Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden will launch a pilot program enabling ticketless entrythrough contactless credit card and other touch-payment methods. From August 12, 2026(Wednesday) through the end of fiscal year 2026 (planned), payment terminals compatiblewith contactless credit card payments will be installed at each entrance gate.Visitors will be able to enter the garden without purchasing a separate admission ticket.

Ticketless Entry Pilot Program

Visitor numbers exceeded 3 million for the first time in fiscal year 2025, and the gardenhas continued to set new annual visitor records each year from fiscal years 2023 through2025. It is estimated that approximately half of all visitors are inbound international tourists.In response to this growth and increasing visitor diversity, the garden must addressoperational challenges, including:

・Improving the smoothness of the admission process
・Expanding payment options
・Reducing waiting times at ticket vending machines
・Streamlining cash-handling operations
・Reducing the burden of serving overseas visitors

To this end, in addition to the current tap-to-enter system using transportation IC card farededuction terminals installed at the entrance gates, the garden will begin a pilot programtoward the full-scale implementation of “stera transit” (commonly known as the”Credit Card Ride” service), a public transportation solution provided by<Mitsui Sumitomo Card Co., Ltd.>.

This pilot program represents the first case in Japan where this service is introducedoutside the transportation industry.

Through this service, visitors will be able to enter the garden simply by tapping theircontactless payment-enabled credit card or other compatible payment device on a dedicatedterminal installed at the entrance gate. This eliminates the need to purchase transportationIC cards, add prepaid value, or buy admission tickets in advance.

As a result, not only domestic visitors but also overseas tourists who do not possessJapanese transportation IC cards will be able to enter easily using the same payment methodsthey already use for everyday shopping and transportation.

The pilot program will also explore the potential for visitor usage analysis based oncontactless payment data. Through this trial, the garden aims to improve visitor convenienceand enhance the efficiency of the admission process.

-Start Date, Eligible Gates, and Other Details
○Admission Method
Visitors can enter directly by tapping a contactless payment-enabled card(credit, debit, or prepaid) or a smartphone/device configured with such a cardon the designated terminal at the entrance gate.

○Start Date and Time
9:00 a.m., Wednesday, August 12, 2026

○Eligible Gates
Gate No. 1 only at each entrance:

・Shinjuku Gate
・Okido Gate
・Sendagaya Gate

○Accepted Payment Brand
・Visa only

○Applicable Admission Fee
・General admission only: ¥500

Depending on the results of the pilot program, expansion of eligible gates,additional payment brands, and eligibility for students (high school age and above)and visitors aged 65 and over (¥250 admission fee) may be considered.

-Roles of Participating Organizations

○Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden Office
・Overall project management and coordination

○Takamizawa Cybernetics Co., Ltd.
・Installation of contactless credit card payment terminals at entrance facilities
・Related system modifications and upgrades

○QUADRAC Co., Ltd.
・Provision of the SaaS-based payment and authentication platform “Q-move”

○Mitsui Sumitomo Card Co., Ltd.
・Support for introducing cashless payment systems
・Provision of the stera platform (stera transit)
・Solutions and promotional activities related to Visa contactless payments

End of Notice