How often do you run or jog in a week? If you are a keen runner, you must have experienced difficulties finding suitable running routes when travelling or on your business trip, especially since you would have no idea when it comes to outside your country. Have you heard about the running route around the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, which is well-known among runners? It is suitable for runners who can’t miss it while they are away from home. In this newsletter, I will write how you can utilize it if you happen to be in central Tokyo and I will add the ideal way of its development if it is going to be possible
Overview of the route
The Imperial Palace is the residence and office of the emperor. The palace and the capital were moved from Kyoto in 1868 after the Meiji Restoration. Until this time, the Imperial Palace was located in Kyoto for about 1,000 years. The innermost of the grounds are not open to the public with some exceptions. It is a kind of secret place in the heart of Tokyo. You will be surprised to see how green the palace is. You wouldn’t believe that it is located in the real centre of Tokyo. I will leave the details of the palace on the web page, and I will get into the details of the running.
When you start walking around the palace, it won’t take time to realize how suitable to go there for 5 km jogging.
Without traffic lights
For runners, it is next to impossible to find a place for running without traffic lights in central Tokyo unless you choose to run in a big park. But if you make a circuit around the palace, you will not wait for any single traffic right around. You may have to slow down or give way to other people, but you can run at your own pace without stopping.
Suitable distance of 5 km
There may be a margin of error, but the distance of this circuit is roughly 5 km, and it is a suitable distance for midday jogging. You jog and still have half an hour for your lunch after running. This route is the busiest during lunchtime and evening.
Fairly flat route
If you run the circuit anticlockwise from the east side close to the Tokyo station, you will make a gradual ascent to Hanzomon Gate and start descending to Sakuradamon Gate. The range of the ascent is roughly 30 meters and you won’t feel the stress. You will even enjoy the view from Hanzomon Gate down toward Sakuradamon Gate. So the route is fairly flat.
Details of the route
Access to the running route
If you look up the route map, you will recognize that you can access the route regardless of your location. For those who are staying in the Ginza area, just stroll to the area of Nijyubashi, and for those who are staying in the Akasaka area, just walk to Miyakezaka. One of the biggest advantages is you can get to the route from many major locations of accommodations. But be aware that you should go to Sakuradamon Gate if you want to use the distance indications.
The direction of the route
No official announcement was made regarding the direction of running, but it seems to be an “anticlockwise” direction. This route is all the way public place and it is free to go in both directions, most runners go “anticlockwise” direction. Most of the route is wide enough to pass by one another, but there are a few sections that are narrow that you should give away.
Toilets and supplying spot
There are enough toilets on the route, and you don’t have to worry about it. Also, there are some water spots, but there is not a single vending machine to buy drinks on the route. So please be prepared if you need something special while you are running.
Stats of the route
Distance: More or less than 5km
The difference in heights: Approximately 30m
Distance indications: Displayed on cobblestones every 100 m. The display format is based on the Sakuradamon Gate as the starting point.
The direction of major runners: Anticlockwise
Traffic lights: None
Running stations: Some facilities offer lockers and showers within the walking distance of the route. I will list some stations as follows.
*Bike and Run: Not only for runners but also cyclists
*Asics run Tokyo Marunouchi: Managed by major sports manufacturers.
High expectations for its future
The popularity of running is growing in Japan and more people are trying to combine their careers and running in their lifestyle. From that point of view, the Imperial Palace circuit is an ideal venue. You can pop out from your office and have an easy 5 km run. If you are a more serious runner, wait until your work is done and make the circuit twice or even three times to make a long distance. Alternatively, a cynical view of Tokyo's running environment is that, except for the Imperial Palace, no environment can satisfy runners.
As I wrote in my previous newsletter Parkrun is growing in Japan. You just have to register and get your barcode and you are ready to run 5 km on various venues worldwide. I always think what if the Imperial Palace circuit has a possibility of becoming part of this scheme?
Although the conditions for a parkrun venue have not been exactly checked, basic conditions such as the distance and the lack of traffic lights are areas that remain open for consideration. Also, if it were to happen, I am sure it would attract quite a large number of runners.
The problem is that the Imperial Palace is a very special place, and the number of people who gather there every week in a place with extremely tight security makes the possibility of it happening at this point extremely remote. However, if, by some stroke of luck, it does happen, I would love to see hundreds, if not more, of runners running here.