Tokyo in January: Weather, Events and What to Do

For three days at the start of January, Tokyo is quiet in a way it never is otherwise. Shops close, offices empty, and half the city is inside eating with family. Then the shrines fill with millions of people in coats queuing to throw coins, and the whole thing restarts.

Tokyo in January is cold, dry and unusually clear, with average highs around 10°C and lows near 2°C. It is the cheapest month to visit after the first week, the best month for seeing Mount Fuji from the city, and the only month that includes both the New Year rituals and the opening sumo tournament of the year.

Tokyo Tour

Weather in Tokyo in January

January is the coldest month of the year in Tokyo, and also one of the driest and sunniest.

• Average high: 10°C, about 50°F

• Average low: 2°C, about 36°F

• Rain: roughly five wet days across the month

• Snow: possible on one to three days, rarely settling in central Tokyo

• Daylight: sunrise around 6:50, sunset around 16:40 at the start of the month

The cold is dry rather than damp, which makes it more bearable than the same temperature in London or New York. Wind off the bay is the thing that gets you, particularly around Odaiba and the river.

Clear skies mean this is the best stretch of the year for long views. Mount Fuji is visible from Tokyo's observation decks far more often in January than in summer, and mornings are the most reliable time.

New Year in Tokyo

New Year's Celebrations tokyo

Oshogatsu, the New Year holiday, runs roughly December 29 to January 3, and it shapes everything about a visit in the first week.

Hatsumode, the first shrine visit of the year, is the main event. Meiji Jingu draws around three million visitors over the first three days, which makes it the busiest shrine in Japan. Senso-ji in Asakusa and Kanda Myojin are the other big ones, and Senso-ji on New Year's night at 2:00 on January 1 is a genuinely memorable experience if you can stand the cold.

Expect queues measured in hours at the famous shrines on January 1 to 3. Go on the 4th or 5th instead, or pick a smaller neighborhood shrine, where the ritual is the same and the wait is five minutes.

What closes: many restaurants, small shops and family businesses shut from December 30 to January 3. Department stores, convenience stores, chain restaurants and major attractions stay open, but do not count on your target ramen shop.

Fukubukuro, lucky bags, go on sale January 1 and 2. Stores sell sealed bags of merchandise worth well above the price, usually ¥5,000 to ¥30,000, and the queues outside Shibuya and Ginza department stores form before dawn.

Hakone Ekiden, the university relay race from Tokyo to Hakone and back, runs on January 2 and 3 and is watched by most of the country. You can stand on the roadside in Otemachi and watch the start or the finish for free.

Imperial Palace New Year greeting

On January 2, the imperial family appears several times through the morning on the Chowaden balcony behind glass, and the public is admitted to the inner courtyard of the palace. Gates open at 9:30 and the last appearance is around 14:30.

Entry is free, you need your passport, and there are airport-style bag checks. Queues are long and the gates close once capacity is reached, so arrive early.

Events in Tokyo in January

January Grand Sumo Tournament

Grand Sumo Tournament

The Hatsu Basho, the first of the year's six tournaments, runs January 10 to 24, 2027 at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Sumida. Fifteen consecutive days of bouts, with the top division wrestling from about 15:30 to 18:00.

Cheap same-day general admission tickets go on sale at the box office each morning in limited numbers, and reserved seats sell out weeks ahead. Check the official tournament schedule and ticketing before you travel, since sales open well in advance.

Coming of Age Day

Coming of Age Day

Seijin no Hi falls on the second Monday of January, which is January 11 in 2027. Twenty-year-olds attend ceremonies at ward offices in formal dress, which for women means furisode kimono with fur collars and elaborately set hair.

Meiji Jingu, Senso-ji and the area around the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building are the best places to see it. Ask before photographing anyone, and do not block the shrine approaches.

Wrestle Kingdom at Tokyo Dome

New Japan Pro-Wrestling's biggest show of the year runs on January 4 at Tokyo Dome. Wrestle Kingdom 21 in 2027 marks the promotion's 55th anniversary. Tickets go on sale in the fall and English-language booking is available.

Tondoyaki and the fire festivals

Mount Takao Yakuoin Yuuki-ji Temple

Around January 8, Torigoe Shrine in Taito burns the previous year's New Year decorations in a large bonfire, and people toast mochi over the embers. Several shrines across the city hold their own version in the second week.

The Geikosai New Year festival at Yakuoin temple on Mount Takao runs in the first days of the year, with early morning rituals and a mountain that is an hour from Shinjuku on the Keio line.

Dezomeshiki, the fire brigade's New Year parade, takes place in early January with ladder acrobatics performed by firefighters in Edo-period dress.

Winter illuminations

Most of Tokyo's illumination displays run from November through Christmas, but a good number continue into January and a few to mid-February.

Caretta Shiodome, Roppongi Hills, Tokyo Midtown, Yebisu Garden Place and Marunouchi's Naka-dori are the reliable ones. Shibuya's Blue Cave display along Koen-dori and the displays out at the Odaiba waterfront continue past New Year in most years.

Check dates before you go, since some switch off on December 25 and others on January 3. The advantage in January is that they are far less crowded than in December.

Things to do in Tokyo in January

Onsen and sento

Hirayu no Mori

Cold weather is what hot spring bathing is for. In the city, Spa LaQua at Tokyo Dome City pumps natural hot spring water from 1,700 meters down and is open late. Oedo Onsen sites and the many neighborhood sento give you the same thing for a few hundred yen.

For the real version, Hakone is 90 minutes from Shinjuku and Kusatsu three hours, and an outdoor bath in January with snow on the rocks is the best use of a winter afternoon in Japan.

Asakusa and the old city

Asakusa Rickshaw Tour

Asakusa is at its best in winter, when the low sun hits the Senso-ji gate and the crowds thin after the first week. Rickshaw runs along the backstreets take 30 minutes for around ¥9,000 for two, with blankets provided.

The temple district connects to a wider circuit of Japan's most visited temples and shrines, and January is the month when Japanese people actually use them.

Museums and indoor days

January rewards indoor planning. The Tokyo National Museum in Ueno, teamLab's digital installations, the Edo-Tokyo Museum, which reopened in March 2026 after four years of renovation, and the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka all work regardless of the weather. Several of Japan's best museums are within 30 minutes of central Tokyo.

The bay side is another good cold-weather option, and Odaiba's indoor attractions keep you out of the wind, though note that the Miraikan science museum is closed for refurbishment from October 1, 2026 to April 22, 2027.

Evenings get dark early, which makes January one of the better months for Tokyo after dark, since the city lights come on before dinner.

Winter gardens

Koishikawa Korakuen, Rikugien and Hama-rikyu all charge a few hundred yen and are close to empty in January. Wintersweet and early camellia flower through the month, and plum blossom starts at the very end of January in the warmest gardens, with the main display in February.

Hama-rikyu in particular gives you a formal Edo garden with skyscrapers behind it and a teahouse on the pond serving matcha for around ¥1,000.

What to eat in Tokyo in winter

Oden

Oden is the winter street food, a pot of daikon, eggs, fish cake and konjac simmered in light dashi, sold in every convenience store from October and best in a small specialist bar.

Nabe hot pots of every regional variety, ramen with a heavier winter broth, grilled sanma and roasted sweet potatoes sold from trucks are the rest of it. In the first week, osechi ryori, the boxed New Year food, appears in department store basements, and ozoni, a mochi soup, is served at home.

Warm sake and amazake, a sweet low-alcohol rice drink often handed out free at shrines during hatsumode, are the drinks of the season.

What to pack for Tokyo in January

Winter Accessories

Layers, since buildings and trains are heated aggressively and you will be taking a coat off constantly.

• A warm but not heavy coat, since it rarely drops below freezing in the daytime

• Thermal base layers, which is what Japanese people wear rather than bulky outerwear

• A scarf, gloves and a hat for evenings and the wind off the water

• Comfortable waterproof shoes, since you will walk a lot and snow is possible

• Disposable heat pads, kairo, sold in every convenience store for around ¥100

Skip the heavy snow boots unless you are heading to the mountains. Central Tokyo rarely has snow on the ground.

Is January a good time to visit Tokyo?

Yes, with one caveat about timing. The first five days are expensive, crowded at shrines and quiet everywhere else, with many small businesses closed.

If you would rather have the dates worked out for you, our planning team builds winter trips around the sumo calendar.

From about January 6 onward, the city is at its cheapest and least crowded of the year. Flights and hotels drop, queues at major attractions shrink, the air is clear enough to see Fuji, and the sumo is on. If you can only travel in winter, aim for the second or third week.

For a fuller breakdown of the conditions, Tokyo's January weather goes day by day, and a winter Tokyo trip plan shows how to pace a cold-weather visit without spending the whole day outdoors.

One more thing worth building the trip around: the view of Fuji from a Tokyo observation deck on a clear January morning. It happens perhaps a dozen times a year, and most of those days fall in this month.