in Tokyo (updated for winter 2023)
Christmas is honestly one of my favorite times of the year in Tokyo! The air is cold and crisp and the streets are all decorated in beautiful illuminations. There are also dozens of Christmas light displays around the city as well as a handful of Christmas markets selling delicious food and Christmas trinkets. Most of the events and illuminations run from late November to the end of December, so each year I try to make the most of this period and enjoy the city's festive spirit by visiting the various Christmas events in Tokyo!
Roppongi Hills Christmas Market
November 25 - December 25 in winter 2023
The Roppongi Hills Christmas Market is held annually in the O-Yane Plaza in Roppongi Hills, right outside the entrance to Mori Building. The market aims to recreate the world's largest Christmas market in Stuttgart, Germany. Last year they had a total of 8 stores selling German cuisine, including mulled wine and sausages, and Christmas goods. The Roppongi Hills Christmas Market always has such good food! Although the market is condensed to a small area, there are so many people that show up every year, so just be wary that you might have to wait a while if you go during peak times. Last year we had the hot apple cider, hot chocolate with rum, a Christmas waffle, and Christmas chicken. The food was so good! They also had large Christmas trees both inside and outside the building as well. I love Roppongi during Christmas because they really go all out with their illuminations and decorations!
Roppongi Hills Illuminations
November 6 - December 25 in winter 2023
Roppongi Hills also puts up a fabulous illumination display every year, where the trees on the Keyekizaka street are lined with snow white lights right near Mori Building! The illuminations stretch on for over 400 meters. This is one of my favorite illuminations spots because the view is always spectacular and you can even see Tokyo Tower in the distance! They even had an Avatar: Way of the Water themed illumination display in Mori Garden last year. The entire pond area was decorated in deep blue lights! This year the area by Roppongi Hills had rainbow jewel themed trees!
Midtown Winter Illuminations
November 16 - December 25 in winter 2023
Every year Roppongi Midtown decorates the Midtown garden with beautiful illuminations! Last year they had a party popper themed tree and a gigantic dome (sponsored by Netflix) in a mini field of Christmas lights that feature a light show. The trees in the area are also covered in lights, and the Midtown building also has its own Christmas tree inside. Last year it was a unique metal Christmas tree! One of my favorite things during Christmas is visiting the Dean & Deluca inside Midtown. They always have an amazing assortment of Christmas themed cookies and food including a gingerbread house kit! The kit is so cute and easy to use. All I needed was hot water to make the icing. I had so much fun decorating one last year and I can't wait to create another one this Christmas season!
Tokyo Solamachi Christmas Market
November 9 - December 25 in winter 2023
The Tokyo Solamachi Christmas Market takes place right at the base of Sky Tree in the Sky Arena. The area is decorated with illuminations and Skytree itself is lit up green and gold, and red and white in celebration of Christmas! Last year they had about a dozen booths selling German food, and most famously, stollen slices, imported directly from Germany! We had the stollen and it was so good! I think Nissan was a huge sponsor for the event, so there were Christmas trees featuring car themed items as well. There were also many shops inside the mall with Christmas themed goods as well, like the Pokemon center and the Harry Potter store.
Tokyo Christmas Market
November 23 - December 25 in winter 2023
The Tokyo Christmas Market is one of the largest Christmas markets in Tokyo! The entire park turns into a delightful Christmas town, featuring a massive Christmas Pyramid. The plaza is also lined with shops selling handmade holiday ornaments, German food, and other imported goodies! They also have special performances and workshops in the park. Last year the event had over 30 booths and the market featured an adorable mini train for kids as well as other illuminations and nativity scenes! We tried the apple cinnamon wine, the hot chocolate, sparerib steak, mashed potato Christmas trees, and the minestrone bread bowl. So yummy! You do need advanced tickets to get in and they limit entry to prevent overcrowding.
Marunouchi Street Park Illuminations
November 28 - December 25 in winter 2023
Marunocuhi Street Park, located on Marunouchi Naka-dori and Gyoko-dori streets put up beautiful Christmas lights every year! The illuminations stretch over 1.2 kilometers. Last year they even had a mini merry-go-round and an open street piano for anyone to play! The street is decked out in illuminations with various Christmas trees sponsored by famous brands, such as Tiffany's (last year). They also have drink stands selling hot cocoa and coffee as well as tables and chairs throughout the area! Marunouchi is definitely in my top 3 spots for the most beautiful illuminations in the city, as the area is quite large, so even if there's a crowd, it's not unbearable! They also had a mini skating rink sponsored by Louis Vuitton and Yayoi Kasuma. This year the area was sponsored by Disney.
Meguro River Illuminations
November 10 - January 8 in winter 2023
The famous Nakameguro cherry blossom trees that line the Meguro river are lit up with stunning pink illuminations each year! The illuminations are called "winter sakura", a homage to the cherry blossoms that bloom here in the spring. The illuminations stretch for over 2 kilometers from Gotanda to Osaki, and the lights are all powered by biodiesel that was created by collecting waste oil from local restaurants and residents. We visited last year and the illuminations aren't nearly as crowded as the river is in the spring, but it's still a pretty sight!
Omotesando Illuminations
December 1 - 28 in winter 2023
The Omotesando Illuminations are a Tokyo classic! Every year Omotesando avenue is lined with trees beautifully lit up in champagne lights. The 150 lit up trees stretch for over 1 kilometer. Omotesando Hills, the large shopping complex, also features a special Christmas tree display every year. Last year they had a unique installation featuring a floating balloon tree with over 14,000 balloons. It was quite unique and super pretty! They also light up the top floor of Tokyu Plaza.
Shibuya Blue Cave Illuminations
December 1 - 25 in winter 2023
The Shibuya Blue Cave Illuminations are a famous display in Shibuya Park Street. There are over 800 meters of trees lined with blue lights, creating a cave like appearance. We visited for the first time last year! The trees were so beautiful and the color was really stunning. There were a lot of people when we visited, but the space is large and the street is wide, so it wasn't not bad at all! In 2023, they also had a Christmas market and vendors selling blue food and drinks.
Hibiya Magic Time Illuminations
November 16 - February 14 in winter 2023
Hibiya Magic Time Illuminations are held annually right outside the Hibiya Midtown Building. Hibiya-nakadori Street is completely lit up and while the square features beautifully decorated Christmas trees. Last year the illuminations displayed blue and green decorated trees to mimic the Aurora Borealis! This year the theme was Disney and they were playing Disney songs in the plaza. The Park View Garden on the sixth floor of the building is also lit up! The Peninsula Hotel nearby also always puts up a lovely mini Christmas display every year!
Ebisu Garden Place Illuminations
November 11 - January 8 in winter 2023
Each year Ebisu Garden Place features a beautiful Christmas tree and a Baccarat crystal chandelier. The illumination area is quite small but very beautiful! They also have a couple of drink stands selling hot wine and cocoa by the tree. It's a popular date spot! A couple years ago they also had a mini faux ice rink, but this year they only had illuminations.
Miyashita Park Illuminations
November 10 - December 25 in winter 2023
Miyashita Park also decorates the top floor with illuminations and beautiful Christmas tree each year. I believe the past two years the theme has been purple. Miyashita Park generally attracts a younger crowd (middle school ~ college). It's a popular hangout spot, so things do get rowdier at night!
Azabudai Hills Christmas Market
December 9 - December 25 in winter 2023
Azabudai is a new that opened earlier this year and they are holding their first Christmas Market this month. The area is a way more spacious than the Roppongi Hills Christmas market and they actually limit the number of people inside the market area to prevent overcrowding, which was nice! I think because the complex is relatively new, it's not as well known so there were less people on the opening day. They had over a dozen shops and food stalls selling Christmas trinkets and an assortment of food/snacks! I really enjoyed the vibe and the view of Tokyo tower and the Christmas tree was so stunning!
Enoshima Illuminations - The Jewel of Shonan
November 23, 2023 - February 29, 2024
This one isn't exactly in Tokyo, but it's so pretty I had to add it to the list. Enoshima is a small island off the coast of Kanagawa, about an hour away from Tokyo. The island hosts a beautiful illuminations display during the winter, which is known as one of the three great illuminations of Kanto. The illuminations feature romantic sparkling lights mostly in subtle purple, blue, and white hues.
Official Sites
Roppongi Hills Christmas Market & Illuminations: https://www.roppongihills.com/en/
Midtown Winter Illuminations: https://www.tokyo-midtown.com/jp/event/xmas/
Tokyo Solamachi Christmas Market: https://www.tokyo-solamachi.jp/en/
Tokyo Christmas Market: https://tokyochristmas.net/
Marunouchi Street Park Illuminations: https://www.marunouchi.com/
Meguro River Illuminations: http://www.minna-no-illumi.com/
Omotesando Hills Illuminations: https://omotesando.or.jp/
Shibuya Blue Cave Illuminations: http://shibuya-aonodokutsu.jp/
Hibiya Magic Time Illuminations: https://hibiya.tokyo-midtown.com/
Ebisu Garden Place Illuminations: https://gardenplace.jp/special/2023baccarat/
Miyashita Park Illuminations: https://www.decorte.com/site/s/purpleribbonproject.aspx/
Azabudai Hills Christmas Market: https://www.azabudai-hills.com/en/whats_on/2023/11/0003.html/
Enoshima Illuminations: https://enoshima-seacandle.com/event/shonannohoseki/
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