The best things to do in Tokyo this weekend

Better known as the Penis Festival, this annual highlight at Kawasaki's Wakamiya Hachimangu is all about praying for and celebrating fertility, strong marriages and protection against sexually transmitted diseases, hence the profusion of phalluses. The main festivitiess are typically held on the first Sunday of every April, but a few events are scheduled to take place on Saturday April 5, as well as on the following weekend. Here are a few highlights to look forward to.

April 5 (Sat), 2pm-3.30pm: Daikon carving event, in which radishes are made to look like penises.

April 5 (Sat), 5pm-6pm: Yoimiya Festival, a small festival typically held the evening before the main event.

April 6 (Sun), 10am-10.15am: Sacred Fire Ceremony.

April 6 (Sun), 10.15am-10.45am: Main Ceremony.

April 6 (Sun), 11.30am-2pm: Mikoshi Togyo Parade, during which a giant mikoshi (portable shrine) containing a variety of phalluses is paraded through the streets.

April 12-13, 10am-5pm: Flea market and food stalls. Visitors can also enjoy (in)appropriately shaped candy, vegetables and decorations while helping raise money for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. There will also be a photo spot to take pictures with the mikoshi.

Experience Vietnam's fast-growing entertainment industry firsthand at the Vietnam Festival Next Culture Day on April 5 and 6. Held at Ikebukuro’s outdoor Global Ring Theatre, the festival brings the best of Vietnam to Tokyo, with stage performances by some of the country’s top up-and-coming artists, such as Erik, Duc Phuc, Vu Thao My, and more. 

If you’re looking to fill your stomach while enjoying the live performances, make your way to the courtyard outside for some veggie-filled banh mi sandwiches. The nearby lantern photo spot, where you can take pictures with vibrantly lit Vietnamese lanterns as the backdrop, is a must-visit. There will also be stalls selling festival merchandise such as the iconic non la cone hat and an official T-shirt designed by an up-and-coming Vietnamese graphic designer. 

Welcome the warmer months with a cool pint from one of the many brewers from around the globe that are gathering at Shimokita Craft Beer Fest this weekend. Celebrate the season with two days of top-tier brews, creative cocktails and even an exclusive festival-only collaboration brew. The Passion Impact NZ Pilsner 5.0% is made with Kohia Nelson hops, a blend of New Zealand-grown crops infused with passion fruit powder. Find this refreshing drink at the Shiokaze Brewlab booth while supplies last.

Boasting the presence of prominent brewers such as West Coast Brewing as well as lesser-known gems such as Kobo Brewery and Kaigan Brewery, the festival is sure to satiate the thirst of all beer lovers. Pair the best local brews with festival grub such as hot dogs, curry and Cuban sandwiches, all while soaking up the effortlessly cool Shimokita atmosphere. 

Admission is free, but reusable cups have been introduced to reduce the number of disposable plastic cups. Cups can be purchased for 300 yen.

Paella Tapas Matsuri is one of Japan’s biggest Spanish festivals and will take place at Hibiya Park this year for its tenth edition, with plenty of tapas and paella to go around for the expected 30,000 visitors. Enjoy various takes on the classic Spanish rice dish paella with a range of seafood and meat toppings, as well as side dishes like oyster ajillo and Basque cheesecake. There will also be a competition for the best paella and tapas.

The festival offers refreshing pints of Spanish cervezas, too. Compare the flavours of Estrella Galicia lager beer and pilsner style Mahou beer, two of Spain's leading beer brands. Don’t miss out on the stage performances where you’ll get to see flamenco dancers, live music, and much more.

Check the event website for the performance schedules. (Japanese only)

Even among Tokyo's innumerable flower-viewing spots, Ueno Park stands out with its sheer scale and tasteful lantern decorations. Turned on at sunset, these beautiful lights help make Ueno's nighttime sakura a must-see spectacle.

This year, the 20-day event unfolds across three areas within the park, all centred on the theme of food. At Takenodai Square (also known as the Fountain Square), food trucks from across Japan will serve regional specialties and festival favourites. The park entrance area near Keisei Ueno Station will feature food stalls from local Ueno vendors alongside shops from Wajima, a city in Ishikawa prefecture recovering from the 2024 earthquake disaster. Meanwhile, the square overlooking Shinobazu Pond will showcase food trucks offering cuisines from around the world.

Note that the festival period may change depending on the cherry blossom blooming dates.

Light up daily from 5pm to 10pm

This cherry blossom festival, one of Tokyo's most popular, takes place along the 700m-long Chidorigafuchi Ryokudo promenade near the Imperial Palace, around which there are some 250 sakura trees. During the day, you can take a stroll along the Chidorigafuchi moat or even rent a rowboat to see the cherry blossoms from the water. By night, you can enjoy the pink flowers lit up with LEDs.

If you’re interested in viewing the cherry blossoms from the water, boat rentals are available but require payment. Fortunately, a new pre-reservations system is available from this year, designed to minimise wait times.

Advance reservations cost ¥10,000 per boat and allow you to select your preferred date and time (change of date and time can be made until 8pm of the day before the desired date, availability permitting). A portion of the proceeds will go to the Chiyoda Ward Sakura Fund for the conservation of the Chidorigafuchi landscape.

Same-day tickets purchased onsite at the Chidorigafuchi boat pier cost ¥1,600 per boat for one hour of use, which is inarguably the more affordable option. Be sure to get in line fast though, as tickets will be distributed from 9am daily and are sure to run out quickly. 

For those who can’t get a hold of tickets during the peak period between March 29 and April 8, shorter 30-minute rides are available for ¥800 outside the event period.

For the sakura illuminations that start at sunset, expect lights out at 9pm. The boats, on the other hand, will be available from 9am to 8pm. 

The cherry blossoms will be illuminated from March 29 to April 8 2025.

Nakameguro is one of Tokyo’s most popular sakura spots, with cherry blossom trees lining the Meguro River that runs through the neighbourhood. This area is renowned for its cherry blossom trees, which create a canopy of pink over the water. You’ll find local restaurants and shops with stalls set up along the river, and the sakura trees lit up with pretty pink lanterns from sunset to 8pm.

This part of Nakameguro gets very crowded, especially on weekends during peak bloom, so there will be some restrictions and traffic control in place to manage the crowds. Eating and drinking while walking is discouraged, as is putting down a sheet to have a picnic under the trees. If you want to find some quieter spots, head over early in the morning or try to move further down the river away from Nakameguro Station.

While the light-up runs every evening until March 31, the Nakameguro Sakura Festival is happening for one weekend only on March 29 and 30 at the Goryuten Playground on the south side of Nakameguro Station. During this special event you'll be able to enjoy many events and live performances, including taiko drumming and more.

If you've missed the Nakameguro Sakura Festival and the light-ups, head to Nakame Ohanami Park Festival for some delicious matsuri grub to enjoy under the cherry trees. Ten food trucks will gather at Meguro River Park daily until April 6.

Cherry blossom viewing isn’t just limited to the day time. Just a five-minute walk from the west exit of Shibuya Station is Sakurazaka, a winding street lined with beautiful cherry blossom trees that are illuminated with pink lights in the evening until April 4. The around 30-or-so Yoshino trees along the 200-metre road reach peak bloom from late March to early April.

If you're visiting between March 28 and March 30, be sure to stop by the Nigiwai Stage at Shibuya Sakura Stage for some festival grub and live performances.

This weekend, before hitting the bars and clubs in Roppongi, stop by Roppongi Hills for the beautiful cherry blossom illuminations. The annual Roppongi Hills Spring Festival is returning only for three days this time. 

For this special occasion, the cherry blossoms at Mohri Garden and Roppongi Sakurazaka will be lit up from 5pm, allowing you to admire the illuminated sakura in two different settings. The former is a traditional Japanese garden while the latter is a 400m-long street flanked by 75 mature somei yoshino trees.

The Roppongi Hills Spring Festival will be packed with fun activities and stage shows including an outdoor nighttime double feature of Noh and Kyogen on April 4 from 5.30pm and 7pm, inaba umbrella dance from Tottori prefecture on April 6 at 1pm and 4pm, and special Kyogen performances on April 5 from 5pm at the Roppongi Hills Arena. Moreover, restaurants from the shopping complex will be serving spring-themed dishes at their respective outdoor food stalls.  

As a special treat, Keyakizaka Complex Rooftop Garden, which is normally closed to the public, will be open on Saturday and Sunday between 1pm and 4pm. Here you get to admire cherry blossoms up close, along with seasonal plants as well as a vegetable garden and rice field. Admission to the rooftop space is free, but you’ll need to get a ticket at the Roppongi Hills Arena reception. There are four hourly sessions per day, limited to 30 people each. 

Roppongi Hills Spring Festival is held from April 4 through April 6: 5pm-8pm on Friday and 12noon-6pm on the weekend.

Celebrate spring's arrival at Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi, where the annual highlight is the illumination of the 200m avenue lined with cherry blossoms in the Garden Area. This spot is especially scenic between 5pm and 11pm during the spring festival when all of the trees are lit up. Before the cherry blossoms bloom, they're bathed in bright pink light. Once in full bloom, the lights shine a bright white, letting you admire the blossoms in all their splendour.

For an extra leisurely experience, you can get a seat at the Roku Midtown Blossom Lounge (12pm-8pm) in the Midtown Garden, where you’ll find exclusive spring-inspired cocktails and dishes prepared by chefs from the nearby Ritz-Carlton hotel.

Check the lounge menu here. 

Picking out some special treats from its plentiful permanent collection to celebrate the onset of spring, the National Museum of Modern Art displays sakura-themed art from March 13 to April 6. You’ll get to see Kawai Gyokudo's folding-screen masterpiece 'Parting Spring' and classics such as Hobun Kikuchi's 'Fine Rain on Mt Yoshino' at this seasonal exhibition. A visit here is best combined with cherry blossom-viewing at the nearby Imperial Palace, the Chidorigafuchi promenade and Kitanomaru Park. Make sure to stop by the museum shop on the first floor to pick up some seasonal stationery decorated with floral motifs.

The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except March 31).

Soak up the sun this spring at the grassy central square within the Azabudai Hills complex while enjoying quality coffee, books, doughnuts and flowers. Held every weekend from March 22 to April 6, ‘Spring at the Garden’ celebrates the arrival of the warmer months with a gathering of over 20 cafés from across the country at the outdoor Azabudai Hills Arena.

In addition to great coffee served every weekend by businesses like resident café %Arabica, you’ll be able to look forward to some literature: Azabudai Hills will host two mobile libraries on March 22 and set up a dedicated reading area on March 23.

On March 29 and 30, expect to see stalls selling freshly made doughnuts, with five cafés and eight specialist doughnut shops set to descend on the venue. If you’re more inclined to appreciate the coming of spring with flowers, visit the Azabudai Hills Arena on April 5 or 6, when you’ll find the space decorated with tulips. The displayed flowers are then given away for free on April 6 from 2pm.

Check the event website (Japanese) for more details

For 11 months of every year, Nezu Shrine doesn't attract all that much attention from the outside world. Then spring rolls around, and its remarkable crop of azaleas burst into bloom. The shrine precincts are home to some 3,000 azalea plants – roughly 100 varieties in total, including rare breeds such as the black karafune flower – and has to find space for at least as many flower aficionados during the month-long Bunkyo Tsutsuji Matsuri. 

Another highlight of Nezu Shrine is its red torii gate tunnel, similar to the ones at Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Shrine but in a much smaller scale.

Tokyo’s Kameido Tenjin Shrine is famous for its wisteria flowers, and with good reason – the shrine has over 50 wisteria trees, which usually reach their flowering peak between mid-April and early May. 

This annual festival features a handful of food stalls and an evening wisteria light up (times still unannounced for 2025). The purple blooms also look quite stunning during the day, when you can get a spectacular view of Tokyo Skytree in the background. The shrine is in the shitamachi (old downtown) part of Tokyo, so while you’re there, make sure to take a stroll around the area to explore the old-fashioned local shops and eateries.

To check the current flowering status, visit the shrine's Instagram.

Head up to Ibaraki's Hitachi Seaside Park from mid-April to early May and see a whopping 5.3 million 'baby blue eyes' – also known as nemophila – flowers in full bloom. The hilly grounds span 3.5 hectares and are almost completely covered with the little blue blossoms, making for a pretty spectacular sight.

The blooms are usually at their best from mid- to late April, but they are still a magnificent sight if you catch them a bit earlier or even right after peak bloom. According to this year's forecast, the flowers will be in their full glory between April 17 to 25.

Along with the flowers, the park has gone all-out with blue food and drink for you to enjoy during your visit. Sample blue ramune-soda-flavoured soft cream served with nemophila-shaped cookies, pretty blue lemonade, lattes and even a blue-tinged curry ramen. While you're at it, pick up a few souvenirs to take home with you including nemophila macarons, cookies and jewellery featuring the flower of the season. 

The park is home to various other spring flowers, too, including daffodils and tulips, which also bloom between April and May.

Japan's oldest beer hall in Ginza – Beer Hall Lion Ginza 7-chome – is decorating its interior with pink cherry blossoms, so that punters can enjoy the gorgeous pink blooms indoors while nursing a cold pint.

If you can’t be bothered to head out to the parks early to secure a spot for your hanami cherry blossom picnic, just make a reservation here and then order straight from the menu, where you’ll find hearty pub grub including steak, sausages and draft beer.

On April 8 and the last day of the event (April 14), the beer hall will put on a Hanami Finale Concert with live music.

The colourful Children’s Day koinobori carp streamers are an annual sight at Tokyo Tower, and this year you can see them at the main entrance from March 25 through Golden Week until May 6. There are 333 streamers set-up here, signifying the 333m height of the iconic tower. 

Among the 333 streamers, there's one that's not a carp – see if you can spot the sanma (pacific saury) nobori. This unique inclusion is Tokyo Tower's way of sending hope to the region affected by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.

As this display is held right outside the tower on the ground level, you don't need a ticket to see this joyous sight.

Formula 1 represents the pinnacle of motorsport, a global spectacle combining cutting-edge technology and adrenaline-fuelled drama. Japan has played a key role in F1 history, from iconic races at Suzuka to Honda’s engineering prowess shaping race-winning machines driven by legends including Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. As F1 celebrates its 75th anniversary and Honda marks 60 years since its first Grand Prix victory, Tokyo is set to host a special event that could bring fans closer to the sport than ever before. 

From April 2 to April 6 – the weekend of the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka – the F1 Tokyo Fan Festival will descend on Odaiba and Aomi to offer an immersive motorsport experience. The festival will feature three distinct zones: the F1 Village zone, where fans can admire real F1 cars, test their skills in a simulator and participate in a pit stop challenge; the World Food Circuit zone, which offers international flavours from Grand Prix races; and the Twilight Music zone, where dynamic performances are combined with live F1 projections. A pre-event on April 2 will feature current drivers and team staff, making this a must-attend celebration for motorsport enthusiasts.

Yebisu Brewery Tokyo is holding a collaborative art exhibit between Yebisu Beer and manga artist Hirohiko Araki, creator of the bestselling series Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Widely known for his unique artistic style and poses, Araki was invited to collaborate with Yebisu Beer to draw bijin-ga portraits inspired by advertisements produced by the brewery in the early 1900s. Bijin-ga is a term used for portraits of beautiful women in Japanese art, and the style was often applied to beer advertisements back in the day. 

The exhibit will display Araki’s two three-metre tall modern interpretations of bijin-ga, drawn in his signature vivid style: ‘Western’ and ‘Peach Patrol.’ Don’t forget to get the limited-edition Araki-designed Ebisu Beer cans and merch on your way out, as they’re being released in limited quantities.

Step into the masterful world of Japan’s most celebrated woodblock print artist this spring at ‘Hokusai: Another Story’, held at Shibuya’s Tokyu Plaza. Utilising the latest in high-definition imaging, spatial audio and Sony’s state-of-the-art sensory technology, the exhibition promises to bring Hokusai’s iconic works to life.

The main highlight of the exhibition is the vivid scenery of Hokusai's ‘Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji’, with ultra-high-definition visuals and Sony's Crystal LED displays recreating the intricate details of the work. Visualise, hear and feel the sensation of jumping on puddles or walking on dry sand, thanks in part to haptic floor technology developed by Sony PCL. Then, follow a path illuminated by bamboo lights to reach a room where you can browse master replicas of iconic ukiyo-e prints. Each replica is crafted using DTIP (3D Texture Image Processing) technology that scans every fibre of the traditional washi-paper originals to preserve the works digitally. This multisensory experience allows visitors to not only see, but truly feel, the world Hokusai depicted.

Tickets must be purchased in advance through the event website.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government No. 1 Building in Shinjuku now 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 sychronised to ‘Idol’ and 'Butai ni tatte' by hit Japanese pop duo Yoasobi as well as 'Pac-Man eats Tokyo' ‘Lunar Cycle’, 'Synergy', 'Poetic Structures' and 'Golden Fortune'. On weekends, you can look forward to a showcase featuring 'Godzilla: Attack on Tokyo!', the aforementioned ‘Butai ni tatte (Yoasobi)’ as well as ‘Tokyo Concerto'. New from December 2024, is 'TYO337', a display featuring motifs of traditional Japanese perforing arts such as Kabuki paired with electronic beats.

Shows take place every night at half-hour intervals from 6.30pm (Apr from 7pm, May-Aug from 7.30pm) to 9.45pm. For more details and to check the full programme of daily projection mapping shows, visit here.

Pottery lovers, rejoice. 21_21 Design Sight is holding an exhibition of dozens of donburi (ramen bowls) from now until June 15. Most of them hail from the Tono region of Gifu prefecture, which accounts for a whopping 90% of Japan's ramen bowls.

The exhibition features the wares of ramen bowl collector Yasuyuki Kaga, as well as an 'Artist Ramen Bowls' exhibit: a colourful mix of 40 unique bowls designed by 40 different artists, designers, food experts and more. Each artist's bowl includes a bilingual synopsis from the creator themselves, detailling the thoughts and intentions behind their design.

Those interested in sustainability can learn more about the bowl-making process and efforts to recycle unwanted pottery into raw materials. If you're feeling artsy, hit up the 'Donburi Pride' workshop, where you can draw your own bowl design to take home or submit to the exhibition. Selected drawings will be temporarily displayed.

The exhibit is open every day except Tuesday, and runs from 10am to 7pm (entry until 6.30pm). Tickets are ¥1,600 for adults, ¥800 for university students and ¥500 for high school students. Junior high students and younger enter free of charge. You can purchase tickets here.

Cherry blossoms are a fleeting beauty; the delicate pink blooms are at their peak for just a few days. However, you can still get into the hanami (cherry blossom viewing) mood at Tokyo National Museum’s annual cherry blossom exhibition.

From March 11 to April 6, the museum is showcasing a collection of Japanese art from the Edo period that celebrates the sakura season. There will be paintings, scrolls, kimono, tableware and more.

To see the actual flowers, walk over to the northern part of the museum’s garden. Here you’ll find ten kinds of cherry sakura trees in bloom.

Admission is ¥1,000 for adults and ¥500 for university students.

As his nickname ‘God of Manga’ suggests, the Osaka-born Osamu Tezuka (1928–1989) revolutionised Japanese manga and animation, shaping the industry into what it is today. His immense creativity and pioneering storytelling introduced the world to classics such as Astro Boy, Black Jack and Kimba the White Lion. The artist himself, however, considered Phoenix (Hinotori) his magnum opus. A profound and ambitious saga exploring the nature of life, death and reincarnation, the Phoenix narrative follows humanity’s relentless pursuit of immortality through the mythical bird whose blood grants eternal life, alternating between the distant past and far future. 

To celebrate the 70th anniversary of this landmark work, the first large-scale Phoenix exhibition will take place from March 7 to May 25 at Tokyo City View in Roppongi Hills. Featuring over 800 pieces spanning the manga’s twelve main arcs, the exhibition will not only showcase original artworks and manuscripts; it’ll also invite visitors to explore Tezuka's conclusion, left unfinished following the artist’s untimely death in 1989.

By merging art, philosophy and science, ‘Osamu Tezuka’s Phoenix Exhibition’ offers a fresh perspective on one of manga’s greatest masterpieces, conveying Tezuka’s visionary legacy to new generations.

Swedish-born artist Hilma af Klint (1862-1944) was a pioneer of abstract painting, whose work prefigured that of such revered figures as Piet Mondrian and Wassily Kandinsky. Yet, for decades, her work was known only to a handful of people. The 21st century, however, has seen Klint receive some long overdue global recognition. A 2018 retrospective at New York's Guggenheim Museum attracted the largest visitor numbers in that venue's history, and now the prestigious National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo presents her first career overview to be held in Asia.

The exhibition centres upon selections from "The Paintings for the Temple", a series which Klint, who was involved in the then-booming spiritualist movement, produced between 1906 and 1915 after believing the project to have been 'commissioned' from another dimension during a seance. The artist perceived these works which combine abstract and figurative elements, and organic and geometric forms, to have been created 'through' her by some external spiritual force.

Advance tickets are sold until March 3. This exhibition is closed on Mondays (except March 31 and May 5) as well as May 7.