November is one of the best times to visit Tokyo. The weather is still nice and the tourist crowds are down. Depending on the year, late November with usher in a sea of red over Tokyo cities parks and gardens.
When the weather is bad there are plenty of other things to do in November in Tokyo such as a trip to the top of the Sky Tree, illuminations, and Christmas coming early to Disneyland.
See The Changing Leaves Of Autumn
Not really a festival, but treated with such religious devotion that it might as well be.
November is one of the most beautiful times of the year in Tokyo and Kyoto.
It is a time when golden leaves blanket the traditional shrines, Japanese gardens, and streets. Fall in Japan can be viewed somewhere in the country for nearly three months, but in Tokyo, it starts late November. 10 Beautiful Places for Autumn In Japan
In Tokyo, the Japanese Gardens and Mount Takao are the most popular destinations to view beautiful leaves.
Later in November, the Icho Namiki of Gaien Park also becomes luminescent while the Imperial Palace will also offer some fabulous foliage over the moat.
Kyoto is by far the most popular location to view the yellow and red leaves, but it can become so crowded as to dampen the enjoyment. That said, the image of the leaves behind Gion’s famed geisha walking the streets is as quintessentially Japanese as you will ever find.
Go To The Top Of The Tokyo Sky Tree
Tokyo Sky Tree might be a good place to keep warm as the November temperature drop sets in, offering a spectacular vantage point for the colorful leaves some 450 meters above ground level! See: Tokyo Sky Tree: Reach for the Sky, Tokyo-style
Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea Special Events in November 2018
Christmas Fantasy Nowhere captures the feeling that Christmas has come early more than Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea. This year, Tokyo Disneyland will hold a Christmas Fantasy celebration, which includes a Santa’s Village complete with a toy factory shop, and a special Disney’s Santa Village Parade that magically brings the village to life. Tokyo DisneySea will host a Christmas Wishes celebration, which will feature Colors of Christmas, a light display that includes a 49-foot-tall Christmas tree as a centerpiece, and “Holiday Greeting From Seven Ports” entertainment program.
Christmas is seen as the most romantic day of the year in Japan. Cute, young couples in love, wearing matching furry, pink, Minnie Mouse snow hats, have dinner in a restaurant, drink champagne, exchange presents and can be seen walking around Tokyo Disneyland hand in hand while gazing at the Christmas illuminations.
Not to be Missed!
See More: Tokyo Disneyland
Getting there: Tokyo Disneyland Japan: Getting There Fast And Easy
Tori No Ichi Festival
Don’t count your chickens – bless them instead! In November (the date changes each year, so please check the Japanese calendar) the Japanese take to Otori-jinjas or “chicken shrines” across the nation, looking to be blessed with good luck for the coming business year.
Originally a harvest festival, which started in the Edo period, Tori no Ichi was the New Year celebration.
Today a host of souvenirs are offered at traditional open-air markets, with the most pertinent to the celebration being the kumade: a decorated bamboo rake that symbolizes the raking in of good luck.
Getting there: Otori-jinja Shrine is within short walking distance of Asakusa Station, accessible on the Tokyo Sky Tree Line, the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, and the Toei Asakusa Line.
Similar fairs are also held in about 30 other shrines in Tokyo such as Hanazono-jinja Shrine in Shinjuku, Kitano-jinja Shrine in Nakano, and Ebara-jinja Shrine in Shinagawa.
