How much is the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park, and is it ever free?

The Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum is one of Balboa Park's ticketed attractions: $16 for adults, with free entry for San Diego residents one Tuesday a month. It covers 12 acres of the canyon behind the Spreckels Organ Pavilion, with koi ponds, a waterfall, a 200-tree cherry grove and the Inamori Pavilion. We checked the garden's own visit, closures and rules pages on November 5, 2026.

Online general-admission tickets aren't tied to a date or time and don't expire, so you can buy ahead and use them on any open day. Everyone goes through one admission line; members get expedited entry. Members of gardens in the American Horticultural Society's Reciprocal Admissions Program can show their card for free entry.

When is the Japanese Friendship Garden free?

On Resident Free Tuesday, the third Tuesday of every month, when San Diego residents get in free with proof of residency at the door. The next ones are November 17 (the garden closes early that day, at 5 p.m., last entry 4 p.m.) and December 15, 2026. Bags may be checked, and the $50 photoshoot pass isn't sold that day. Other Balboa Park museums rotate through the other Tuesdays: see Balboa Park's free Tuesdays.

What are the rules inside?

• —No pets. ADA service animals only.
• —No outside food. Water is allowed. Don't feed the koi.
• —No tripods, easels, instruments or drones. A photoshoot pass is $50 at the front gate.
• —Stay out of the ponds and off the rocks and trees, and don't throw coins in the koi pond.
• —Accessibility: all paths are ADA-accessible, but the canyon is steep; staff can arrange a shuttle from the Lower Garden back up, at the gift shop.

Is it worth it?

The garden opened in 1991 as a symbol of friendship between San Diego and its sister city, Yokohama. A 1999 phase by landscape architect Takeo Uesugi added the Exhibit Hall and Upper Koi Pond, and a third phase finished in 2015 added the cherry grove and the Inamori Pavilion. It's quieter than most of Balboa Park, and the Lower Garden is the part that feels like Japan. If you're paying, give yourself at least an hour and get there well before 5 p.m., when entry stops. The busiest days are the Cherry Blossom Festival in March (in 2026 it ran March 12-15 with $18-$25 tickets; 2027 dates weren't posted as of Nov 5, 2026).

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Leaflet | © OpenStreetMap contributors

Garden

1. 1Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum — $16 adults; free 3rd Tuesday for residents

Entrance on Pan American Road East, next to the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. Location from OpenStreetMap.

See these on the full San Diego map

Balboa Park has paid parking in many lots, and the garden says new daily rates took effect January 5; see how to park at Balboa Park for free or cheap. Doing several museums? Compare the Balboa Park Explorer Pass.