Best Outdoor Date Ideas for Valentine’s in Tokyo

Looking for a different date spot this winter? Check out our list of 10 great outdoor date ideas in Tokyo and let your love keep you warm.

Valentine’s Day in Japan is fast approaching and everyone is looking for the perfect date spot. Sure, it’s chilly, but why not enjoy what Tokyo’s winter wonderland has to offer instead of confining yourself to its (admittedly cozy) malls and depachika (department store basements). The outdoor date ideas in Tokyo below try to combine the best of both worlds.

We feature a cool spot where you and your loved one can brave the elements together. But, we also include a nearby indoor suggestion in case you want to warm up your hands with a hot cup of tea. Get planning; there are a lot of people in this city and only one Valentine’s Day weekend!

1. Shunkaen Bonsai Museum

© Photo by Shunkaen Bonsai Museum

At the Shunkaen Bonsai Museum, take your partner for a tranquil tour featuring stunning bonsai. The bonsai here are created by a certified bonsai artist and master, Kunio Kobayashi. Explore the outside where a 1000-year-old tree guards the peaceful strolling garden with over 1,000 bonsai lining a pond populated with koi (carp). Peek indoors as well to see more splendid bonsai housed in a traditional Japanese building. If you would like to do an activity together on your date, you can also book a bonsai experience (in English, Chinese or Japanese) to learn how to make a bonsai and bring home your creations! Just make sure you book it at least three days in advance as places may fill up.

• Address: 1-29-16 Shinbori, Edogawa-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Koiwa (JR Sobu Line) or Mizue (Toei Shinjuku Line)
• Price: Museum entry: ¥2,000 per person; Bonsai Experience: ¥8,000 per person (includes museum entry)

2. Asakusa Hanayashiki Amusement Park

© Photo by Asakusa Hanayashiki Amusement Park

© Photo by Asakusa Hanayashiki Amusement Park

If you’re looking for a fun-filled, nostalgic date, why not head to Japan’s oldest amusement park? Situated in the heart of Tokyo, at Asakusa Hanayashiki, you can eat a light meal and explore the many attractions, including the roller coaster which first started running in 1953! Also be sure to try out the Panda Car, which used to be a Japanese amusement park staple, where you ride a giant panda around an open space. Throughout the colder winter months, whether it’s raining or shining, you can enjoy the rides and games.

• Address: 2-28-1 Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Asakusa (Tsukuba Express) or Asakusa (Ginza/Asakusa Lines)
• Price: Entry fee: ¥1,200 per person; One day pass (unlimited rides): ¥2,800 per person; Ride tickets: ¥100 each/per ride or ¥1,000 for 11

3. Koganei Park

© Photo by Edo-Tokyo Open-Air Architectural Museum

Before falling cherry blossom petals provided the perfect backdrop for your annual flower-viewing picnics, plum blossoms reigned. The beginning of February is traditionally the start of plum blossom season and can last through to early March. Erupting in white or red, these flowers have signified the coming of spring, as well as renewal and elegance. Take your partner on a stroll through Koganei Park and enjoy over 100 plum trees. If the weather isn’t cooperating, choose your favorite home decor as you two duck in and out of historical buildings on display at the park’s Edo-Tokyo Open-Air Architectural Museum.

• Address: 1-13-1 Sekinocho, Koganei 
• Nearest station: Hana-Koganei (Seibu Shinjuku Line) or Higashi Koganei (JR Chuo Line) 
• Price: Park entry: Free!; Museum entry: ¥400 per person

4. Hibiya Magic Time Illumination

© Photo by Hibiya Magic Time Illumination

Running from November to late February with varying color themes, the Hibiya Magic Time Illumination is a great setting for a romantic evening. Open from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m., climb the illuminated rainbow staircase for a photo spot and check out the special pink February illumination of nearby Hibiya Nakadori Street. In Tokyo Midtown Hibiya, warm up while watching a movie at TOHO Cinemas. Grab a bite at one of the gourmet restaurants. Then, head to the sixth floor for the Park View Winter Garden illumination where you can cuddle in the cold and enjoy the light show as your evening ends.

• Address: 1-6 Hibiya Park, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Kasumigaseki (Marunouchi Line)
• Price: Illuminations: Free!; TOHO Cinema movie ticket: ¥2,000 (Premier luxury seat: +¥3,000)

5. Tokyo Skytree Town Ice Skating Park

© Photo by Tokyo Skytree Town

© Photo by Tokyo Skytree Town

For a date where you can enjoy the winter air and still escape to a cozy cafe or shop, you can’t beat ice skating in Tokyo Skytree Town. Between January and late February, the fourth-floor sky arena is turned into a huge open-air rink, complete with skates to borrow and gloves to buy. If you want to add a view of the city, Tokyo Sky Tree is offering an Enjoy Pack, which includes an admission ticket to the tower along with ice skating for a discounted price. Whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s season as a family or just with your special person, unleash your inner figure skater in the shadow of Skytree. And if you get cold, Skytree Town has you covered, with gourmet options at a variety of price ranges.

• Address: 1-2, Oshiage 1-chome, Sumida-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Tokyo Skytree (Tobu Skytree Line)
• Price: Ice skating: ¥2,200; Weekday Enjoy Pack (Ice skating + Tokyo Sky Tree): ¥3,500 (Top deck entry: +¥800)

6. Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo’s Chinzanso Garden

© Photo by Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo

Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo is the site of a breathtaking garden fit for your next Valentine’s date. With a three-story pagoda relocated from Hiroshima in 1925, celebrate the 100th anniversary of its watch over Tokyo this year. The garden has multiple simultaneous events during the late winter season. These include the Sakura Sea of Clouds, featuring early blooming sakura, to a scenic stroll through camellia blossoms. Warm yourselves with an afternoon tea set or coffee from the Le Jardin lobby lounge enveloped in the natural light streaming in from the garden.

• Address: 2-10-8 Sekiguchi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Edogawabashi (Yurakucho Line)
• Price: Garden entry: Make use of hotel facilities; Afternoon Tea Set: ¥7,500 per person

7. Nezu Museum and Garden

© Photo by Nezu Museum

© Photo by Nezu Museum

If you’re interested in an indoor/outdoor date where you can be immersed in Japanese culture, look no further than the Nezu Museum. They house an impressive collection of pre-modern Japanese and Asian art. Located conveniently near Omotesando station, this quiet gem has a lovely garden dotted with teahouses and seasonal plants and flowers to stroll through with your partner. To warm up, take in an exhibition inside the museum and grab an original blended coffee at the Nezu Cafe with a stunning garden view.

• Address: 5-1, Minami-Aoyama 6-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Omotesando (Ginza/Hanzomon/Chiyoda Lines)
• Price: Nezu Museum general admission ticket: ¥1,300-¥1,600 per person

8. Yomiuriland Theme Park

© Photo by Yomiuriland

This theme park in Tokyo makes for a charming winter date setting, especially at night. From 4 p.m. in the wintertime, the Yomiuriland Theme Park erupts with 6.5 million jewel-toned glittering lights in its romantic “Jewellumination.” Take a ride on the Ferris wheel with the illuminated park around you and catch glorious views of Shinjuku skyscrapers and the Rainbow Bridge! And, if you’re cold, grab a bite together inside one of the casual eateries on site.

• Address: 4015-1, Yanokuchi, Inagi City, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Yomiuriland-mae (Odakyu Line)
• Price: Entry fee: ¥1,800 per person; One day pass (unlimited rides) + Entry fee: ¥5,800 per person

9. Odaiba Marine Park

© Photo by Odaiba

© Photo by Decks Tokyo Beach

Odaiba Marine Park is a stretch of man-made beach facing Tokyo Bay. Here, you can enjoy being near the water and catch some of the area’s most notable sightseeing spots, like the replica Statue of Liberty. But, its vistas are most impressive at night! Especially in the winter, the YAKEI illumination lights up the area. Don’t miss cuddling up to the lovely sights of Rainbow Bridge and Tower Tower glistening in the darkness. And if you would rather observe the views from the warmth of indoors, duck into the nearby DECKS Tokyo Beach mall.

• Address: 1-4 Daiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo
• Nearest station: Odaiba Marine Park (Yurikamome Line)
• Price: Free to stroll around!

10. Metsa’s Ice Tulip Terrace, Shopping and Food (Saitama)

© Photo by Metsa

For an adventure into a different world, take a short day trip to Metsa! It’s a Nordic-themed park with many outdoor activities, indoor shopping and restaurants. In late winter, don’t miss the Ice Tulip Terrace, where 5,000 cold-weather tulips explode into color months before their usual spring arrival. Enjoy a romantic date—Finnish style—surrounded by nature while snacking on homemade edible flower donuts and Finnish Oat Milk Tea in a special tulip cup.

• Address: 327-6 Miyazawa, Hanno, Saitama
• Nearest station: Hanno (Seibu Ikebukuro Line)
• Price: Metsa entry: Free!; Finnish Oat Milk Tea: ¥800 (¥1,900 with a souvenir glass cup)

Do you have any outdoor date ideas in Tokyo you like to take your loved ones? Please give us some Valentine’s inspiration below.