── weather · tokyo in winter
Tokyo's winter weather and daylight, month by month
December: average high 12.0°C (54°F), low 3.8°C (39°F), 57.9 mm of rain and 174 hours of sunshine. The earliest sunsets of the year come in early December, not at the solstice: about 4:28pm on 1 December and 4:31pm on 21 December, when the sun rises at 6:46am.
January: average high 9.8°C (50°F), low 1.2°C (34°F), the coldest month, but also the sunniest of the winter at 193 hours. The sun rises at 6:50am on 1 January and sets at 4:38pm, and by the end of the month sunset is after 5pm. The January sumo tournament runs from 10 to 24 January 2027 (see sumo in Tokyo), and Tokyo in January has the rest of the month's dates.
February: average high 10.9°C (52°F), low 2.1°C (36°F), 56.5 mm of rain and 170 hours of sunshine. Snow is most likely in January and February, but even then the average fall is about 4 cm a month, and it rarely lasts. By 28 February the sun sets at 5:35pm.
Sources: Japan Meteorological Agency 1991-2020 normals for Tokyo; sunrise and sunset for Tokyo from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. Pack for cold, clear days: a warm coat, layers and gloves for the evenings, and a lip balm, because the air is very dry. Indoors, trains and shops are well heated.
── winter illuminations
The 2026-27 winter illuminations, with dates
Announced: Roppongi Hills Keyakizaka, 5 November to 25 December 2026, 5pm-10pm. Marunouchi Illumination, 12 November 2026 to 14 February 2027, 4pm-11pm (midnight in December), with the extra Gyoko-dori lights from 27 November to 25 December. Yomiuriland Jewellumination, 29 October 2026 to 4 April 2027.
Not announced yet (last year's dates for guidance): Tokyo Midtown's Christmas lights in Roppongi haven't been announced on its own site; last year its garden light walk ran from 13 November 2025 to 23 February 2026, 5pm-11pm, free, and an outdoor ice rink ran from 21 November to 23 February (adults ¥2,000, ¥2,300 over the holidays, skate hire ¥500). Note that Tokyo Midtown is closed from 21 to 23 November 2026, with shorter hours on the 20th. Ao no Dokutsu (Blue Cave) Shibuya, the tunnel of about 500,000 blue lights from Koen-dori to the Yoyogi Park zelkova avenue, hasn't announced 2026; last year it ran from 4 to 25 December 2025, 5pm-10pm. Caretta Shiodome has no 2026-27 dates confirmed on its own site yet; check caretta.jp before you go.
If you want the illuminations at their fullest, go in the first three weeks of December, when everything is lit, including the Christmas-only displays, which all come down after 25 December. After Christmas, Marunouchi (to 14 February) and Yomiuriland (to 4 April) are the main confirmed displays still running.
── christmas in tokyo
Christmas in Tokyo, and the Christmas markets
Christmas in Japan is a commercial and romantic season rather than a religious or family one. 25 December is a normal working day, so trains, most museums and shops keep their usual schedules. Christmas Eve is the big night out for couples, when restaurants book up, and a fried chicken dinner and a strawberry Christmas cake are the popular family tradition. If you want a Christmas Eve dinner, book well ahead; for date-night ideas, see date night in Tokyo.
Tokyo Christmas Market 2026, the German-style market that started in Hibiya Park in 2015, is at two sites this year. Shin-Toyosu (Toyosu 6-4, two minutes from Shin-Toyosu station on the Yurikamome line) runs from 20 November to 25 December, 11am to 9:30pm (from 4pm on the opening day; last entry 8:30pm). Shiba Park (the Onarimon station square, one minute from exit A6 of Onarimon station on the Toei Mita line, not Shibakoen station) runs from 4 to 25 December, 11am to 10pm (from 4pm on the opening day; last entry 9pm). Entry for adults (junior-high age and up) is ¥1,000 on weekdays and ¥1,500 at weekends and holidays, ¥500 for primary-school children and free for younger children; on 24 and 25 December it's ¥2,000 for adults and ¥1,000 for children. Expect gluhwein, German food and a Christmas pyramid.
Free markets: Roppongi Hills (21 November to 25 December, 11am-9pm) and Marunouchi's Gyoko-dori (27 November to 25 December, 11am-10pm) charge no entry; you pay per stall.
A Japanese December market: Senso-ji's Hagoita-ichi, from 17 to 19 December, is a year-end fair of stalls selling hagoita, decorated wooden battledores given as good-luck charms, a tradition the temple dates to the late Edo period. It's the most traditional thing you can do in Tokyo in December.
── new year's eve
New Year's Eve in Tokyo: bells, not fireworks
Tokyo has no single big public countdown like the fireworks in London or Sydney. Its New Year's Eve is quieter and older: families eat toshikoshi soba, buckwheat noodles for a long life, and the crowds that go out head for a temple or shrine for midnight. The year-end bell, joya no kane, is a Buddhist temple custom: at Senso-ji in Asakusa, 108 counted strokes start at midnight and take about 40 minutes.
Two things change in 2026. Zojo-ji, under Tokyo Tower, has moved its bell earlier, to 9:45pm until about 11pm on 31 December, because of crowding; bell-ringing tickets cost ¥2,000 and go on sale at the temple from 9am on 1 December. And the trains: JR East has announced late-night trains on six lines including the Yamanote line, but Tokyo Metro and Toei haven't announced their plans, and last year neither ran all night. Shibuya Crossing's organised countdown was cancelled for 2023-24 over crowd safety, and nothing has been announced for 2026-27.
The full plan for the night, with each temple's schedule and the train details, is in our hatsumode guide.
── new year · 1-3 january
New Year in Tokyo: hatsumode, and what closes
From 1 to 3 January, Tokyo makes hatsumode, the first shrine or temple visit of the year. Meiji Jingu, Senso-ji, Kanda Myojin and the rest fill with people queuing to pray, buy new charms and draw a fortune, and you're welcome to join. Where to go, when the crowds peak and how to pray are all in hatsumode in Tokyo.
If you're up early, the first sunrise of 2027, hatsuhinode, is at 6:50am on 1 January; Tokyo's best views has the high places to see it from (check each deck's New Year hours). On 2 January the Emperor's New Year greeting is held at the Imperial Palace, open to anyone; last year it ran from 9:30am to 2:10pm with five balcony appearances, and the 2027 details haven't been published yet.
What closes: banks from 31 December to 3 January, and most offices; many small independent restaurants and shops take a few days off around New Year. Chains, hotel restaurants and places in the big stations are your safest bets for meals on 1 January, and most convenience stores stay open, though some branches shorten their hours. Museums and sights vary: the Tokyo National Museum closes from 26 to 31 December 2026 and reopens on 1 January 2027 (noon to 8pm), while Tokyo Midtown closed on 1 January last year. Most places post their New Year hours in December, so check before you plan a day around one.
February: Setsubun on 3 February is the bean-throwing festival that marks the start of spring in the old calendar, with ceremonies at Senso-ji and Kanda Myojin, among others.
── winter food
What to eat in a Tokyo winter
Winter is hot-pot season. Nabe (shared hot pots) and oden (fish cakes, daikon and eggs simmered in broth) are on menus everywhere, and convenience stores sell oden by the piece from a counter by the till. Ramen is at its best on a cold night; see the best ramen in Tokyo. An izakaya, the Japanese pub, is the warmest place to spend a dark evening; see the best izakaya in Tokyo.
Out on the street, look for yaki-imo, roasted sweet potatoes, sold from trucks and in supermarkets, and amazake, a warm, sweet, low- or no-alcohol drink made from rice. For more, see the best street food in Tokyo.
The New Year has its own food: toshikoshi soba on New Year's Eve, osechi (lacquered boxes of cold, symbolic dishes made in advance so no one has to cook over the holiday) and ozoni, a soup with mochi rice cakes, on New Year's Day. Department stores sell osechi to order from the autumn. If you're out late after the bells, late-night food in Tokyo has places that stay open.
── day trips
Onsen and winter day trips from Tokyo
A hot spring is the best thing to do with a cold, clear winter day. Hakone is the classic onsen trip from Tokyo, with views of Mount Fuji that are at their clearest in winter; Nikko and Kawaguchiko are colder but just as clear, with a real chance of snow. Transport and costs for each are in the best day trips from Tokyo.
Avoid 31 December to 3 January for an onsen trip if you can. It's one of Japan's busiest travel periods, and the trains and hot-spring towns fill with domestic holidaymakers. Mid-January to February is the quiet time, and the best value.
── when to go
Crowds and prices: December, New Year or January?
These are general patterns rather than published figures. Early to mid-December is the sweet spot: everything is lit, the markets are open, and Japan's own holiday rush hasn't started. Late December to the first days of January can be busy and expensive, especially around New Year, Japan's main family holiday and travel period, so book hotels and any long-distance trains early. Mid-January to February is the quietest time of the year for sightseeing and usually the best for hotel prices, and it's when the clear skies and Fuji views are at their most reliable. For the rest of the year, see the best time to visit Tokyo.
Whichever you pick, the dark comes early, so plan indoor sights for late afternoon. Rainy-day Tokyo and the best museums in Tokyo work just as well on a cold evening.
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