Things to do in Tokyo today

Enjoy the perfectly shaped, sunset-yellow ginkgo trees that form a 300m-long boulevard between Gaienmae and Aoyama-Itchome stations. This is Tokyo’s quintessential autumn scenery, which has graced countless Instagram accounts. The best time to visit is between November 23 and December 1, when the yellow leaves are lit up in the evening. The light up takes place daily between 4.30pm and 7.30pm.

Showa Kinen Park is the most beautiful in autumn, with the maple and ginkgo trees blushing in fiery red and yellow respectively. The ginkgo trees are the first to turn and you can see two boulevards of the golden yellow trees as soon as you enter the park’s Tachikawa gate. These trees are expected to turn full yellow in mid-November. The momiji and kaede trees, however, present their signature vermillion hues a bit later towards the end of November. During this season, the park stays open after dark, with special light-ups taking place at the Gingko Tree Avenue (near the futsal and basketball courts) and the traditional Japanese Garden from 4.30pm until 8.30pm. While you can enjoy the light-ups at Gingko Tree Avenue with just the park's regular admission fee (¥450, free for junior high school students and younger), you need an extra ticket to enter the Japanese Garden (advance ticket online ¥1,200, primary and junior high school students ¥600; same-day tickets sold at Komorebi House close to the Japanese Garden ¥1,300, ¥700). Tickets to enter the Japanese Garden are now available to purchase online. Note that the main entrance for this year's event is the Nishi-Tachikawa gate, a 2-minute walk away from Nishi-Tachikawa Station on the Ome Line. 

The 400m-long Keyakizaka Street next to the Roppongi Hills shopping centre is lighting up with 800,000 sparkling white and blue LEDs until Christmas Day. From the pedestrian bridge near the Roppongi Hills Arena, you'll get a stunning view of the trees covered in shimmering lights, with Tokyo Tower in the background, from 5pm to 11pm daily. 

The 1.2-kilometre-long Marunouchi Naka-dori street, always one of the most popular Tokyo illumination spots, will have around 280 trees lit up with about 820 thousand low-energy, champagne-coloured LEDs this year, making for an environmentally friendly and stylish display. If you’d rather stay cosy while admiring the lights, visit the newly renovated Marunouchi House, where the seventh-floor terrace will feature festive illuminations for a limited time. The terrace has plenty of seats surrounded by outdoor heaters. Closer to Christmas, Gyoko-dori between the Imperial Palace and Tokyo Station will have more illuminations between November 28 and December 25.

Enoshima’s annual illumination is widely touted as one of the three biggest and most impressive light-up events in Japan, alongside the ones at Ashikaga Flower Park and Sagamiko. There are about 10 illumination spots scattered across the hilly island – including the Enoshima Shrine, Ryuren Bell of Love on Lover's Hill and Nakatsumiya Square – so put on some comfortable shoes as you’ll be trekking a lot. Don’t miss the main attraction located at the island’s iconic Enoshima Sea Candle lighthouse, which is decked out in 70m-long strings of lights stretching from the tip of the tower to the ground, creating a formation similar to the silhouette of Mt Fuji. The Samuel Cocking Garden, where the Sea Candle is located, is transformed into the dreamy Hoseki (bejewelled) Forest, where everything from the ground and the grass to the trees are covered in rainbow-coloured lights. Keep an eye out for the Shonan Chandelier tunnel, all decked out with luxurious crystal beads and LED lights. Most attractions are open from 5pm to 8pm (until 9pm on weekends and holidays). You can see most of the light-ups on Enoshima for free, but you will need a ticket (¥500, children ¥250) to enter the Samuel Cocking Garden. If you're on the island early during daylight hours, head over to Enoshima Iwaya (¥500, children ¥250), as the island's famous cave, created by decades of wave erosion, is bedecked with sparkling lights from 9am to 5pm.

The Tori no Ichi festival at Hanazono Shrine is one of the biggest in the Kanto region. It’s held on three days on November 5, 17 and 29 with some smaller 'warm-up' festivals taking place the night before the main events. For the occasion, the grounds are decorated with 950 LED lanterns towering over the shrine buildings. On the grounds, you will find stalls selling decorative kumade bamboo rakes, plus plenty of other vendors offering food and festival knick knacks. The event takes place from 10am to 11pm on all three days, the smaller pre-festivals take place on the day prior to the main event, from the evening until 11pm.

Mt Takao is one of the most picturesque destinations in Tokyo to see autumn leaves. And one of the best ways to do that is by taking the scenic cable car ride, which brings you closer to the mountain’s Yakuoin temple. Here you can sample shojin ryori, a traditional Japanese Buddhist vegetarian meal. Throughout the duration of the festival, you can also look forward to a host of free events at Kiyotaki Station, the cable car stop at the base of Mt Takao, including musical and dance performances by local university students. Check the website for the schedule. As it’s the case every year, the base of Mt Takao will be crowded in autumn, so it’s best to arrive via public transport.

The annual illuminations at Oi Racecourse (also known as Tokyo City Keiba) are returning for their sixth run, with the sprawling venue bathed in colourful lights every evening. You can enjoy elaborate light-up and projection mapping displays across two areas. Upon entering the venue, you’ll find yourself in the Twinkle area, where you’ll walk through a long corridor lit up with twinkling blue lights leading you to the main attractions. Aside from the vivid light projections on the ground, you’ll also come across the Aurora Forest with glowing trees and laser-lit mists. This particular attraction puts on regular five-minute light shows synchronised to music.  The Wa no Kirameki area, on the other hand, occupies the centre of the racecourse. Here, a colourful water fountain becomes the centre of an aurora light display synchronised to music. There's also an illuminated cherry blossom tunnel, a large trellis of artificial wisteria all decked out with pink and golden lights, plus an illumination recreating a typical Japanese rural landscape complete with paddy fields and a stream. What's more, with this event taking place at a racecourse, you can even pet and take photos with real horses.

The annual Hibiya Magic Time Illumination is returning for its sixth run at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya. This year, the event boasts four areas bathed in beautiful lights inspired by twinkling stars in the night sky. Hibiya-Nakadori Street is decked out with captivating multi-coloured illuminations. Hibiya Step Square, meanwhile, features seven Christmas trees (on display until December 25) inspired by Disney's soon-to-be-released 'Moana 2'. Adorned with multicoloured LEDs, the Christmas trees will light up in sync with the movie's soundtrack. Don’t miss the Park View Winter Garden on the sixth floor. Here you’ll find glittering rainbow-coloured lights on the grass lawn, which draws inspiration from Hibiya's flashy image as an entertainment district. The illuminations take place daily from 4pm to 11pm.

Rikugien is one of the best gardens in Tokyo to immerse yourself in beautiful Japanese landscapes. There’s no bad time to see the garden, but we do admit it’s especially picturesque in autumn, when the leaves take on vibrant shades of red and yellow. From November 22 to December 4, Rikugien stays open until 8.30pm for its annual light-up. The trees in the garden are bathed in golden lights so that the brilliant colours of the changing leaves stand out even more, providing stunning views. Aside from admiring the autumn foliage, don’t forget to drop by the garden’s dozo (storehouse). Its earthen walls serve as the canvas for a beautiful projection show between 6pm and 8.30pm.  We recommend purchasing tickets online in advance, since tickets are limited and offered at a discounted price of ¥900. Otherwise, you can purchase tickets for ¥1,100 at the door.