H. C. Andersen Park - a trip to a kids fairy tale

Usually winter is the season where it I soften due to the dark and cold outside. It is hard to move your body to leave a warm home and do something outside. Actually, this is my typical image of winter in Europe where it is usually amazing cold, dark and it often rains for months. Japan is the totally opposite. At least in Tokyo temperatures rarely fall below 0 degrees celsius and it is very sunny almost every day. Perfect weather to go out in!

Also, what I really like in Japan is that even the nature is very different in winter and you can still find many green trees and even blooming flowers like the camellia. On one of those nice sunny winter days then, I decided to go on a short family trip to our nearby prefecture of Chiba. My goal was the H.C. Andersen Park in the heart of Funabashi.
You might have heard about Denmark's most famous poet and writer Hans Christian Andersen, who also wrote many fairytales like The Little Mermaid or The Snow Queen.
H.C. Andersen Park has 5 different zones for the whole family. Let's take a look at what you can expect when visiting the park:

Fairy Tale Hill Zone
The main entrance will lead you to a small countryside version of Denmark in the 1800s. You can find a windmill surrounded by thousands of beautiful tulips, a farm house and some other buildings which are replicating buildings of the Funen Village in Odense, where H.C Andersen was born.

Walking through the whole area really gave me a feeling of being back to Europe. Especially the small pond, with the boathouse and bakery, looked very similar to my own hometown.
If you are hungry, you can do a BBQ at the restaurant “Maerchen” or just order something from their menu. There is really something for everyone from curry, spaghetti and meatballs .

Nature Experience Zone
You can walk around a small walking course in this zone of H.C. Andersen Park, through rice paddy fields and the waterside of Satoyama. Every season you can enjoy different plants and flowers blooming around the walking course, which makes a stroll very nice and refreshing.

Kids Kingdom Zone
One of the biggest parts H.C. Andersen Park is Kids Kingdom, which really is a kingdom -- or more over a dreamland for older kids.  Here you can find Japan's largest adventure playground, a lawned garden for a picnic, a huge water park, petting zoo and a balance ball mountain.  In particular the adventure playground is really huge and really something for older kids and adults. Younger kids can also enjoy ridding on a mini Shinkansen or on an old bicycle through the area. The zone for kids is huge and you can find play areas in every corner.
There are also some food stalls here, but it is recommended to bring your own food.


Children's Museum Zone & Castle of Flower
At the museum area kids can work with art and crafts like weaving or being part of one of Andersen's popular fairy tales in a workshop with different artists.
The Castle of Flower is also a play area for younger kids. You can play in the building block area with different kinds of blocks or just run around the fairy tale playground outside of the castle.

Before I visited the park I thought it would just be a cheap copy of Andersen's fairy tales, but I was very surprised to find a very original looking small Danish village and a really great area for kids. Especially with older children this is really a paradise.


H. C. Andersen Park Access:
■From Misaki Station, take the Funabashi Shin-Keisei bus bound for "Komuro Eki" to "Kenmin no Mori" stop.  The park is a 5-min walk from here.  Alternatively, take a bus bound for "Secomedic Byoin" to "Andersen Koen" stop.  The park is a 1-min walk from here.
■From Funabashi Station North Exit Funabashi Shin-Keisei buses bound for "Komuro Eki" to Kenmin no Mori" depart from bus stand No. 5.  Or, from bus stand No. 3, take the Funabashi Shin-Keisei bus bound for "Hofu Nokyo Mae," all the way to the last stop.

Opening hours: Daily from 9:00 – 16:30 (closed Mondays)

Entrance: 
Adults: ¥900, High School Students: ¥600, Elementary and Junior High School Students: ¥200, Small Children (4 years or older): ¥100, 3 years or younger: Free