Just short walk in the opposite direction of Takenaka Carpentry Tool Museum is the ropeway that leads you to the Nunobiki Herb Garden, sometimes referred to as the Kobe Herb Garden. This trip takes you up a small mountain to a lovely garden embedded into the scenery dedicated exclusively to the cultivation of herbs and flowers. It also take a good amount of time to showcase their uses in foods, drinks, and other goods for your enjoyment.
Nunobiki Herb Garden Ropeway
The way up to Nunobiki Herb Garden is a bit of a cultural treasure in Kobe. It takes you up via ropeway in enclosed gondolas. They are red, numerous, and on a continuous movement up and down the mountain. These will take you up to the midway station and the final station at the top of the mountain. These offer a really stunning view of the herb garden, nearby Gohonmatsu waterfall, Kobe, and on clear days, a clear view of Osaka. It’s really a stunning trip and well worth it (if you’re not too afraid of heights, that is!).
Kobe Herb Garden
The herb garden itself is split into two parts: The herb garden proper that you can view at the midway station, number two, and the herbal market all the way at the final station, number three. If you go after 5 PM, you get a much cheaper price on your ticket up to the gardens, but you are not able to enter the herb garden proper at station two. Instead, you are restricted to the area at the top near the herbal market. For my thrifty self, I elected to go later, not knowing that I would be locked out of the garden proper, unable to smell the fresh herbs and relax in the numerous hammocks scattered about the gardens.
The top area is nothing to sneeze at, don’t get me wrong. There’s a beautiful rose garden with roses aplenty, water features, and stunning theming and architecture. It looks just like an idyllic European mansion with a big, beautiful garden area for all to enjoy. They have a small snack kiosk, where you can get some honey soft serve or some nice herb-cooked hotdogs, and a larger stand where you can get some delightfully prepared delicacies, such as herb-roasted meats and vegetables. There’s also a variety of herbal teas and beers for you to partake in as well.
In the main herb shop, you can find herb gifts aplenty! Soaps, teas, cookies, essential oils, perfumes, souvenirs, omiyage: All within a building with amazing scents. You can also buy some potted plants of your favorite herbs to take home and cultivate yourself. It’s nice to just walk around and smell all the amazing goods they have for sale!
This is such a wonderful spot! It has so many romantic elements and peaceful patches that it’s hard not to recommend. If you’re in Kobe and need a bit of time to relax and do a light stroll with your friends or partner, this is a fantastic place to do so!
Two Second Street 