ritsuryo system of centralized governance, the area was known as Hitachi Province. The Hitachi no Kuni Fudoki, compiled in the early eighth century, stands out among surviving fudoki for its exceptional detail, offering a vivid record of the region's natural landscape and local customs. According to the text, the name Ibaraki derives from a fortification of thorny brush built to drive out bandits from the area. From the late Heian period into the Kamakura era, warrior clans rose to prominence, and the Satake clan expanded their influence primarily across the northern part of the prefecture.
Having controlled Hitachi throughout the Sengoku period, the Satake clan was transferred to Akita after showing sympathy toward the western forces at the Battle of Sekigahara. Replacing them in Mito was Tokugawa Yorifusa, the eleventh son of Tokugawa Ieyasu. The Mito Tokugawa house wielded considerable influence in shogunate affairs as one of the Three Great Houses (gosanke), and among its lords, the second daimyo Tokugawa Mitsukuni left a particularly lasting impression on posterity. The compilation of the Dai Nihonshi (Great History of Japan), which Mitsukuni spearheaded, was an ambitious undertaking to illuminate the nation's origins through historical evidence. This project grew into the intellectual current known as Mito-gaku (the Mito school of thought), which became a wellspring of the sonno joi ideology and profoundly shaped the thinking of activists in the final years of the Tokugawa shogunate. The editorial work carried out at the Shokokan, the institute Mitsukuni established, was a domain-wide endeavor of such scale that it took roughly 250 years to complete.
With the abolition of domains and establishment of prefectures in 1871, the Mito domain and several neighboring domains were merged to form Ibaraki Prefecture. The prefectural name comes from Ibaraki District, where the prefectural office was briefly located, a place name with roots tracing back to the fudoki legend mentioned earlier. In the modern era, Ibaraki solidified its foundation as an agricultural prefecture, while after World War II it also took on a new identity as a hub for science and technology, exemplified by the establishment of Japan's first nuclear research institute in Tokai Village. The cluster of research institutions in Tsukuba gained widespread recognition through the 1985 International Exposition of Science and Technology, and the city has since established itself as a premier center for academic research.
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