Katsushika Iris Festival

The Katsushika Iris Festival (葛飾菖蒲まつり) celebrates the arrival of June with stunning displays across two primary venues: Mizumoto Park and Horikiri Shobuen. Mizumoto Park features over 14,000 shobu (iris) flowers in a sprawling, natural water-park setting, while the historic Horikiri Shobuen garden offers a more intimate look at 6,000 flowers of 200 rare varieties. Both sites provide free admission and host weekend performances, making it one of Tokyo’s most picturesque and accessible early-summer floral traditions. View Horikiri Shobuen on Google Maps.

Mizumoto Park is best accessed via a short bus ride from Kanamachi Station (JR Joban Line), offering vast greenery and picnic spots. In contrast, Horikiri Shobuen is a 10-minute walk from Horikiri-shobuen Station on the Keisei Line, closer to central Tokyo. During the height of the festival, a special “Iris Line” shuttle bus often runs on weekends to connect the two venues, allowing visitors to experience both the expansive marshlands of Mizumoto and the refined, Edo-style landscape of Horikiri in a single afternoon.