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Okunitama Shrine Autumn Festival/Chestnut Festival (Sep 27-28): The Autumn Festival at Okunitama Jinja Shrine is also called the Chestnut Festival because—you guessed it—the region is known for its top-quality chestnuts. Apparently, they were presented to the Tokugawa Clan during the Edo period because they are that good. Besides eating chestnuts, the highlight is the 260 paper lanterns that light the area.
28th Hokkaido Fair in Yoyogi (Sep 28-Oct 1): You need not leave Tokyo to savor all the gastronomical goodies that Hokkaido—Japan’s northernmost prefecture—has to offer (including crab, salmon roe, Hokkaido-style ramen and much more). It’s a four-day food fest at Yoyogi Park with cheapo savings if you get there early. The first 50 orders from each of the 35 vendors will only be 390 yen. Show up too late, and you’re paying the normal price (up to 1,000 yen). The festival starts each day at 10am, so be sure to set your alarm.
Tokyo Cheapo Downtown Drinks #24 (Sep 29): Join the TC gang and fellow cheapos for a drink (or few) and casual mingling at the Tokyo Cheapo headquarters Ninetytwo13. This is our 24th casual monthly meet-up and all are welcome—from readers to travelers to mysterious strangers.
This&That Cafe: Summer Send-Off – Art and Music Night (Sep 29): One of our favorite cheapo-approved events is back for it’s end of summer/beginning of fall celebrations! #TnTCafe at SuperDeluxe in Roppongi puts on a quality night of fun. There’s live art and music, good drinks and good vibes—what’s not to enjoy?
Takigi Noh (Firelight Noh) at Zojoji Temple (Sep 30): A rare opportunity to see a free performance of Noh, a live classical Japanese musical drama, at Zojoji Temple. Usually this type of performance is held in a theater, but this one will be held outdoors and illuminated by firelight.
Philippine Festival 2017 (Sep 30-Oct 1): Yoyogi Park will host this cultural festival over the weekend. A great day out for the whole family with food and a slew of entertainment.
Roppongi Art Night 2017 (Sep 30-Oct 1): Join the millions of other art lovers heading to Tokyo’s Roppongi area for a full weekend of art installations (interactive and otherwise), video, music and design. The theme for this year’s event is Festival of the Future—with the focus on expanding the definition of “festival” from the traditional sense to include music events, art festivals, etc. The key areas to check out are Tokyo Midtown, Roppongi Hills Area and the National Art Center Tokyo, but be sure to check out some of the smaller venues, all listed on the official website.
Red Spider Lily Festival (Sep 16-Oct 1): One of the more impressive flower festivals, the Red Spider Lily blankets the Kinchakuda fields in Hidaka, Saitama (just a short jaunt outside of Tokyo).
Hagi Festival (Sep 16-Oct 1): Hagi is Japanese for bush clover, a lovely fall flower you can see at the even lovelier Mukojima-Hyakkaen Gardens.
