Proposals for the management of Genkyuen garden

Genkyuen garden is one of daimyo gardens, which was built in the latter half of the 17th century by the Ii family, the feudal lord of Hikone Domain. It is located at the foot of the hill on and around which Hikone castle complex were built. It is now owned and managed by Hikone city, and open to the public together with Hikone castle. This paper aimed to reveal the characteristics of Genkyuen garden as a tourist attraction and its management problems through analyzing reviews posted on Trip Advisor and tourism related data collected from the city of Hikone. Based on the analysis, the paper proposes following strategies for the better management of Genkyuen garden. ・Planting maintenance such as pruning and trimming should be conducted under supervision of specialists as before. ・Rinchikaku (Hakkeitei) should be repaired and restored based on the principle of cultural-property building restoration and be appropriately used to increase the attractiveness of the garden after restoration. ・Promotional activities should be improved so that residents of the city of Hikone and its neighboring areas will become familiar with Genkyuen garden and visit the garden. ・Guided tours of the garden offered by volunteer guides should be introduced. ・The website of Genkyuen garden and Hikone castle should be upgraded by adding detailed contents.The website should also be available in English and Chinese. ・Existing daimyo gardens in the country should be collaborated to encourage garden tourism. Hikone city government should play a key role for this collaboration.