Bunkasai Japan
東京大学

The University of Tokyo 🇬🇧🇺🇸 🇰🇷🇹🇼

The Red Gate, Yasuda Auditorium and the pond named after a Soseki novel.

The Hongo campus was a feudal lord's estate before it was a university, and the vermilion gate the Maeda family built in 1827 is still the way in. Inside are a pond named after a Soseki novel, a clock tower famous for a 1969 student siege, and ginkgo trees that turn gold in late November.

Yasuda Auditorium at the University of Tokyo Hongo campus
Photo: Kakidai / CC BY-SA 4.0 / source
Key facts
Nearest station
Hongo: Hongo-sanchome (Marunouchi / Oedo lines) 6 min. Komaba: Komaba-Todaimae (Inokashira Line) 1 min
Open in Google Maps ↗
Normal-day visits
Outdoor areas are open except during entrance exams.
Photos
Outdoors is fine. Do not enter buildings.
Festival
Komabasai: Sat, Nov 21 – Mon, Nov 23
Festival details →
The University of Tokyo ↗

Last updated: Sep 15, 2026

Why visit

  • Akamon, the 1827 Red Gate, is an Important Cultural Property you can walk through.
  • Sanshiro Pond takes its name from Natsume Soseki's 1908 novel Sanshiro.
  • Free, open on normal days, and 15 minutes on foot from Ueno Park's museums.

On screen & in print

  • Sanshiro by Natsume Soseki (1908)Novel
    The hero meets Mineko by the pond on the Hongo campus; the pond has carried the novel's name ever since.
  • Love Hina (manga 1998, anime 2000)Anime
    Getting into 'Todai' is the whole point of the story.
  • Ouran High School Host ClubAnimefan-reported, not officially confirmed
    Fan pilgrimage sites list Akamon and Yasuda Auditorium as inspiration for Ouran Academy's look.
  • Dragon ZakuraDrama
    About getting into Todai, but the exterior scenes were shot at other universities.

History worth knowing

Japan's first modern university (1877)

Hongo campus sits on the former estate of the Maeda lords; Akamon was built in 1827 to welcome a shogun's daughter as a bride.

Lafcadio Hearn and Ernest Fenollosa

The writer of Kwaidan taught English literature here (1896-1903). American Fenollosa taught philosophy and became a champion of Japanese art.

Yasuda Auditorium (1925)

The clock-tower hall is the symbol of the university and the site of the famous 1969 student occupation.

Your country's connection

🇬🇧🇺🇸
UK / USA
Lafcadio Hearn and Ernest Fenollosa taught here.
🇰🇷🇹🇼
Korea / Taiwan
Second and third largest international student groups.

What to see on campus

  • Akamon (Red Gate) free
    1827 vermilion gate. Free, outdoor.
  • Yasuda Auditorium & the ginkgo avenue free
    The ginkgo trees turn gold in late November, around Komabasai.
  • Sanshiro Pond free
    A quiet Edo-period garden pond in the middle of campus.
  • University Museum (Hongo) free
    Free, weekdays 10:00-17:00. Also visit Intermediatheque at KITTE Marunouchi.
Akamon, the Red Gate of the University of Tokyo
Photo: Nesnad / CC BY 4.0 / source
The main gate of the University of Tokyo Komaba campus during Komabasai 2024
Photo: Syced / CC0 1.0 / source

Nearby to combine

  • Nezu Shrine: A tunnel of red torii gates, a short walk from the campus. 📍
  • Yanaka Ginza: Old-Tokyo shopping street, about 20 minutes on foot. 📍
  • Ueno Park: Museums and the zoo, about 15 minutes on foot. 📍

Visitor rules

  • Outdoor areas are open to visitors except during entrance exams. Do not enter buildings.
  • Groups of 15 or more must apply in advance.
  • Two festivals: Gogatsusai (May, Hongo) and Komabasai (November, Komaba). Both have English websites.

Etiquette →

Plan your visit

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