Point Defiance Flower & Garden Festival - Japanese Garden Tour

*A Festival Pass is included with this ticket*

Saturday, June 3, 2023 - (2) TOURS
   12:00 - 12:45 pm
   2:00 - 2:45 pm

Sunday, June 4, 2023 - (2) TOURS
   12:00 - 12:45 pm
   2:00 - 2:45 pm

Event website: Point Defiance Flower & Garden Festival 2023

Garden website: Japanese Garden

Guided tours of the Japanese Garden during the Point Defiance Flower & Garden Festival will highlight the garden's unique features, plants and history. Tours will be led by some of Metro Parks' hostorical and horticultural experts. This ticket includes a festival pass to access to all the event's exclusive lectures, demonstrations and activities.

The Japanese Garden at Point Defiance was established in the early 1960s and features azaleas, rhododendrons, Japanese cherry trees, crabapples and large and small pines. In addition, an oriental footbridge, waterfall, Japanese lanterns and a small “tea house” further enhance the grounds. It provides a peaceful area to enjoy a bit of solitude and is especially enchanting in early spring.

The Pagoda is the focal point of Point Defiance Park’s Japanese Garden and was inspired by Japanese architecture when it was built in 1914. It was originally a waiting room for streetcars. Now this magnificent structure functions as a rental facility for weddings and other private parties as well as a venue for garden shows, lectures and concerts. Gardens surrounding the Pagoda feature pools, a waterfall, a picturesque footbridge, cherry trees, azaleas, and rhododendrons.

Point Defiance gardeners made an effort to design plantings in harmony with the Pagoda's Japanese style architecture. In 1963, a two-year project under the sponsorship of the Capitol District of Garden Clubs began to give the gardens a more characteristic Japanese ambiance. In the 1980s, the local Japanese community helped add a number of additional features that continued to refine the authenticity of the garden. A Shinto shrine and Torii Gate were re-located to the east side of the Pagoda in 1982. These features were originally a gift to the City of Tacoma from its “sister city”, Kitakyushu, Japan in 1961.

Through a special partnership with Tacoma’s Sister City, Kitakyushu a preliminary design plan reflective of Japanese landscaping traditions and steeped in cultural heritage was developed. This plan will be used by Metro Parks to help identify funding resources to advance the garden design into a future project for the park.

Japanese Garden Tour Tickets: $17

   - (2) tours available each day.
   - 20 spots available for each tour.
   - Tours are 45 minutes in length and involves walking over uneven ground.
   - All Japanese Garden Tours will meet on the Pagoda's North Patio.
   - Check in 10 minutes before the designated start time.
   - Festival Pass included with this purchase.
   - Festival Pass allows entry to the lectures, demonstrations and activities on both days.

All ages.
Rain or shine event. 
Tickets non-refundable. 
Online sales end June 4, at 2:00 pm.