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The month's best festivals, exhibitions, and pop-ups in Japan, in one email. Free, monthly.

Free when you joinThe First-Timer's Japan Guide, our 16-page PDF, in your welcome email.

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The First-Timer's Japan Guide16-page PDF, in your welcome email.

The First-Timer's Japan Guide

Guides, places, and what's on across Japan, written at street level.

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All Events Places

Visual Art

Wara Art Festival

This festival transforms rice straw into massive sculptures created through collaboration between university students and local residents in Niigata.

29 Aug – 31 Oct 2026Niigata · Chubu

Illumination

Okinawa Tropical Illumination

Illumination event set in a botanical garden featuring handmade warm lights creating a tropical resort atmosphere with new light displays this year.

23 Oct 2026 – 23 May 2027Okinawa · Okinawa

Illumination

ASAKUSA CULTURE & LIGHTS 2026

Five nights of projection mapping on the main hall and gate of Sensoji in Tokyo, with the temple's closed garden and its hall of ema open alongside.

All Events Places

Visual Art

Wara Art Festival

This festival transforms rice straw into massive sculptures created through collaboration between university students and local residents in Niigata.

29 Aug – 31 Oct 2026Niigata · Chubu

Illumination

Okinawa Tropical Illumination

Illumination event set in a botanical garden featuring handmade warm lights creating a tropical resort atmosphere with new light displays this year.

23 Oct 2026 – 23 May 2027Okinawa · Okinawa

Illumination

ASAKUSA CULTURE & LIGHTS 2026

Five nights of projection mapping on the main hall and gate of Sensoji in Tokyo, with the temple's closed garden and its hall of ema open alongside.

30 Oct – 3 Nov 2026

Tokyo · Kanto

Exhibition

Hibiya Art Park 2026 - Timeless Phenomena

Three artists set work through Hibiya Park in Tokyo for two weeks in November, in a programme run by the city alongside its flower and light displays.

13–29 Nov 2026Tokyo · Kanto

Illumination

Kanto’s Largest-Class Illumination: Sagamiko Illumillion

One of Kanto's largest illuminations features approximately six million lights integrated into a natural landscape at a sprawling venue.

15 Nov 2026 – 10 May 2027Kanagawa · Kanto

Autumn Leaves

Rikugien Garden Night Autumn Viewing

Rikugien Garden opens for nighttime autumn foliage viewing, illuminating the garden's fall colours alongside projection mapping and carefully framed photographic vistas.

28 Nov – 9 Dec 2026Tokyo · Kanto

Exhibition

The 76th Nagahama Bonbai Exhibition

Japan's largest exhibition dedicated to bonbai, artistically cultivated plum trees in pots, displays approximately 90 specimens rotated by blooming stages over 60 days.

10 Jan – 10 Mar 2027Shiga · Kansai

Interactive Experience

The 3rd T-Rex Race

A family-friendly racing event sees participants in full Tyrannosaurus costumes sprinting across park fields in various divisions, from junior to adult competitors.

17 Jan 2027Kanagawa · Kanto

Seasonal Nature

Strawberry Hunt in the Land of Oz

Strawberry picking transforms into a playful experience with themed décor and character guides at Japan's largest rose-themed park.

17 Jan – 30 Apr 2027Chiba · Kanto

Illumination

Kairakuen UME The Lights

Spring illumination event at historic garden featuring projection-mapped poetry on bamboo stalks, colored plum groves, and a mystical anime collaboration.

13 Feb – 15 Mar 2027Ibaraki · Kanto

Festival

Yoshino Baigo Plum Blossom Festival

A plum blossom festival in the region's premier plum village draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to view 25,000 trees, now celebrating a decade since their replanting.

21 Feb – 22 Mar 2027Tokyo · Kanto

Festival

Echigo Yukiwari Road

Spring's arrival is celebrated with delicate alpine flowers that bloom as snow melts across multiple scenic sites in the Echigo region.

7 Mar – 12 Apr 2027Niigata · Chubu

Cherry Blossom

Rojo Park Cherry Blossoms

A park in Komatsu transforms each spring with more than 130 cherry trees forming spectacular pink canopies along its walking paths.

15 Mar – 15 Apr 2027Ishikawa · Chubu

Cherry Blossom

Cherry Blossom in Hakusan Shrine & Hakusan Park

Hakusan Shrine and Hakusan Park showcase cherry blossoms in spring, with peak bloom typically occurring in mid-April.

15–30 Apr 2027Niigata · Chubu

Cherry Blossom

Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival

Hirosaki Park celebrates cherry blossoms with illuminated trees, boat rides across the moat to view reflections on water, and picnicking beneath the flowering branches.

23 Apr – 5 May 2027Aomori · Tohoku

Illumination

The Four Seasons of Kanazawa Castle and Kenrokuen Garden: Spring Illuminations

Spring illuminations at Kenrokuen Garden coincide with the blooming of azaleas and early cherry blossoms, creating an interplay of seasonal colors.

30 Apr – 2 May 2027Ishikawa · Chubu

Expo & Convention

Yokohama Flower & Garden Festival 2027

The Yokohama Flower & Garden Festival showcases horticultural heritage through garden displays, rose collections, and design installations with educational workshops.

2–4 May 2027Kanagawa · Kanto

Festival

The 43th Higashimokoto Shibazakura Festival

The 43nd edition of this festival showcases 10 hectares of vibrant pink moss phlox blooms and includes tour vehicles and traditional performances.

3–31 May 2027Hokkaido · Hokkaido