City Profile: Gosen

Gosen is located in central Niigata Prefecture, just to the southeast of the prefectural capital of Niigata City. It covers an area of 351.9 square kilometers and has a population of about 50,000. It has long been known as a silk town, thanks to its abundant, high-quality water resources. Its knit fabric industry underwent tremendous development following World War II, and the city still boasts some of the highest production output in the country. Gosen is also a natural paradise, offering lush green mountainsides, pure rivers, and fertile land—making it the home for an abundance of specialty products unique to the area. It is one of Japan’s leading peony growers, and is also known for its tulips, taro, lotus root, chestnuts, gingko nuts, and edible carp.

Gosen is truly a City of Flowers, attracting numerous visitors year after year.In the Koya area, Asian skunk cabbage blooms as soon as the snows melt. Muramatsu Park has been named among the top 100 sites for viewing Japanese cherry blossoms. The edohigan cherry trees in Oyamada are a nationally-designated natural monument. You can also see 1.5 million tulips form a carpet of flowers as they burst into bloom simultaneously. 100-Variety Peony Botanical Garden boasts 5,000 flowering plants in 120 varieties.