Let's spend a cool summer in Ueno Onshi Park!

  • Tokyo
  • Sightseeing
The exterior of the main building of the Tokyo National Museum. With so much greenery, it is hard to believe that you are in the city. Courtesy of Tokyo National Museum
　The hot days are still continuing this year. This time, we will introduce the attractions of the following four facilities located in Ueno Onshi Park: the Tokyo National Museum, the National Museum of Western Art, the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, and the Taito City Shitamachi Museum. Please take a look at them as reference for a hot day out.

Enjoy a whole day at the Tokyo National Museum

　The Tokyo National Museum was founded 153 years ago! The museum houses artworks, historical materials, and archaeological artifacts from Japan and various other countries in the Orient. The museum houses about 120,000 items, of which 89 are national treasures and the rest are archaeological artifacts! Of these, 89 are national treasures and 653 are important cultural properties, representing Japan's leading collection in both quality and quantity (as of April 2025).

　The "TNM Collection Exhibition," which is composed of these stored and deposited items, constantly displays 3,000 works in six exhibition halls, and the exhibition changes almost every week in one of the exhibition rooms. The number of exhibitions is approximately 400 times a year! No matter how many times you visit, you will always find something new.
The entrance to the main building of the Tokyo National Museum, which opened in 1938.

Tokyo National Museum Special Exhibition "Edo ☆ O-oku (The Inner Palace)

　When you think of "O-oku" (the inner palace), you probably picture a group of talented and elegant women in glittering costumes living in elegance in the spacious Edo Castle. However, since the Edo period, "O-oku" has been a world hidden deep within Edo Castle, although the common people longed to visit it. The special exhibition "Edo ☆ O-oku" will show the hidden history and culture of the Edo shogunate and the rise and fall of the women who lived between the great power of the Tokugawa shoguns.

Dates: July 19 (Sat) - September 21 (Sun), 2025
・Venue: Heiseikan, Tokyo National Museum
Why don't you learn about the unknown world of "Ooku"? Courtesy of Tokyo National Museum
For the official website of [Tokyo National Museum]

Enjoy Western art in a relaxing atmosphere! National Museum of Western Art

The National Museum of Western Art has a policy of introducing a wide range of Western art through its collection and special exhibitions. The museum was established in 1959 as a facility to preserve and exhibit the Matsukata Collection, which was collected by industrialist Kojiro Matsukata with the aim of building an art museum. The museum currently houses over 6,000 works in the fields of painting, sculpture, drawings, prints, manuscripts, and crafts. There are two rest areas in the museum where visitors can take their time to view the works. Videos of gallery talks by researchers are also available on the official YouTube channel. The videos feature high-resolution images of the paintings magnified to a size that allows the viewer to see the touch of the paintings, and the researchers explain the highlights of each work in approximately three minutes. In addition, a special website, "Everyone's 3D Rodin Pictorial Book" is now available for anyone with a smartphone or PC to view 3D models of 60 Rodin sculptures from the collection of the National Museum of Western Art from anywhere. The museum also has a special website, "Everyone's 3D Rodin Pictorial Book", where visitors can view 60 3D models of Rodin's sculptures from the collection of the National Museum of Western Art from anywhere and anytime.
Breathtaking works of art. ©The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo
For the official website of [National Museum of Western Art]

Recommended for your first visit to an art museum! Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum is a place where both children and adults can have fun.

　The Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum opened in 1926 as Japan's first public art museum. The Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum aims to be a "gateway to art" open to all, including visitors who appreciate exhibitions, children, aspiring artists who exhibit for the first time, and people with disabilities who can come to the museum without hesitation. The museum also has a restaurant and a museum shop.

　The museum also offers a wide variety of restaurants and a museum store. The restaurant is a great place to enjoy a meal and a view of the museum's collection or Ueno Onshi Park, and is also a great place to meet up with friends or talk after viewing the exhibits. The museum store sells items that make daily life richer and more interesting under the concept of "+CREATION. Why not enjoy art even more by purchasing recommended museum goods selected according to the exhibitions and seasons?
The spacious museum is also recommended for families.　Courtesy of Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum
For the official website of [Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum]

The Taito City Shitamachi Museum offers a glimpse of life in the old days in Ueno.

　The Taito City Shitamachi Museum was established in 1980 as the "Shitamachi Folk Museum" to pass on the culture and traditions of the downtown area centering on Taito City to future generations. The museum was renovated and reopened in March 2025.

　The museum introduces the life of the downtown area, where many townspeople lived during the Edo period, especially from the Meiji period to the Showa 30s, a time of great change. The highlight of the exhibition is a reproduction of Kanasugi Street and buildings in Sakamoto, Taito-ku (now Negishi 3-chome) in the 1930s! Inside the museum, visitors can actually go up to the replicated lantern shop and back row houses and hold the tools of daily life in those days in their hands. There are also exhibits related to annual events, allowing visitors to experience the real life of the downtown area in those days.
Renewed and even more beloved by the community.　Courtesy of Taito City Shitamachi Museum
A view of the permanent exhibition. Visitors can see what life was like in the downtown area at that time. Courtesy of Taito City Shitamachi Museum

Taito City Shitamachi Museum] Special Exhibition "War and Everyday Life: What about Our Lives?

　In the exhibition "War and Everyday Life: What About Our Lives? Through these materials, visitors will be able to trace the impact of the war on the daily lives of the people of Japan, and how the war changed their daily lives in terms of food, clothing, and daily necessities that had once been taken for granted.

　This exhibition may provide visitors with an opportunity to think about what they would not be able to afford if war broke out in Japan today, how much money they would have to spend on their daily lives, and what would happen to their daily lives, starting from their immediate surroundings.

Dates: July 1 (Tuesday) to November 3 (Monday), 2025
For the official website of [Taito City Shitamachi Museum]

Let's get over the hot summer in a cool way!

The heat wave is still continuing, but on such a hot day, why not spend a cool day at "Ueno Onshi Koen"?

Combine your favorite train with lodging or a day trip plan for a great travel experience!

You can make your own original trip!

JR East View Dynamic Rail Package is a variable price individual travel product available only on the web. Depending on the timing and conditions of your application, you may be able to get a discount as early as the day of departure. We also offer one-day trip plans! Enjoy your own unique trip according to your schedule and purpose.
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