Free things to do in Tokyo this week

One of Tokyo's biggest annual festivals is celebrating its 75th 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 25 (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 10 to August 11 (from 2pm to 8pm) 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 4,000 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 (from 3pm to 9pm daily), 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).

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government No 1 Building in Shinjuku serves as the backdrop for a jaw-dropping and record-breaking projection mapping show. Covering an area of a whopping 13,905sqm, the after-dark spectacle has been certified by Guinness World Records as the largest permanent display of its kind in the world. The nightly showcase features a range of visual wonders created by a mix of local and international artists. Some shows are inspired by Tokyo’s rich history, while others draw on themes like the lunar cycle.  Currently, on weeknights, you can catch striking visuals synchronised to ‘800’ and 'Zankyosanka' by hit Japanese pop singer and lyricist Aimer as well as ‘Pac-Man eats Tokyo’, ‘Lunar Cycle’, ‘Synergy’, ‘Tokyo Resonance’ and ‘Evolution’. On weekends, you can look forward to the aforementioned ‘Zankyosanka (Aimer)’, as well as ‘Godzilla: Attack on Tokyo’ and ‘TYO337’, a display featuring motifs of traditional Japanese performing arts such as Kabuki paired with electronic beats.  From March 20, Pokémon Trading Card Game ‘Tokyo Luminous Night’, a brand-new projection-mapping show featuring Pokémon cards on a massive scale, has been running on weekends and holidays from 6.30pm, 7.30pm and 9pm. Be sure to check the event website for more details. Shows take place every night at fifteen-minute intervals from 6pm (Mar from 6.30pm, 7pm from Apr, 7.30pm from May to Aug) to 9.45pm. For more details and to check the full programme of daily projection mapping shows,...

Dafi Kühne works at the intersection of graphic design, craftsmanship and mechanical performance. At a moment when digital production and AI-generated imagery increasingly dominate visual culture, the Swiss designer has devoted himself to the tactile rigor of letterpress printing, transforming a centuries-old technique into a radically contemporary form of expression. This summer, Ginza Graphic Gallery showcases his distinctive process with ‘Dafi Kühne: Constructing Posters’, on view from July 14 to August 26. Far from nostalgic revivalism, Kühne’s practice pushes analogue printing into unexpected territory. Working from his studio in the Swiss Alps, he operates nearly forty tons of presses, metal type, woodblocks and custom-built tools to produce monumental posters by hand. His works often reach the scale of Swiss street posters, demanding an intense physical engagement with the machinery itself. Combining traditional techniques with self-engineered modifications and digital experimentation, Kühne treats printing not simply as reproduction, but as a performative and sculptural act. The exhibition traces this intricate process from conception to finished object. Alongside completed posters, visitors encounter printing blocks, typographic elements, handmade linocuts and material fragments that reveal the labour embedded within each image. The result is a meditation on the enduring expressive power of the human hand in an increasingly immaterial age, and an immersive...

Hatonomori Hachiman Shrine is celebrating a Bon Odori festival on the evenings of July 17 and 18. You can expect food stalls set up by local businesses in the area, as well as games and activities for children. Plus, of course, the requisite communal dancing. Come at 4pm to learn the choreography, and you can join in one of the Bon Odori dances happening at 5.30pm, 7pm or 7.50pm (5.30pm, 6.45pm and 8pm on Saturday).

From June 20 to July 20, the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum showcases the winning works from one of the world’s most prestigious international photography competitions. Since its launch in 2007, the Sony World Photography Awards has championed photographers at every stage of their careers, providing a global platform for both emerging talent and established practitioners while celebrating the diversity and vitality of contemporary photographic practice. This Tokyo presentation adopts the thematic concept developed for the exhibition’s debut at Somerset House in London. Visitors are invited to engage with the award-winning photographs through three interconnected narratives: Absence, which reflects on memory, loss and erasure; Humans in the Stories, focusing on the immediacy and complexity of lived experience; and Conflicted Territories, examining borders, divisions and the political and social tensions that shape today’s world. By placing the works in dialogue with one another, the exhibition encourages viewers to consider broader global issues through photography’s uniquely evocative visual language. A special highlight is a presentation of works by Joel Meyerowitz, recipient of the 2026 Outstanding Contribution to Photography award. Widely regarded as one of the pioneers of colour street photography, Meyerowitz has profoundly influenced the evolution of the medium through his luminous explorations of urban life, light and everyday experience. Displayed alongside this...

Featuring 100,000 bright yellow himawari, the Kiyose Sunflower Festival is the closest a Tokyoite can get to frolicking through a flower field in July. 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 fertiliser 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. 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. Parking spaces are limited to those who have reserved in advance. For details, check the event website.

It may not be the biggest of Tokyo's many fireworks events, but Tachikawa's hanabi is certainly one of the more comfortable ones. Held at the spacious Showa Kinen Park, the festival always draws massive crowds, so make sure to arrive early to secure the best viewing spot. This year’s event on July 25 will see around 5,000 shells of fireworks launched during the hour-long show from 7.15pm. Paid seating with the best views will be sold online on a first-come, first-served basis (2026 reservation details have not been released yet).  On the day of the fireworks display, the park will open to the public free of charge. The event is subject to cancellation in severe weather conditions.

Listen to the soft, soothing sounds of wind chimes at Kawasaki Daishi Temple’s annual wind chime market, happening from July 17 to 21. The 31st event this year will feature over 800 types of wind chimes collected from all over the country. The chimes, made of a variety of materials such as ceramics, glass or metal, each produce their own unique sound. While you’re there, don’t forget to purchase the temple’s very own version – the ‘Daruma wind chime for warding off evil’ – which promises to do just that.

Expect a colourful, caipirinha-fuelled, energy-packed weekend as the Brazil Festival takes over Yoyogi Park's event square on July 18 and July 19. There will be plenty of dancing and live music, featuring samba percussion ensemble Grupo Misto Quente, Brazilian multi-instrumentalist and singer Davi Zew's, Brazilian band Via Brasil, samba dancers, as well as capoeira performers. The abundant food stalls will be serving plenty of grilled meat, churros and fruity beverages.

The UNU farmers’ market is one of Tokyo’s longest running and best-attended markets. Taking place every weekend in front of the university’s Aoyama headquarters, this one always attracts a knowledgeable crowd. Organic and local fare is readily available every Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm, with the farmers themselves happy to provide details about their wares. Plus, there's always a few food trucks on hand if you wish to enjoy a quick meal.