FEBRUARY: Festivals + Events

 Click on Tell me more to read about the event, then use the search term below to find out the exact dates and times for the year you’ll be there.

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Setsubun Festival

The holiday of Setsubun (February 2-3) features bean-throwing and demon-ousting at all the major shrines and temples

Tell me more!

Search term: Tokyo Setsubun temple shrine

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The Annual Funeral for Pins & Needles

Once a year (on February 8), old pins and needles are brought to Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa to retire them with honor and thank them for their service by sticking them into blocks of tofu

Tell me more!

Search term: harikuyo Tokyo Sensoji

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Some-no-michi Fabric Dyeing Festival

Once a year, the canals running between Nakai and Ochiai are festooned with kilometers of kimono fabric, celebrating the district’s long history of dyeing

Search term: some no michi Nakai Ochiai

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Plum Blossom Festival

The Yushima Shrine hosts a plum blossom festival that features blooming trees, festival booths with street food and carnival games, and entertainment like monkey shows and taiko drumming

Tell me more!

Search terms: Bunkyo plum blossom festival; ume matsuri

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Plum Blossom Season

Throughout the month of February, the plum blossoms put on a heavenly show, all over Tokyo. Click the link to find the best places to see them

Tell me more!

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(You can search for information on these by Googling the names in bold or searching for them on Tokyo Cheapo or TimeOut Tokyo, which I think have the most reliable info for events that change dates from year to year.)

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While you’re in Japan, read a novel set in Tokyo!

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When Detective Kenji Nakamura’s phone rings with the news that his mother’s death wasn’t an accident, his life begins to unravel…read more