Shūraku-en, Japanese strolling garden in Tsuyama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan

Shūraku-en is a pond-strolling daimyo garden in Yamakita, Tsuyama, Okayama Prefecture, laid out by gardeners of the Kobori Enshū school for the second lord of Tsuyama, Mori Naganaga, as a copy of Kyoto's Sentō Imperial Palace. A long north-south pond holds four islands, with a 210-metre winding stream on the east side and the Chūgoku mountains as borrowed scenery. Buildings such as Yohōkaku, Geihinkan, Fūgetsuken and Seiryōken have been rebuilt around the water.

The garden was founded around 1650 during the Edo period as a private retreat for a daimyo lord. These rulers built such gardens to display their power and wealth.

The garden demonstrates how water and plants work together to create a place where visitors pause and observe nature. This design reflects how people in Japan understood their relationship with the natural world.

The garden is well marked from the outside and easily accessible by public transportation. Wear comfortable shoes since pathways lead throughout the grounds.

At certain spots in the garden, water surfaces reflect the surrounding landscape like mirrors and create optical effects. These reflections look different as seasons change the colors and light.