Happo-en
Happo-en is a 400-year-old garden in Shirokanedai that runs more than 2,000 traditional Japanese weddings a year, which makes it the most practised venue on this list and the least likely to be surprised by anything your day involves.
Happo-en is a garden destination wedding venue in Shirokanedai, Japan, hosting up to 600 guests (Aisle estimate), where a wedding for 80 guests costs about JP¥5,250,000 (our estimate), reached from Tokyo Haneda (HND), ~30 minutes by car.
About Happo-en
Happo-en is a 400-year-old garden in Shirokanedai that runs more than 2,000 traditional Japanese weddings a year, which makes it the most practised venue on this list and the least likely to be surprised by anything your day involves.
The land was taken in the early Edo period by a retainer in Tokugawa Ieyasu’s court, and the garden that grew on it holds a pond, a bonsai collection with trees in the hundreds of years, and Mu-an, a 19th-century teahouse moved here from Yokohama that seats six and is used for tea before or after the ceremony.
English and Japanese are both spoken at the teahouse.
Banquet rooms run from small family rooms taking under 40 up to halls for several hundred, and the venue publishes plan prices rather than hiding them: the Washi plan is 1,160,000 yen for 40 people with 22,000 yen a head beyond that, and photograph plans start at 220,000 to 242,000 yen.
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Capacity, rooms and facilities
Money
- A wedding for 80 guests
- About JP¥5,250,000, rooms extraAisle estimate
- Price
- JP¥1,160,000 to JP¥4,500,000 as a packageAisle estimate
Getting there
- Nearest airport
- HND, 30 min by carAisle estimate
The spaces
- Setting
- Countryside, historic, formalAisle estimate
Venue highlights
- 400-year-old garden dating to the early Edo period
- More than 2,000 traditional Japanese weddings a year
- Mu-an teahouse, 19th century, seats six, English and Japanese
- Banquet rooms from under 40 guests up to several hundred
A sample wedding weekend
See the day-by-day outline+
Use this as a starting point and adapt it to your bookings and guests.
- 19:00Welcome dinner in Shirokanedai, guests checked in at Shinagawa
- 10:30Kimono dressing on site, photographs by the pond
- 13:00Tea for the immediate family at the Mu-an teahouse
- 15:00Shinto ceremony, procession through the garden
- 17:00Banquet, speeches, cake in the hall above the garden
- 11:00Farewell lunch, guests on to Kyoto from Shinagawa
Costs and booking details
- Getting there
- HND · about 30 min by carAisle estimate
Guests fly into Tokyo Haneda.
- Ceremony fee
- IncludedVenue website
See the full figure+
Inside the plan; photograph plans published from 220,000 yen Western style and 242,000 yen Japanese style (venue-published)
- Reception
- ¥22,000 a headVenue website
See the full figure+
22,000 yen a head above the Washi plan base of 40 guests, about $140 (venue-published)
The plan and per-head figures are published by Happo-en. The hotel rate and the total are ours, converted at about 155 yen to the dollar. Bring-in fees for outside photographers or florists are common in Japan and are quoted separately.
Questions about the venue
How many guests can Happo-en take?+
The range is wide. Small family rooms take fewer than 40 and the larger halls run to several hundred, so most guest lists fit somewhere. The garden ceremony route is what limits numbers on a wet day, not the banquet rooms.
What does a wedding at Happo-en cost?+
The venue publishes plans. The Washi plan is 1,160,000 yen for 40 people with 22,000 yen a head above that, an after-party plan runs 10,000 yen a head including tax and service, and location photograph plans start at 220,000 yen Western style or 242,000 yen Japanese style.
Is there English-language support?+
Partly, and honestly. The website runs in English, the teahouse is staffed in English and Japanese, and the venue is used to overseas guests, but a Shinto ceremony itself is conducted in Japanese and most international couples bring a bilingual planner.
Can guests stay on site?+
No, Happo-en has no accommodation. Shirokanedai sits between Meguro and Shinagawa, so guests usually book around Shinagawa station, which is ten minutes away by taxi and on the Shinkansen line for anyone continuing to Kyoto.
When is the garden at its best?+
Late March and early April for the cherry trees, and November for the maples over the pond. Tokyo’s rainy season is June, and August is hot enough that an outdoor ceremony at midday is not a kindness to anyone in formal dress.
Could this be your venue?
Ask about pricing and availability for the month you have in mind. You do not need a fixed date.
Still deciding? Elena is Aisle’s AI wedding planner. Give her a month and a guest count and she will forecast the budget, work out how your guests would travel, and put a first plan on paper. No account needed.
Similar venues nearby
Other wedding venues
- Hotel Nikko AlivilaYomitan, OkinawaAlso in Japan
- HOTEL THE MITSUI KYOTONakagyo, JapanAlso in Japan
- Hyatt Regency Seragaki Island, OkinawaOnna, OkinawaAlso in Japan
- Higashiyama ShikikabokuKyoto, JapanAlso in Japan
- HiiragiyaKyoto, JapanAlso in Japan
- Hiyori Ocean Resort OkinawaOkinawa, JapanAlso in Japan
- THE SODOH HIGASHIYAMA KYOTOHigashiyama, JapanAnother garden venue
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Send your dates or a rough season, your guest count and what you’d like to know. The venue can then confirm availability and pricing.
Sources and booking notes
Confirm your dates, guest numbers, room arrangements and inclusions with the venue before booking. An enquiry does not reserve a date. Figures labelled Aisle estimate are modelled from regional rates and public sources; they are not venue quotes.