August 2025 events in Tokyo

Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum is staying open until 8.30pm for just two days on August 2 and 3. You’ll get to experience a Showa-style summer festival at this nostalgic attraction filled with historical and heritage buildings. 

Kids can expect fun games like target shooting and rubber duck fishing, as well as a dedicated mikoshi (portable shrine) parade for them to participate in on both days at 6pm. Adults, on the other hand, would enjoy the 15-minute Awa Odori dance performances put on by the Koganei Awa Odori Promotion Council, happening at the main entrance plaza every half-hour from 5pm to 6.30pm. (From 5.30pm on Saturday) There will also be demonstrations on the making of Edo Kiriko glass on both days from 4pm to 8pm, which will also be sold on-site.

Parts of the museum grounds will be lit up, with a few of the buildings operating as shops selling drinks, retro stationery and flowers. You'll also find plenty of food trucks to keep you satiated throughout the night, including a dagashi vendor offering old-school Japanese snacks.

Bon Odori is a traditional summer dance festival held during Obon, a Buddhist custom to commemorate one's ancestors. This particular festival, one of the biggest in Tokyo, will be held right outside Nakano Station. 

Unlike most Bon Odori festivities in Tokyo which take place in the early evening, this Nakano event has an early start at around 10am with a series of music and dance performances. However, the main attraction only begins at 4.40pm, featuring celebrity guests and DJs playing J-pop tunes.

You can expect a good workout dancing to invigorating tracks from spinners including DJ Koo and DJ Celly. But what we are really looking forward to is matching Bon Odori dance steps to classic hits from Bon Jovi, who have endorsed the use of their songs at the festival.

Everyone is welcome to join in the Nakano Bon Odori Festival, and it’s free.

Nakameguro is celebrating summer with a lively Awa Odori and Yosakoi dance performance over the August 2-3 weekend. The annual festival is celebrating its 60th year with a record number of participating teams for the awa-odori and yosakoi dance performances, happening on August 2nd and 3rd, respectively from 6pm.

Many restaurants and cafés in the area will have stalls set up outside offering takeout food and drinks for you to enjoy while watching the performances.

Asagaya has been holding its own distinctive Tanabata festival for over 60 years now, but the event has moved with the times. In recent years, the papier-mâché decorations dangling from the ceiling of the Pearl Center shopping arcade have included modern characters like Godzilla, Jack Sparrow, Buzz Lightyear and even Donald Trump.

The decorations are there to be seen all day long, but many people wait until dusk to go and enjoy them. That's when the shopping street comes alive with a host of food and drink stalls offering Japanese festive fare.

One of Tokyo's biggest annual festivals is celebrating its 74th edition this year. Held at its namesake park, Ueno Summer Festival is a month-long programme packed with a diverse array of traditional events, live performances and seasonal festivities. These include a traditional lantern-floating event on July 17 at 7pm, as well as Japanese taiko drum street performances on July 20 and 26 (from 1pm and 3pm) at Ueno Park’s Shinobazu Pond Bentendo Temple. 

That said, the festival offers more than just classic Japanese celebrations. The antique market, which will run every day from July 11 to August 11 (from 2pm) at the gates of Shinobazu Pond Bentendo Temple, for instance, is a great place to look for small treasures and summer mementoes.

For a picture-perfect spot to capture your summer memories, don’t miss the nearby Hasumi Deck lookout, adorned with more than 3,000 wind chimes that create a soothing summer soundtrack.

As always, there will be plenty of food and drink stalls encircling Ueno Park's Shinobazu Pond selling popular street eats like yakisoba and kakigori shaved ice – a staple summer treat.

Check the event website for the full programme (in Japanese only).

Kanda Shrine’s Noryo Matsuri takes place over three days in August. The all-encompassing summer fest is set to feature everything from Bon Odori dancing to the obligatory matsuri grub and even a small beer and sake fest which starts a day earlier on August 7.

During the Bon Odori session on Friday (4.30pm-8.30pm), you can dance to popular anime songs, while the ones over the weekend (from 5.30pm) feature Kanda Shrine’s original song ‘Kanda Myojin Ondo’. The organisers uploaded a practice video to its YouTube channel, so make sure to learn the steps before heading over. The festival ends at 8.30pm on all three days.

Bon Odori Dances will not be held on Thursday, August 7.

The Bon Odori festival at the hip Shimokitazawa returns this summer on August 9 and 10. On both days, you can dance to the neighbourhood's original Bon Odori song 'Shimokita Ondo'. There's an official practice video up on YouTube, so make sure to learn the steps before heading over.

At the far end of Shimokitazawa Station's east exit square, you’ll find over two dozen stalls offering crowd-pleasing street food like taco rice, karaage fried chicken, hamburgers, yakisoba noodles and crepes. The stalls open at 1pm, but the Bon Odori festivities run from 4pm to 8pm. In the meantime, head to the yagura turret stage area for live stage performances and a free samba show from 2pm on both days. 

With just around 6,000 shells of fireworks, Koto ward’s annual hanabi (fireworks) may not be as big as Tokyo’s other fireworks displays, but the scenic location more than makes up for it. Head over to the Arakawa Sunamachi Riverside Park and expect a beautiful show happening just 150m in front of you. Since the festival this year is held on a public holiday, expect a bigger crowd than usual.

Seating reservations are required to access the venue, with ticket prices starting at ¥5,000 per seat. You can make your bookings online (English available) from August 1. 

Yukata-clad spectators crowd the streets of Harajuku and Aoyama during the mesmerising Jingu Gaien Fireworks Festival, a display that ranks as one of Tokyo's top summer festivals. Now in its 44th year, this edition of the event will boast 10,000 fireworks.

The cluster of sports stadiums to the south of Sendagaya Station offers the best vantage points, with paid seating available at Meiji Jingu Stadium and Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium. Ticket prices start from ¥7,000 for single seats at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium – more details here.

Alternatively, just wander around the surrounding area until you find somewhere you can see the action for free. The fireworks display lasts for one hour from 7.30pm to 8.30pm.

In case of stormy weather, the festival will be postponed to August 17.

First held at the 1946 'Festival of Recovery' when much of Tokyo was still in ruins, the mesmerising Toro Nagashi lantern light-up was revived in 2005 after a 40-year hiatus. Rooted in the tradition that floating lanterns guide the spirits of the departed safely back to the afterlife after obon, the event is now held annually on the Asakusa side of Sumida Park, near Azumabashi Bridge and the Tokyo Cruise Asakusa Pier. You can light a lantern for ¥2,000, but enjoying the magnificent view of glittering fires on the Sumida River on a cool summer night is completely free.

Lanterns are sold in advance at the nearby Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center, at a discounted price of ¥1,700 until Aug 15.

Known as one of the three great festivals of Edo (along with the Sanno and Kanda festivals), the matsuri at Fukagawa’s Tomioka Hachimangu shrine takes place annually, but is celebrated in its full glory only once every three years.

The festival, which boasts 380 years of history, is well known for its unique water-splashing tradition. People enthusiastically throw water at the mikoshi (portable shrines) as an act of purification, drenching everyone in the vicinity, thus creating a playful and cooling experience, especially in the summer heat.

As the full version of the festival was last celebrated in 2023, this year you can expect a scaled-down – but still impressive nonetheless – version of the festivities. The main event, which is a mikoshi parade featuring Japan's heaviest mikoshi at two tonnes, will be held on Sunday August 17 from 7am to 5.05pm. Note that there will be no water splashing this year.

The festivities in the shrine grounds begin on August 13 and continue until August 17, with notable highlights including a jazz performance on August 13 (3pm) and the koto and shamisen performance on August 15 (4pm). 

For more information including the festival schedule, check the shrine website.

One of the most popular street dance festivals in Tokyo, Koenji's Awa Odori is returning this summer in full swing. This year, the celebration will feature over 150 Awa Odori dance groups parading around Koenji Station’s North-South shotengai shopping arcade and Konan-dori street over the August 23-24 weekend.

The tradition of Awa Odori can be traced back to Tokushima, in the Shikoku region. Legend has it that the local daimyo plied his citizens with booze to celebrate the completion of the local castle in 1586, leading to a citywide outbreak of dancing in the streets. Whatever the accuracy of that tale, the enthusiasm was contagious, and Koenji has been holding a street dance fest of its own since 1957.

While the action starts at 5pm for both days, you'll need to arrive much earlier if you want to snag one of the best viewing spots along the two streets mentioned above.

Check the official website for more details.

Late August is always a good time for dancing in the streets, with many major festivals happening around this time of year. The Yosakoi dance originated in Kochi prefecture in 1954, where it was created to help revitalise the struggling post-war economy. Tokyo's very own Super Yosakoi festival, however, while relatively new, has been going on for over two decades now.

This massive event sees about 110 teams of brightly attired dancers trying to outdo each other as they strut their stuff to the rhythm of the naruko – a type of clapper that the people of Kochi originally used to scare birds away from the fields.

The dance performances take place at various locations within the Harajuku/Shibuya area. But if you only see one thing, make sure it’s the massive parade along the tree-lined Omotesando avenue on Sunday from 11.10am to 4.15pm.

Stage performances will be held at Yoyogi Park from 10am to 7pm on Saturday and until 5pm on Sunday. There are also smaller parades at the Yoyogi Park Event Square, along the road between the NHK Hall and the Yoyogi National Gymnasium, around the same time.

At the Yoyogi no Mori Bon-Odori venue (5-68-1 Yoyogi, Shibuya), you can enjoy Yosakoi performances from 11.30am to 4.30pm on Saturday and from 11.00am to 4pm on Sunday.

For more information, check the event website.

This lively Roppongi Hills festival features traditional Bon Odori dance by yukata-clad performers in the shopping centre’s event arena.

Traditional Japanese lanterns add to the festive atmosphere while the surrounding food stalls cater to hungry crowds. You can expect a varied gourmet selection prepared by popular restaurants in the area, including Roppongi Barbacoa, Diya, Rigoletto Bar and Grill, Grand Hyatt Tokyo, Gelateria Raffinato, and more. There will also be plenty of activities like yo-yo fishing, ring tossing, and a face mask stall for children and adults to enjoy.

While there's no Bon Odori dancing on Friday, you’ll get to watch a modern interpretation of Gigaku (masked drama performance) and Dengaku (traditional Japanese dance) instead. The show is put on by Roppongi Raku, the venue’s performing arts group that consists of about 150 people, starting at 7pm. 

Bon Odori dancing takes place on Saturday and Sunday from 5pm to 8pm.

What this music festival lacks in terms of a picturesque setting, it more than makes up for in convenience. While other festivals boast views of rolling hills or stunning lakes, Summer Sonic has easy access from the city, an abundance of clean toilets and a cracking lineup – sometimes that’s all you need.

This year's Summer Sonic is returning with an impressive lineup of international and local artists on the weekend of August 16 and 17. Fall Out Boy and Official Hige Dandism will headline in Tokyo, with performances also confirmed from American singer-songwriter Camila Cabello, K-pop girl group Aespa, Colombian reggaeton singer J Balvin, American DJ and record producer Porter Robinson, Babymetal and more.

As of mid-July, two-day have sold out but one-day passes (¥20,000 per person) are still available online.

Tokyo Midtown has a packed programme of summer fun this year. If you want to take it easy, cool down at Midtown Garden’s Ashimizu area. The gentle stream here has been transformed into a foot bath, open between 3pm and 9pm (closed on Tuesdays). It can accommodate up to 70 people at a time and best of all, it’s free. Towels are available at ¥100 each, but of course, you can always bring your own.

Feeling wiped out by the summer heat? Make a beeline for the restaurants and cafés at Tokyo Midtown, now hosting a refreshing summer sweets fair featuring cool desserts such as the hyuganatsu and unshu orange kakigori shaved ice at Toraya, glace au chocolat doux ice cream at Jean-Paul Hévin, amazake watermelon juice at Sake Shop Fukumitsuya and more.

Featuring 100,000 bright yellow himawari, the Kiyose Sunflower Festival is the closest a Tokyoite can get to frolicking through a flower field in August. Located an express train ride from Ikebukuro, the festival is known for its colourful flowers that contrast with the bright post-rainy season blue sky.

This large-scale sunflower field, roughly 24,000 square meters in size, is used every summer by local farmers to grow sunflowers as a natural fertilizer for agricultural produce. Take in the spectacular scenery of towering sunflowers while supporting local farmers by purchasing fresh local vegetables and cut flowers sold at the venue.

To avoid congestion at the venue, online reservations are required in advance for July 26-27 & August 2-3.

Free shuttle bus services connecting Kiyose Station and the venue depart from Kiyose Station North exit bus stop, in front of the Drug Seims pharmacy. For details, check the event website.

Feel the breeze of 1,500 windmills at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya’s annual outdoor summer fest. This picturesque event features a large dome adorned with over a thousand colourful windmills made from unused clear files from the shopping centre’s tenants. Come evening, the dome as well as the staircase at the plaza are lit up with blue and white lights, while cooling mist envelopes the area to create a mesmerising sight. 

What’s more, the summer festival is hosting several family-friendly activities for everyone to enjoy on August 16 and 17, such as booths for traditional Japanese matsuri games such as rubber ball scooping, shateki shooting, ring toss and a workshop to paint your very own wind chime. The booths will be set up at the main atrium of Tokyo Midtown Hibiya.

If you’re looking for a child-friendly event in the cool indoors, head to the underground plaza on August 9 and 10 for a workshop where participants can craft their very own pinwheels using unused clear files.

There’s no admission fee to this craft beer festival in the southwestern neighbourhood of Machida, which brings together a large variety of ales, lagers, pilsners and more from over 40 breweries in Japan. When you inevitably decide you want to have a glass, you can get a beer for as low as ¥500.

With over 200 craft brews to choose from, you can compare the different styles of beer and find your favourite pint. To enhance the event’s cool spring vibes, the venue will be decorated with festive lanterns. There’s covered outdoor seating too, so you can enjoy your drink with peace of mind, come rain or shine.

The event will be closed on August 4, 5 & 6.

Studio Ghibli’s immersive sculpture exhibition is returning to Tokyo to captivate a new generation of fans. Featuring 3D recreations of iconic scenes from hit animated films such as Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Howl’s Moving Castle and Porco Rosso, the show is a new and improved version of Studio Ghibli’s first ever art exhibition, held in Tokyo back in 2003. 

Running from May 27 to September 23 at Warehouse Terrada’s B&C and E halls in Tennozu, the exhibition will feature mock-ups of scenes such as Chihiro’s first crossing over the bridge into the bathhouse in Spirited Away, and the thrilling scene from Ponyo where the titular character rides the waves to catch up to Sosuke in the storm. The main highlight, however, is arguably the true-to-size mock up of Porco’s Savoia S-21 seaplane from Porco Rosso.

When hunger strikes, head over to T-Lotus M, a waterfront event space adjacent to the exhibition venue, for some ham ramen inspired by a similar dish in Ponyo. Tickets can be purchased in combination with the Ghibli Museum or in conjunction with hotel accommodation plans.

For more details and ticketing information, check the event website. (Japanese only)