Where the name Mukogaoka-yuen comes from, what stood here before the station, and what you can still spot on a walk today. Then the events near the station that we have checked on the official pages.
Mukogaoka-yuen Station is named after an amusement park that no longer exists. When the station opened on April 1, 1927, alongside the new Odakyu Railway, it was called Inada-Noborito. That same year, Odakyu opened Mukogaoka Amusement Park in the wooded hills south of the railway. In 1955, the station was renamed Mukogaoka-yuen to reflect the park's popularity.
Leave the station by the south exit and walk toward the Nikaryo irrigation canal. Beyond the relatively level streets, the ground rises into the Tama Hills. The amusement park occupied this green hillside, while a miniature railway originally carried visitors from the station toward its entrance. A monorail later replaced that connection, allowing visitors to travel between the station area and the elevated park grounds.
The amusement park closed in 2002 after seventy-five years. Its name nevertheless remained on the station signs, and parts of its landscape survived, including a famous rose garden. Walk from the station toward the wooded hills and the name becomes understandable: the station still commemorates a place that once brought generations of families to this corner of Kawasaki.
→ Leave Mukogaoka-yuen Station by the south exit and follow the Nikaryo irrigation canal toward the former park. The old monorail route has become a pedestrian path, with a small monument representing one of its support columns. The climb toward the hills explains the station's enduring name.
Sources (in Japanese): 多摩区観光協会「向ヶ丘遊園駅北口駅舎」, 川崎市「川崎市市制100周年PR広報紙・ぶら多摩区」
The route south from Mukogaoka-yuen Station once carried both a miniature railway and a monorail. When Odakyu opened its amusement park in 1927, the grounds included sports fields, a baseball ground, and a music hall set among the Tama Hills. A miniature train helped visitors reach the park from the railway station, making the hillside accessible to families arriving from Tokyo.
The landscape below the amusement park was still largely rural. The Nikaryo irrigation canal flowed through fields, while farmers in the Tama River lowlands cultivated fruit, particularly pears and peaches. Odakyu promoted excursions combining a visit to the park with local fruit picking. In 1966, a monorail opened along the route toward the park, providing a new connection as farmland gradually gave way to residential development.
Mukogaoka Amusement Park closed in 2002, but its celebrated rose garden survived after a campaign by local residents. It continues as Ikuta Ryokuchi Rose Garden. Follow the former monorail corridor beside the canal and climb toward the hills. The route connects the area's agricultural past, its decades as a popular excursion destination, and its modern role as a residential neighborhood beside protected green space.
→ Walk south from the station along the Nikaryo irrigation canal and follow the Rose Garden Access Road. Small monuments and numbered plates recall the former monorail. Higher in the hills, Ikuta Ryokuchi Rose Garden preserves part of the amusement park's landscape. Check seasonal opening arrangements before visiting.
Sources (in Japanese): 川崎市「向ヶ丘遊園駅周辺まちづくり・まちの変遷」, 川崎市「記念碑モニュメント・向ヶ丘遊園モノレール橋脚モニュメント」
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We list events we could confirm on the official page or official Instagram of the venue or organiser. Details can change, tickets sell out and venues close, so check the official page before you go. Distances are straight-line and travel times are rough estimates. Photos show the venue or its surroundings, not the event itself. Titles and descriptions are our own translations from Japanese. This site contains affiliate links (ads).