10 best autumn illuminations in Tokyo

Rikugien is one of the best gardens in Tokyo to immerse yourself in beautiful Japanese landscapes. There’s no bad time to see the garden, but we do admit it’s especially picturesque in autumn, when the leaves take on vibrant shades of red and yellow.

From November 25 to December 6, Rikugien stays open until 8.30pm for its annual light-up. The trees in the garden are bathed in golden lights so that the brilliant colours of the changing leaves stand out even more, providing stunning views.

Aside from admiring the autumn foliage, don’t forget to drop by the garden’s dozo (storehouse). Its earthen walls serve as the canvas for a beautiful daily projection show between 6pm and 8.30pm. 

We recommend purchasing illumination tickets online in advance, as they’re limited and available at a discounted price of ¥1,000. The online ticket portal will open in late October. Otherwise, tickets can be purchased at the door for ¥1,200.

The park will close temporarily at 5pm, and reopen at 6pm for the night opening.

Showa Kinen Park is the most beautiful in autumn, with the maple and ginkgo trees blushing in fiery red and yellow respectively. The ginkgo trees are the first to turn and you can see one of the two boulevards of golden yellow trees as soon as you enter the park’s Tachikawa gate. These trees are expected to turn full yellow in mid-November. The momiji and kaede trees, however, present their signature vermillion hues a bit later towards the end of November.

During this season, the park stays open after dark, with special light-ups taking place at the Katarai no Icho Namiki Ginkgo Tree Avenue (near the futsal and basketball courts), the canal ginkgo avenue by the Tachikawa park entrance and the traditional Japanese Garden from 4.30pm until 8.30pm.

While you can enjoy the light-ups at Ginkgo Tree Avenue with just the park's regular admission fee (¥450, free for junior high school students and younger), you need an extra ticket to enter the Japanese Garden for the evening light-up (advance ticket online ¥1,200, primary and junior high school students ¥600; same-day tickets sold at Komorebi House (cash-only) close to the Japanese Garden ¥1,300, ¥700).

Tickets to enter the Japanese Garden are available for purchase online, including park admission and Japanese Garden bundle pass for a discounted price of ¥1,600 (¥600).

Enjoy the perfectly shaped, sunset-yellow ginkgo trees that form a 300m-long boulevard between Gaienmae and Aoyama-Itchome stations. This is Tokyo’s quintessential autumn scenery, which has graced countless Instagram accounts. The best time to visit is in late November (dates still unannounced for 2026), when the yellow leaves are lit up in the evening.

The light up takes place daily between 4.30pm and 7.30pm.

Neuro-tech startup VIE is bringing its masterful soundscape engineering to Tokyo National Museum for the first time with Zen Night Tokyo, an event taking place in the gardens behind the main museum building from October 14 to December 6. Held to coincide with the ‘Daitoku-ji: Japan’s Unrivalled Zen Monastery – 700th Anniversary Special Exhibition', the Japanese garden is hosting this special after-hours autumn leaves illumination spectacle designed to soothe the senses and let visitors admire the natural beauty of the grounds, which are ordinarily closed to the public.

Themed around the Buddhist concepts of rebirth and cyclical existence, this immersive journey guides visitors through different areas along the mirror-like Suigetsu pond, including an open-air teahouse zone where you can enter different realms through soundscapes tuned to distinct wavelengths, each designed to evoke a unique emotional experience. Continuing along the pond, visitors discover a path of spider lilies, flowers often associated with the arrival of autumn and the honouring of ancestral spirits. Aptly named Hyakki Yado (Night Path of One Hundred Demons), the path is lined with some 3,000 hauntingly beautiful spider lilies illuminated against the night.

Meanwhile, at the Kujokan teahouse, you can drink matcha while admiring the breathtaking illuminated rock garden. The tea experience is paired with a high-tech ‘Brainwave Zen’ meditation experience, which involves measuring brainwaves with an earphone-type monitoring device. The signals are visualised in real time through sound and projected imagery, creating an immersive meditation space. You can take home the results of your brainwave analysis and learn about your Zen meditation strengths and weaknesses. Note that the tea and ‘Brainwave Zen’ experience is a ticketed programme and requires a separate date- and time-designated reservation made online.

General tickets for Zen Night Tokyo are also available now. Tickets include admission to the museum’s Daitoku-ji exhibition.

Grab your tickets now via the official website.

Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens, the meticulously tended traditional Japanese garden beside Tokyo Dome City, is hosting a special night opening this autumn. The sprawling green space, which was originally constructed as a private garden for the ruling Tokugawa family in 1629, is staying open until 9pm from November 13 to 24.

Come nightfall, several areas of Koishikawa Korakuen (not to be confused with the nearby Koishikawa Botanical Gardens) will be illuminated, including the artificial, forested Horai island on the main pond and the iconic Ipponmatsu pine tree. The highlight, however, is the projection mapping show at the Karamon Gate, the former main entrance to the inner courtyard of the Tokugawa family’s residence. The gate is a meticulously reconstructed structure built using Edo-period (1603–1868) architectural techniques, and the projection mapping display will showcase ukiyo-e and doro-e artworks depicting the vibrant lives of the same period. 

While you’re there, don’t miss the new autumn-leaf-themed projection mapping show at Engetsukyo Bridge, which is said to have been designed by Ming Dynasty Confucian scholar Zhu Shunsui. At the nearby Kantokutei teahouse, nerikiri wagashi will be served with matcha during the special nighttime viewing, while the garden will also host a stamp rally and shops selling dango snacks and mini paper lanterns.

The park will close temporarily at 5pm, and reopen at 6pm for the night opening. Special nighttime viewing tickets are required to enter the park after 6pm. These can be purchased in advance via KKday, Asoview and Seven Ticket.

Otaguro Park in Suginami's residential district of Minami-Ogikubo is a popular spot for admiring colourful autumn leaves, especially after sunset. At night, the main path leading to the Japanese garden – lined with century-old ginkgo trees – glows in vibrant yellow, while the garden’s fiery red maples are illuminated and mirrored on the still pond, creating picture-perfect photo ops.

Details for 2026 are to be announced in November.

Adachi’s northernmost neighbourhood of Hanahata is home to a Japanese garden that, while modest in size, makes a grand impression with its expansive pond, stone walls and moat. The much-loved local spot will be illuminated after dark on seven nights this year, from November 20 to 23 and November 27 to 29.

Visitors can warm up with hot drinks such as oshiruko (sweet red bean soup), alongside treats including cakes. The garden’s tearoom will also host matcha sessions led by Rikkyo University’s tea ceremony club, with servings at 5pm, 5.50pm and 6.40pm. Each session costs ¥800 per person.

The spacious Japanese garden at Shirokanedai's Happo-en stays open until 9pm during the autumn foliage season. The 160 ginkgo and fiery red momiji maple trees are lit up during evening hours and are reflected on the surface of the garden pond.

Coinciding with the evening light-up, you can enjoy a special autumn dinner course at Happoen's all-day dining restaurant Fudo. Inspired by the changing colours of autumn leaves, the course invites you to savour the changing flavours, aromas and aftertastes, accompanied by the visual beauty of the season. Reservations can be made via Tablecheck.

See the website for more information.

Don’t miss the chance to see the beautiful autumn leaves of Higo-Hosokawa Garden all lit up in the evening for a week from November 20 to 29. The Japanese maple, hackberry, wax and pine trees that are scattered across the garden will be decked out in 140 LED lights, while the walkway will be illuminated with hand-carved take-akari bamboo lights, creating a romantic ambience.

The garden stays open until 8pm during the event (last entry 7.30pm). 

Flower and Light Movement is an initiative by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government aimed at creating new and attractive – and eye-catchingly large – flowerbeds in city parks. The autumn edition of this year’s project takes place at the expansive Koganei Park, located adjacent to the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum and only a 30-minute train ride from Shinjuku. The park’s signature flower installations will return, including breathtaking cosmos flowerbeds at Fureai Plaza, while lantern-lit trees invite visitors to experience the beauty of the autumn scenery at dusk.

Colourful lantern photo spots inspired by the area’s history as a textile industry hub will add to the atmosphere, while sections of the forest near the Keyaki Walkway on the west side of Fureai Plaza will be transformed into a multisensory footpath featuring pampas grass, seasonal flowers, wind chimes and shimmering sequins for an immersive, otherworldly experience.

What’s more, upcycled-material seating and food trucks will be on hand throughout the event on the southern side of Fureai Plaza, making Koganei Park an even more inviting destination for autumn picnics and leisurely seasonal outings.