Tokyo events for Monday, August 7 to Sunday, August 13, 2023.
Relive your childhood this week and throw yourself into Pokémon events, festival games, dressing up, and water fights.
And the fun doesn’t end there. Try out some smaller fireworks displays, get your dose of lanterns in Enoshima and Asakusa, or join a comedy show. Remember, it’s Mountain Day on August 11, so you could also go for a hike or see Mount Fuji, Japan’s favorite mountain.
Citta’ Summer Festival 2023
Feel the vibrant ambiance of summer with a bustling night market, kimono-clad patrons, and live performances. Expect around 70 food stalls filled with approx. 100 types of mouth-watering international and local cuisine.
Pokémon Worlds Celebration Events
The whole of Yokohama’s Minatomirai area is going Poké-crazy in celebration of the 2023 Pokémon World Championship and that means the Pikachu horde, or outbreak, is back in town for a whole host of fun events. Unlike the other events, no pre-registration is required to view this parade of Pikachu marching along Yokohama’s Grand Mall Park.
Fukagawa Festival
The Fukagawa Festival is officially one of the big three Shintō festivals of Tokyo. The water-throwing action takes place on August 13 and includes the journey of the massive Ninomiya mikoshi (portable shrine) around the neighborhood.
Enoshima Lanterns
For a month and a half in summer, Enoshima transforms at night. Various locations, such as Enoshima Shrine, Iwaya Caves, Samuel Cocking Garden, and the Enoshima Sea Candle are illuminated with lanterns and light shows.
Nihongo Wakara-Night! Comedy Show
Come down to Tokyo Comedy Bar every Thursday in August for a special comedy show shining the light on the difficulties of learning the Japanese language. If you have JLPT PTSD, then this is the show for you. Get tickets here.
| Advance sales: ¥2,500 | ||
Adventure: Summer Edition at Womb
Head to an alternative festival experience this summer at the club Womb and throw yourself into a psychedelic trance. Making their first appearances in Japan, Becker from Brazil and Noface from Israel will be performing on the Main Floor. Buy tickets online in advance.
Kōtō Fireworks Festival
The annual Kōtō Ward Fireworks Festival will see 6,000 fireworks going off — making it about a third of the size of Tokyo’s biggest fireworks festivals. It’s still a good, colorful show though, in a nice spot — Sunamachi Mizube Park, near the Arakawa River. All seating is paid.
Asakusa Toro Nagashi Lantern Floating
2,500 lanterns with hand written messages are glided down a slope into the waters on the east side of the Sumida River (the Asakusa Station side – not the Skytree side) between Azuma-bashi bridge and Kototoi-bashi bridge.
Okutama Nohryo Fireworks Festival
The annual Okutama Nohryo Fireworks Festival is a tiny fireworks show by Tokyo standards — you can expect just under 1,000 fireworks — but it is in a beautiful natural setting. Okutama Fireworks will take place right in front of Okutama Station.
Meiji Jingu Gaien Fireworks Festival
The Jingu Gaien Fireworks Festival is the most urban and hence accessible of the Tokyo fireworks festivals. Approximately 10,000 fireworks will be hurled into the air over a paying audience within Jingu Stadium or the Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium.
Summer Comiket
Comic Market, better known as Comiket, is one of Japan’s biggest annual pop culture events. It’s held twice per year, in summer and winter, at Tokyo Big Sight. The focus of the event is doujinshi — independently created and published manga. Given the thousands of amateur and professional manga artists in Japan, there will be an incredibly wide range of genres and styles for you to buy.
Tokyo Romantic Flea Market
Peruse over 100 shops offering antiques and vintage items from Japan and afar alongside handicrafts, accessories, fine art, organic foods and plants. Held in the green surrounds of Shibuya Garden Tower’s gardens, the market offers a relaxed Sunday spot for browsing.
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