21 best summer festivals in Tokyo 2025: fireworks, Bon Odori, tanabata and more

First held in 1948 to mark the launch of Toei Bus service in the Ome region, this fireworks display is recommended for those who want to escape the crowds at Tokyo's big-name alternatives. The 'falling fire' pyrotechnic effect is impressive (and loud!), but the real highlight is when the nearby Nagayama Hill is lit up by a massive fountain of bursting colours inspired by flowers.

For the best views, a ticketed viewing area is available at Ome City Daiichi Elementary School and the nearby TCN sports field facility, with prices starting at ¥1,000 per entry. You can make your bookings online in advance, until August 1. While paid seating areas at TCN sports field are now sold out, standing seat tickets to the Ome City Daiichi Elementary School field (¥1,000) are still available.

In case of stormy weather, the festival will be postponed to August 3.

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.

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.

Taking advantage of a serendipitous schedule clash, Itabashi's annual fireworks display takes place at the same time as the one in Toda City (Saitama prefecture), just across the Arakawa River. 

You can expect a combined 15,000 shells of fireworks at this 90-minute event. On show are various styles of pyrotechnics, including an enormous star mine and the spectacular ‘Niagara Falls’, a 700-metre chain of explosions that always draws the biggest cheers of the night. As a special treat this year, there will be giant Poké Ball and Captain Pikachu-themed fireworks, too.

While the event is free, you might want to secure a paid seat for the best views. These reserved seats range from ¥4,500 to ¥6,000 for single tickets and ¥18,000 to ¥48,000 for groups of four to eight people. You can make your bookings online from June 14. 

Before you go, we recommend you check out the venue map and access information on the event website.

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).

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

From bug spray to dehumidifiers, arm yourself with these must-have items for the sweltering season

Enjoy calm tides, balmy sea breeze and good vibes at these gorgeous sandy beaches near Tokyo in Kanagawa, Chiba, Ibaraki and Shizuoka