This Weekend: Tokyo Area Events for July 9-10
Summer Celebrations, Festivals And Fun In The City
Plenty of unique early summer festivals happening in and around Tokyo this weekend! Visit Narita for its annual Gion Festival, Hiratsuka for a late celebration of Tanabata, Hibiya for a large-scale expo on everything about Africa and if you're into Line's cute stamps, pop up at its first creators festa for a sneak peek on how are all these cute little icons made. Have a wonderful weekend!
Cultural Expo
Africa Hibiya Festival
Spend the weekend savoring African food, searching for unique gems and watching the best of the continent's traditional dances, performances and music. This festival is one of the biggest of its kind happening in Japan and it offers plenty of opportunities for everyone to know more about the African culture, history and lifestyle, as well as the latest trends!
- Date
- Sat, July 9 - Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- Sat, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.; Sun, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m.
- Location
- Hibiya Park, 1 Hibiyakoen, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- Fee
- Free
© Photo by Kenichiro NakazawaTraditional Blessings
Sensoji Temple's Day of 46,000 Blessings
People say that visiting Sensoji Temple and offering prayers on July 10 is the same as doing good for 46,000 days. If that sounds like a good deal to you, visit the shrine this weekend and enjoy the various events. There will also be stalls with food and drinks, beautiful red Chinese lantern plants and more!
- Date
- Sat, July 9 - Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- 6 a.m.-9 p.m.
- Location
- Sensoji Temple, Asakusa, 2-3-1 Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo
- Fee
- Free
Spy Mission
Ninja Exhibit
If you have kids admiring Japanese spies, visit this event to learn about the fascinating world of ninja, their secrets, weapons and more. This exhibition offers you the opportunity to train yourself in throwing “shuriken,” improving your jumping power, and introduces skills like memory enhancing techniques, sending secret messages, and special breathing techniques necessary for successful completion of a mission. The perfect exhibition for your curious ones.
- Date
- Now through Oct 10 (closed July 12, Sept 6, Sept 13, Sept 20, Sept 27, Oct 4)
- Time
- 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
- Location
- National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan)
- Fee
- ¥1,600 (adults), 1,000 yen (¥900 on Saturdays) for children of grade-school age to 18
Fun At The Pool
Showa Kinen Park Pool Pre-Opening
Ahead of the launch of the park's popular Summer Festival next week, 15,000 visitors per day can enjoy the pre-opening of its gigantic "Rainbow Pool" (consisting of nine different pools) for free for two full days. Spend the weekend cooling down with the kids!
- Date
- Sat, July 9 - Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Location
- Showa Kinen Park, 3173 Midori-cho, Tachikawa-shi, Tokyo
- Fee
- ¥410 (adults), ¥80 (children)
Behind The Scenes
Line Creators Festa 2016
Most of us using the app Line have become used to the endless flow of new stamps, whether it's Brown and Cony, drunken salarymen's monologues or tons of cuteness in various forms. Well, this weekend Line will be launching an event, showing us how it's all done through panel exhibitions, creators' corners and several live events. Visitors will also have the chance to draw and submit their own ideas about new stamps.
- Date
- Sat, July 9 - Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- 10:30a.m.-7 p.m. (Saturday), 10:30 a.m.- 6p.m. (Sunday)
- Location
- 3331 Arts Chiyoda, 6-11-14, Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- Fee
- Free
Love Celebrations
The 66th Shonan Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival
This festival first started as a minor initiative to revive the area after WWII, but today it's one of the largest Tanabata events in the whole country. Enjoy the splendid view of more than 500 kinds of decorations — some of them over 50 meters high — adorn the shopping arcade around JR Hiratsuka Station, the great food stalls, parades and street performances. It gets crowded, but it's definitely worth the visit!
- Date
- Sat, July 9 - Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- Until 9 p.m.
- Location
- The area around JR Hiratsuka Station's North Exit
- Fee
- Free
Shrine Parade
Narita Gion Festival
Another summer festival on the list, the Narita Gion Festival has a history of over 300 years. The highlight of the event is when one of Naritasan Shinshoji Temple's portable shrines (omikoshi), along with 10 other different floats, is paraded down the Omotesando Road in Narita. The festival lasts for three days and visitors can enjoy a number of traditional competitions and musical performances.
- Date
- Fri, July 8 through Sun, July 10, 2016
- Time
- From 1:30 p.m. (July 8), from 9 a.m. (July 9) and from 1 p.m. (July 10)
- Location
- Naritasan Shinshoji Temple, 1 Narita, Chiba Prefecture
- Fee
- Free
What are your plans for the weekend? If you’re organizing a fun or interesting event, or you know someone who is, contact us to get it listed!
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