Neon Tokyo Lit Up At Night
Light-up hours:
Sensō-ji Temple: Every night from dusk until 23:00
Sumida River bridges & party boats: Dusk until 23:00
Giant Gundam: 19:30-21:30, with animated productions every 30 minutes
Rainbow Bridge & party boats: Best time to see them all lit up is from 17:30-19:00
Kabukicho red light district: All night
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Here’s what to see and why you might want to see it…
Tokyo at Night #1:
Traditional Tokyo & River Walk
The nighttime lighting at Sensō-ji Temple was designed by one of Tokyo’s greatest theatrical lighting designers, and it’s well worth a walk-through! Each of the spectacular buildings is lit like a diva, and sometimes they even change color.
Then meander over to the Azumabashi Bridge and walk along the Sumida River on its very pleasant waterside promenade. From there you get a sparkling view of Skytree and the lantern-lit river boats passing under the many bridges, each lit up in different colors.
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Tokyo at Night #2:
The giant robot and a walk across the Rainbow Bridge
Enjoy the five-story Gundam Unicorn statue lit up at night, and stay for the show (there’s one every 30 minutes), with lights and sound and projection-mapped animation, ending with the statue actually moving.
And once it’s completely dark, stroll out onto the Rainbow Bridge to see the festive party boats and catch a view of the Tokyo skyline you’ll never forget.
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Tokyo at Night #3:
Stroll the red light district of Kabukichō
The area east of Shinjuku Station is neon Tokyo at its finest! It’s fascinating to stroll through the red light district, just to see how only-in-Japan it really is. The area is packed with host and hostess bars with every theme you can imagine (and a few you can’t!) and you may see hosts giving our flyers to women to entice them into their clubs.*
*Kabukichō is perfectly safe for foreigners, because almost none of the bars and clubs are open to foreign customers, and there is little street crime aimed at tourists. If you’d like to know more about the clubs, there’s more information here.
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Back to:
Navigation buttons to the “7 Perfect Days”
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If you’d like to browse all the gardens or shrines or individual neighborhoods in Tokyo, links are on The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
If you’d like info on seasonal secrets and beyond Tokyo destinations, subscribe to my monthly e-magazine Japanagram (it’s free!)
and if you’d like to discover super quirky things to do, do a search at Only In Japan
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Jonelle Patrick writes about Japan 