Tama Cemetery

Tama Cemetery in Fuchu, west of central Tokyo, covers roughly 128 hectares and is the largest in the prefecture. Opened in 1923, it was the first cemetery in Japan laid out as a park, modelled on European garden cemeteries with wide avenues, gravel paths and rows of trees rather than the temple plots that had been standard. Many notable figures of the Taisho and Showa eras rest here, including writers, politicians and military leaders. In spring it offers a quieter cherry-blossom walk than central Tokyo; in summer locals use it almost like a neighbourhood park, cycling and jogging along the tree-lined lanes.