THE BOTANICAL RESORT Rinne (hereafter Rinne) in Naka City, Ibaraki Prefecture, is entering its first full autumn since opening, as a place where visitors can stay among the autumn leaves. Created by redeveloping the Ibaraki Botanical Garden and the Ibaraki Prefectural Forest, it is billed as Japan's first "overnight botanical garden" (see the note below).
On the 650,000-square-meter grounds, which have long been familiar to local people, trees such as metasequoia, maple, and momiji typically change color from mid-November to early December. About 90 minutes by car from central Tokyo, it is still a little-known spot for autumn leaves in the Greater Tokyo area.
Rather than going to see the autumn leaves, the idea is to stay in the middle of them. Glamping tents and cottages are surrounded by the colored trees, and both the dusk after day visitors have gone home and the light of the next morning with no one around are experiences for overnight guests only. Thanks to the tree labels (樹票) found in a botanical garden, visitors can learn the names of the trees, find a favorite one, and sleep surrounded by its autumn leaves.
Rinne has named this way of spending time, which reduces the distance to the autumn leaves to zero both physically and psychologically, "Zero-Distance Autumn Leaves" (ゼロ距離紅葉). The grounds hold about 600 species and 50,000 trees.
Note: The expression "Japan's first overnight botanical garden" is based on an in-house survey by the operating company as of September 2025 (including internet searches, database checks, and supplementary research using ChatGPT), which found no similar type of facility in Japan.
The Four "Distances" of Zero-Distance Autumn Leaves
On Rinne's 650,000 square meters, the distance to the autumn leaves gradually shrinks over the course of a stay.
1. About 90 minutes from Tokyo: autumn leaves without a long trip
The resort is about 10 minutes from Naka IC on the Joban Expressway. There is no long drive on mountain roads, so visitors can head into the autumn leaves on whichever weekend they feel like it.
2. Walk among the trees: autumn leaves within reach, like your own garden
Rather than looking at distant mountains from an observation deck, visitors can look up at the trees along the garden paths, touch them, and walk over the fallen leaves underfoot. The place feels like "your own garden."
3. Learn the names: autumn leaves for finding a favorite tree
Because this is a botanical garden, the trees have tree labels. Learning a tree's name turns a beautiful view into an encounter with one particular tree.
4. Sleep in the leaves: autumn leaves that are still there when you wake
A grove of metasequoia surrounds the glamping area. At night guests sleep wrapped in the colored trees, and in the morning, from the moment the tent is opened, an autumn scene slightly different from the day before spreads out.
Rather than visiting a famous autumn leaves spot and leaving, the idea is to meet the trees and sleep among them. Autumn at Rinne is time spent bringing the distance to the autumn leaves down to zero.
Autumn Trees You Can Meet at Rinne
The autumn leaves at Rinne do not all change to the same color at once. Because the timing and shade of the color differ by species and location, the garden shows a different face with every walk.
Metasequoia
One of the trees that symbolize Rinne. The glamping area includes the "Metasequoia Terrace" (メタセコイアテラス), surrounded by metasequoia, a landscape that represents a stay in nature unique to Rinne.
Maple and Momiji
The leading trees of autumn at Rinne. Even among reds, the leaf shape, shade, and timing of the color change differ from tree to tree. Looking for a favorite with family or friends is also a pleasure unique to a botanical garden.
The peak of the autumn leaves is typically late November to early December. The timing of the color change may vary depending on the weather, tree species, and location.
Autumn Leaves Information Page with Regular Updates
Rinne has published a page that compiles its autumn leaves information. From early November, the color status of each tree species is updated about once a week. The page also introduces a map of the autumn leaves spots in the garden and a one-night, two-day itinerary spent among the autumn leaves.
Autumn leaves information page
November-Only "Autumn Leaves × Hot Spring × Mushroom Hot Pot" One-Night, Two-Day Plan
This overnight plan lets guests follow the four distances of "Zero-Distance Autumn Leaves" over one night and two days. Carrying the plan-exclusive "Autumn Stroll Bag" (秋のおさんぽバッグ), guests walk among the autumn leaves to find a favorite tree, warm up at Rinne no Yu in the evening and with a Nanakai mushroom hot pot (七会きのこの鍋) at night, and then sleep surrounded by the autumn leaves. The next morning, they can go to see that tree once more.
- Period: Sunday, November 1 to Monday, November 30, 2026
- Price: Glamping from 15,950 yen / Cottage from 21,340 yen (tax included, per person)
About THE BOTANICAL RESORT Rinne
THE BOTANICAL RESORT Rinne is a renovation of the Ibaraki Botanical Garden and the Ibaraki Prefectural Forest, billed as Japan's first "overnight botanical garden," where visitors can stay, relax, eat, and play in a single place. Newly built facilities in the park include glamping and cottage accommodation in harmony with nature, a hot spring facility with herbal baths and an herbal sauna, a dining facility using prefectural ingredients and local specialties, and an activity facility that makes use of the great nature of the Ibaraki Prefectural Forest. Visitors can experience the appeal of Ibaraki with all five senses. In the evening there are the illuminated tropical plant house and BBQ in the midst of nature, and in the morning a walk in the fresh air.
Reservations
- Autumn leaves information page: https://rinne-resort.jp/?p=2061
- "Autumn Leaves × Hot Spring × Mushroom Hot Pot" plan details: https://rinne-resort.jp/topics/1901
- Reservations: https://d-reserve.jp/GSEA001F01300/GSEA001A01?hotelCode=0000003132&lodgingDateFrom=20261005&lodgingDateTo=20261006&searchTagCode=&sumrm=1&dpck=false&pagingKey=1&sortKeyOrder=0&DPCheckEnable=false<001=0_1_2_4&lnum001=2_0_0_0
Location and Access
THE BOTANICAL RESORT Rinne
- Address: 4369-1 To, Naka City, Ibaraki 311-0122
- About 30 minutes by car from JR Mito Station
- About 90 minutes by car from Tokyo
- About 10 minutes from Naka IC on the Joban Expressway
