Happy New Year 2022 — Photo: Takashi Miyazaki/Unsplash; design: Saiko Miyasato

How to celebrate New Year's Eve 2021-2022 in Tokyo

Have a sumptuous NYE dinner, party all night, try temple-hopping, or relax and watch the first sunrise of the new year

Written by

Kasey Furutani

Kit Kriewaldt

Thursday 17 December 2020

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While New Year’s Day in Japan, called shogatsu, is normally a quiet holiday dedicated to family time, New Year's Eve in Tokyo is anything but. This year, things may be more muted and celebrations will need to be socially distanced, but you can still spend the last night of the year like a Tokyoite by heading to a countdown party, sipping creamy amazake at a temple or getting up early to catch the first sunrise of the new year.

RECOMMENDED: New Year's Eve train schedules across Tokyo

Say hello to 2022

Photo: Tomas Simkus/Dreamstime

Dance the night away

Things to do

Come New Year's Eve, Tokyo is usually filled with incredible parties and countdown celebrations. Thanks to Covid-19, things are a little muted, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to do. Tokyo is still hosting some concerts, club nights and parties over New Year's Eve, including the last ever NYE countdown at Tokyo's mega nightclub Ageha.

Photo: Andaz Tokyo

Treat yourself to a New Year's Eve dinner

Restaurants

Looking for a delicious way to ring in the new year? Hotels such as the Four Seasons Otemachi and Andaz Tokyo outdo themselves with lavish multicourse lunches, dinners and buffets just for the occasion. Plus, the hotels are not the only places that are celebrating. If you’d prefer, you can enjoy your New Year’s Eve dinner while cruising around Tokyo Bay, too.

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Photo: WCY Music Studio/Unsplash

Go to a midnight festival at a shrine

Hatsumode is the tradition of visiting a Shinto shrine (or Buddhist temple) during the first few days of the new year. Some shrines and temples start the celebration early and set up festival tents, similar to those found at summer matsuri festivals, on December 31. The largest festivals are held at Meiji Shrine in Harajuku and Sensoji Temple in Asakusa, while Zojoji Temple offers a majestic view of a glowing Tokyo Tower.

Photo: Hideki Sato/Pixabay

Ring in the new year

Joya no kane is a ritual where a large bell at a Buddhist temple is rung 108 times, to get rid of worldy desires and begin the new year afresh. Normally the bell is rung by a Buddhist monk, but some Tokyo temples like Araiyakushi Baishoin and Horinouchi Myohoji will let you take pert in the ritual – just be sure to book ahead.

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Photo: Joyful Joyful/Photo-AC

See the first sunrise of the year

Did you stay up the whole night partying? Then you can stay up a little longer and catch the first sunrise of the new year, called hatsuhinode. The sunrise is expected around 6.50am, but the early hour doesn’t stop hordes of people flocking to the best spots. You can see the sun from just about anywhere, although popular destinations like Sky Circus Sunshine 60 Observatory and Tokyo Tower can get packed.

Avoid the crowds by getting out of the city. Places like Miura Beach in Kanagawa or even the Osanbashi boat terminal in Yokohama are great free spots to see the dawn of the new year.