Autumn is in full swing, and so is the fall foliage! Head out to one of Tokyo’s many temples and shrines to enjoy the changing colours, but don’t forget to check out all the fabulous markets and exhibitions happening all month. Whether you’re into flowers, antiques, or art, there’s something for every visitor this November.
Ginkgo at Yoyogi Park © mrhayata
Late September To Early November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Cosmos Flower Festival
Location: Showa Kinen Park
Time: 9:30am-5:00pm
Admission: ¥450
Website: Official website (Japanese)
So named for their beautifully symmetrical appearance, cosmos are delicate daisy-like flowers that come in shades of orange, yellow, pink, white, red, lilac, and crimson. In Japan, they’re nicknamed autumn’s cherry blossoms — fairly apt, since they seem to be absolutely everywhere around late September to October.
One of the best places to see cosmos flowers in Tokyo is at the sprawling Showa Kinen Park, where the fields are blanketed in cosmos from around mid-September. They usually peak around early to mid-October, but depending on the weather, it’s possible to enjoy them as late as early November. There are a few main gardens to see them within the park, but our favourite last year was the evocatively-named “Lemon Bright” field carpeted in yellow sulphur cosmos.
Slurp some noodles at the Tokyo Ramen Fiesta © kawaiikiri
23 October-3 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Tokyo Ramen Festa 2025
Location: Komazawa Olympic Park
Time: 10:00am-8:30pm
Admission: From ¥1100 (Advance purchases from 7-11 starting October)
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Sure, you can eat ramen any time you want - but at the annual Tokyo Ramen Festival (previously known as the Tokyo Ramen Show), you can slurp up the best of the best in Japan. The nation’s finest ramen makers gather in Komazawa Olympic Park to show off their noodly goods. Every conceivable style you can think of is represented, along with limited edition event-only specials you won’t find at their shops. Ramen aficionados are serious about their bowls, so be prepared for crowds. Last year, the event was split into three parts with 12 different vendors each time, with 36 in total to try. Can you eat them all?
27 October-5 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: 38th Tokyo International Film Festival
Location: Roppongi Hills & others
Time: Various (See official website)
Admission: Various
Website: Official website (English)
Tokyo’s most prestigious film festival is back! The 38th edition will see another fabulous lineup of special events and screenings. Watch sports films and documentaries at an outdoor screening at the foot of Tokyo Tower; or veg out at the outdoor theatre at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya. Of course, the first day will see celebrities and filmmakers from all over the world walking the red carpet in Roppongi. Check the website for full details on the festivities.
Early November-25 December 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Roppongi Hills Christmas 2025
Location: Keyakizaka Hill, Roppongi
Time: 5:00pm-11:00pm
Admission: Free
Here in Tokyo, Christmas decorations go up and all you hear in shops is Christmas music the moment Halloween is over — never mind that November has barely begun. It’s around this time that various parts of Tokyo start dressing up their neighbourhoods with thousands of LED lights for witner illuminations. Around 800,000 LED lights, to be exact. One of the most popular must be the brilliant blue-and-white illuminations at Keyakizaka Street in Roppongi. Maybe it’s the colour scheme, but it does make the atmosphere that much more wintry and festive. Consider visiting in tandem with the Roppongi Christmas Market, which takes place on 23-25 December 2025.
1-10 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Tokyo Metropolitan Tourism Chrysanthemum Exhibition
Location: Hibiya Park
Time: 10:00am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (English)
Chrysanthemum lovers, rejoice! Autumn is here and so are your favorite velvet-petalled pom-pom-esque pastel-colored flowers. The annual Tokyo Metropolitan Tourism Chrysanthemum Exhibition (a mouthful, we know) has been going strong for over 100 years. Unsurprisingly, it’s the foremost exhibition for these flowers in terms of quality and quantity. You’ll see all varieties and styles of chrysanthemums, from rare ones to edible ones. If you can bring them home, there are even seedlings for you to pick up. Or you could just enjoy the blooms.
Karigari curry at the Kanda Curry Grand Prix © nakashi
1-2 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Kanda Curry Grand Prix 2025
Location: Ogawa Square, Ochanomizu
Time: 11:00am-7:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Who doesn’t love a good bowl of curry? Get thee to Kanda this November for the Kanda Curry Grand Prix, where 20 restaurants compete against each other to earn the honor of best curry in the area. Considering that there are over 400 curry restaurants in Kanda, this is no bite-sized prize - it’s the real deal. But regardless of whoever wins, know that you’ll be getting some seriously tasty gravies around this side of town.
2 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Hanazono Shrine Antique Market
Location: Hanazono Shrine
Time: 6:30am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Here’s another fun reason to visit Hanazono Shrine in Shinjuku: there’s a small but regular antique fair happening there almost every Sunday. The Hanazono Shrine Blue Sky Antique Fair - which is the full name in Japanese, roughly translated - is not exactly endless sprawl and shopping, since there are only 25-30 stalls maximum at any given time. Smaller items are the focus here, rather than large furniture or statement pieces.
The market runs from sunrise to sunset, though visiting in the morning is best since many stalls tend to close around 3:00pm. (Come around then for the best bargains.) Check the calendar above before you go. If it rains, expect it not to run.
2 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Oedo Antique Market
Location: Tokyo International Forum
Time: 9:00am-4:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (English)
Billed as the largest outdoor antique market in Japan, the event attracts shoppers from all walks of life. There is quite literally everything and anything old here: Taisho-period glassware, ceramics, rusty coins, gorgeous jewelry, secondhand kimono ranging from dirt cheap to a few hundred dollars… Whether you’re looking for a cheap bargain or a rare gem from the 1880s, you’re sure to find something for your budget. Haggling is best very early in the morning or towards the end of the day, though you can spend the whole day browsing.
The market is closed in case of rain, but this market is held twice or thrice a month. So, if that happens, you can try your luck again on 16 and 23 November.
At the Hanazono Shrine festival © shuets udono
11-24 November 2025
Event: Hanazono Shrine Tori no Ichi
Location: Hanazono Shrine
Time: 5:00am-2:00am
Admission: Free
Website: TBC
Stemming from a tradition dating back to the Edo period, this is a famous festival at Hanazono-jinja Shrine in Shinjuku. Tori no Ichi, the first, starts with a warm-up festival at night, followed by a full event on the following day. The second festival this year is on 24 November0. There’ll be stalls selling foods, festival paraphernalia, and kumade rakes that bring good fortune for your businesses. Come hungry and make merry the whole night through.
Fairytale lighting at the Marunouchi Illuminations © othree
14 November 2025-16 February 2026 (To be confirmed)
Event: Marunouchi Illumination
Location: Marunouchi Illumination
Time: 5:30pm-11:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
Clocking in at 24 consecutive years, the annual Marunouchi Illuminations is one of the longest-running Tokyo light-ups of its kind. Naturally, it’s a favourite with many Tokyo residents. Walking down the champagne-coloured, fairy light-strewn, gently glittering Naka-dori never fails to induce starry-eyed Christmassy feelings in us. Sometimes literally. Naka-dori stretches for around 500 meters, from near Tokyo Station to the vicinity of the Peninsula Hotel.
Live painting at Design Festa © Lonnie
15-16 November 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Design Festa vol. 62
Location: Tokyo Big Sight, Ariake
Time: 11:00am-7:00pm
Admission: ¥1000 (One-day pass)
Website: Official website (English)
It’s that time of the year again - your favorite art & design jamboree is back! A whopping 15,000 artists from within Japan and without are descending on Tokyo Big Sight to bring you the 62nd Design Festa, which has been running biannually in spring and autumn since 1994. You’ll experience the full gamut of artistic expression here across all mediums: crafts, paintings, cuisine, performances, music, dance - if you can imagine it, you’ll find it here. Two day tickets are necessary if you want to be able to see and experience everything here. Have some extra cash handy, too - you’re sure to walk away with unique handmade gifts and souvenirs for loved ones here.
Ginkgo trees along Icho Namiki-dori Avenue © nakashi
Mid-November To Early December 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Jingu Gaien Ginkgo Festival 2025
Location: Icho Namiki-dori & Meiji Jingu Gaien
Time: 10:00am-5:30pm
Admission: Free
Website: TBC
Any ‘festival’ is really just an excuse to eat and drink under some pretty leaves. As the tall Ginkgo trees along this avenue turn golden yellow, so too do the 40-odd food and drink stalls begin popping up around the nearby softball stadium. Make sure you check out all the regional food they’re selling, too. Even if you’re not hungry, the view of the trees is a feast for the eyes.
23 November 2025
Event: Nogi Shrine Antique Market
Location: Nogi Shrine
Time: 9:00am until it gets dark
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
This small-scale, local, and charming antique market takes place along the shrine’s main approach every 4th Sunday. Visit to chat and haggle with sellers over items of all kinds: from secondhand clothing to kokeshi dolls to wooden furniture to stamps from several decades ago, you might find anything and everything here. If it rains, though, consider the event cancelled.
28 November 2025
Event: Doburoku Matsuri
Location: Koami Shrine, Nihonbashi
Time: 9:00am-6:00pm
Admission: Free
Website: Official website (Japanese)
A Shinto shrine festival is usually an excuse to indulge in the good stuff, so what better time to have a few sips of sake than at a matsuri? This November, head over to Koami Shrine in Nihonbashi for the annual Doburoku Matsuri. ‘Doburoku’ is crude home-brewed sake – think of it as Japanese moonshine – and while it’s not the most common form of sake around, it is delicious.
Koami Shrine hosts one of the two major doburoku festivals in the Kanto area. It’s a perfect time to sip some doburoku – it’ll warm you right up while you watch the mysterious Sato-kagura Shinto dance performance at midday in the shrine.
Late November To Early December 2025 (To be confirmed)
Event: Rikugien Autumn Leaves Light-up
Location: Rikugien, Komagome
Time: 9:00am-8:30pm (last park entry 8.00pm)
Admission: ¥1100
Website: Official website (English)
Rikugien’s annual light-up returns! This traditional Japanese landscape garden has some gorgeous fall foliage as beautiful in the day as it is at night. In autumn, they extend opening hours to 8:30pm, to coincide with the evening illuminations. Be aware that you might have to contend with the post-work crowds here. But it is also one of the few places in Tokyo to see the autumn colours at night, so it’s worth a visit. Snuggle up to a special someone at the cozy teahouses in the garden and enjoy the lights.
Tokyo Events Month By Month 2025
- Tokyo Events January 2025
- Tokyo Events February 2025
- Tokyo Events March 2025
- Tokyo Events April 2025
- Tokyo Events May 2025
- Tokyo Events June 2025
- Tokyo Events July 2025
- Tokyo Events August 2025
- Tokyo Events September 2025
- Tokyo Events October 2025
- Tokyo Events November 2025
- Tokyo Events December 2025
Tokyo Vacation Checklist
- For all the essentials in a brief overview, see my First Time In Tokyo guide
- Check Tokyo accommodation availability and pricing on Booking.com and Agoda.com - often you can book with no upfront payment and free cancellation
- Need tips on where to stay? See my one page guide Where To Stay In Tokyo
- You can buy shinkansen (bullet train) tickets online from Klook - popular routes include Tokyo to Kyoto, Tokyo to Osaka and Tokyo to Hiroshima
- You can buy an eSim to activate in Japan or buy a Japan SIM card online for collection on arrival at Tokyo Narita or Haneda airports. Or rent an unlimited data pocket wifi router
- See my comprehensive Packing List For Japan
- Compare airline flight prices and timings for the best Japan flight deals. Check my guides to arriving at Narita Airport and at Haneda Airport.
- If you're visiting more than one city, you might save money with a Japan Rail Pass – see if it's worth it for you
- World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world
- Do you want help planning your trip? Chris Rowthorn and his team of Japan experts at Japan Travel Consulting can help