Judo in Japan: Training at the Kodokan as a Visitor
TripToJapan.com Editorial Team
Oct 27, 2026
Contents
TripToJapan.com Editorial Team
Take the elevator to the eighth floor of a plain office-style building in Bunkyo, and the noise reaches you before the view does. Below the railing, hundreds of judoka in white are throwing each other onto 420 mats, and the slap of bodies hitting tatami fills the hall. Nobody asks for a ticket.
That building is the Kodokan, the headquarters of judo since Kano Jigoro founded the art in 1882. Visitors can watch practice for free on most weekday evenings and tour a small museum. If you already know judo, you can join the general practice for ¥1,100 a day. Bring a white judogi and some experience, and you can train in the same hall as Japan's best.
The Kodokan Judo Institute is the world headquarters of judo. Kano Jigoro opened his first dojo in 1882 in a small temple space in Shitaya, in today's Taito Ward. According to Bunkyo City, the school moved to Masago-cho in 1889 and to its current site in Kasuga in 1958.
The current eight-story Kodokan International Judo Center was completed in 1984 for the school's 100th anniversary. It holds separate training halls for men, women and children. A museum, a library,and a hostel share the building. Judo became an official Olympic sport at the Tokyo Games in 1964, according to the Kodokan's history of judo.
Japan takes judo seriously far beyond the Kodokan. Budo is part of the middle school curriculum, and police officers train in judo or kendo throughout their careers. For a wider look at kendo, karate, and aikido, read our guide to Japanese martial arts.
We'll build a costed, pre-planned Japan itinerary you can customise to your taste.
Yes. Anyone can visit the Kodokan, and watching practice is free with no reservation. According to the Kodokan's visitor page, the spectator seats are on the eighth floor, overlooking the 420-mat main dojo on the seventh.
Practice runs Monday to Friday from 16:00 to 20:00 and on Saturdays until 19:30. The busiest time to watch is the men's session from about 18:00 to 19:30, when the main dojo is full.
There is no practice on Sundays, national holidays or major tournament days. The dojo also breaks for summer recess and the New Year holidays, so check the calendar before you go.
The Judo Museum and Library on the second floor is free. It is open Monday to Friday from 11:00 to 18:00 and closed on weekends, holidays and during the summer and New Year breaks. Inside are a room dedicated to Kano Jigoro and a Judo Hall of Fame. There is also a closed-stack library of about 5,000 books.
It is small, so 30 to 45 minutes is plenty. Combine it with an evening at the spectator gallery for the full Kodokan visit.
The Kodokan is open to everyone, but how you train depends on your level. Experienced judoka can join general practice for a day. Complete beginners are expected to enroll in the Kodokan's judo school for at least a year, so a casual first lesson is not really an option.
If you already practice judo, you can join the general practice, or randori class. According to the Kodokan's enrollment page, it costs ¥1,100 per day in 2026, with no membership needed for daily visits. Regular trainees can pay ¥5,500 a month after joining as a member for ¥8,000.
Register and pay at the reception on the fourth floor, where the lockers are. The Kodokan's guidance for short-term visitors says you should be comfortable doing randori with black belts. No reservation is needed. If you cannot find a partner, ask one of the instructors, who wear an embroidered mark on the chest.
The Kodokan practice schedule for 2026 sets these regular sessions:
Men's general practice: Monday to Friday 16:00 to 20:00, Saturday 16:00 to 19:30
Women's division: Monday to Saturday 18:00 to 19:30
Kata: Tuesday and Thursday 17:00 to 19:00 in the sixth-floor International Dojo
Children: from 16:30, in their own dojo
Wear a white judogi. Blue judogi are not accepted at the Kodokan. Women wear a plain white T-shirt under the jacket, while men wear nothing underneath.
Bring your own belt, and make sure your gi is clean and fits properly. Shops near the Kodokan sell judogi if yours is lost or too worn to use.
Arrive 20 to 30 minutes early to register, change and warm up. Practice usually starts with group warm-ups and ukemi, the breakfalls, before moving on to throwing drills. Most of the session is randori, free practice with a series of partners.
The level is high, and many regulars have trained for years. Expect partners to be welcoming but to practice hard. Tap early in groundwork, tell partners about any injury and take a break when you need one. Pack a towel, water and a change of clothes.
The Kodokan is at 1-16-30 Kasuga in Bunkyo Ward. According to the Kodokan, it is a one-minute walk from exits A1 or A2 of Kasuga Station on the Toei Mita and Oedo lines.
Korakuen Station on the Marunouchi and Namboku lines is three minutes away. JR Suidobashi Station on the Chuo-Sobu Line is about eight minutes on foot.
The neighborhood is worth an extra hour. The Edo-period Koishikawa Korakuen Garden is a short walk away. Tokyo Dome City next door has restaurants and a baseball stadium for a post-practice meal.
The Kodokan runs its own hostel on the third floor, and it is meant specifically for Kodokan members. Prices on the Kodokan Hostel page run from ¥4,400 per person in a dorm to ¥16,500 for a twin room with bath, tax included.
No meals are served. You book online up to three months ahead and no later than three days before arrival, and you pay in yen in advance. If you plan a training trip of a week or more, membership plus the hostel is the cheapest way to stay a minute's walk from the mat.
Etiquette carries real weight in a Japanese dojo. The Kodokan asks trainees for good manners and to take care of the dojo. Keep your body and judogi clean, and cut your fingernails and toenails short. It also asks trainees to show consideration for others and never give up.
In practice, that means a few simple habits:
Bow when you enter and leave the dojo, and when you step on and off the mat.
Bow to your partner before and after each round of randori.
Take off your sandals at the edge of the mat and line them up neatly.
Follow the instructors' lead, and ask before photographing anyone.
Instructors teach reiho, the rules of decorum, as part of training. If you are unsure, watch what the Japanese students do and copy them.
The Kodokan's own calendar has a few special days for visitors. According to the Kodokan's 2026 calendar, the New Year opening ceremony called Kagami Biraki was held on January 11. Winter training ran from January 7 to 16. Summer training ran from July 27 to August 5. The museum also opens on some of these special days.
The biggest domestic competition is the All Japan Judo Championships at the Nippon Budokan, held on April 26 in 2026. The women's championships take place a week earlier in Yokohama. In December, the international Grand Slam Tokyo usually comes to the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, so check the International Judo Federation schedule for confirmed dates.
If you have never done judo, a private lesson is the easier route. Bunbuichidojuku Shidokan in Shinjuku offers a 90-minute session in English with judogi rental, a short history talk and basic throws. On the Have a Good Holiday booking site in October 2026, it cost ¥50,050 for one person, dropping to ¥28,600 each for groups of three or four.
For another hands-on martial art in Tokyo, an aikijujutsu self-defense class in Tokyo teaches joint locks and throws from the old jujutsu tradition that judo grew out of. No experience is needed.
You can also build a whole trip around training. Our 15-day martial arts trip to Japan combines Tokyo dojo visits with stops in Kansai and Chugoku. It is a ready-made plan you can book and adapt to your own art.
