The heat finally eases up in October, and it becomes more comfortable to spend time outdoors. In this article, we will introduce you to some of the gourmet festivals and art events, mainly outdoor events, where you can enjoy the autumn season this year.
1, Hokkaido Fair in Yoyogi – The Hokkai Shokudo (October 3-6)
This gourmet festival, held for the 33rd time this year, attracts more than 200,000 visitors every year , bringing together the tastes of Hokkaido’s famous, popular, and hidden gems. Stage events will include live performances by artists.
📍 Plaza in front of Yoyogi Park Open-Air Concert Hall
👉Official website🚇 7 min walk from Harajuku station, 7 min walk from Meiji-jingumae station.
🎟️ Admission free. Charged for food and drink.
2, MEET YOUR ART FESTIVAL 2024 “NEW ERA” (October 11-14)
One of the largest art and culture festivals in Japan will be held again this year, with more than 100 up-and-coming artists participating throughout the festival. The festival will feature the “SSS: Super Spectrum Specification,” an art exhibition that uses the format of an international exposition to explore expressions beyond the techniques of traditional art such as painting and sculpture, two art fairs, live performances on board the ship, and a market area with more than 50 stores. and a market area with more than 50 shops.
📍 Tennoz Canal area (Terada Warehouse, etc.)
👉Official website4 minutes walk from Tennozu Isle Station, 15 minutes walk from Shinagawa Station
🎟️ 1-DAY TICKET General admission 2,000 yen (advance ticket; also includes admission to the Art Exhibition, two art fairs, and the exhibition currently being held at the cooperating facility “WHAT MUSEUM”). Admission to other areas is free)
3, Shimokitazawa Curry Festival 2024 (October 10-27)
This is an annual curry festival held every October. This year, 109 stores will participate, including not only curry specialty stores, but also cafes, pubs, BARs, ramen noodle shops, bakeries, and more. A stamp rally in which visitors can get stamps after eating curry and sweets or making purchases will offer 12 curry-related prizes.
📍 109 stores offering curry around Shimokitazawa Station, 17 stores offering sweets, and a plaza around Shimokitazawa Station
👉Official website🚇 Shimokitazawa station area
🎟️ Stamp rally participation fee 500 yen
4, HIBIYA CINEMA FESTIVAL 2024 (October 11-27)
This year’s event, held for the seventh time, proposes a variety of new ways to enjoy movies. This year, under the theme of “NAGARU CINEMA,” spaces will be set up where people can enjoy movies while talking together, crying out loud, singing, and sometimes even dozing off. In the “Stairway Zone – While Talking”, visitors can watch movies in a photogenic space with rugs and cushions.
📍 Tokyo Midtown Hibiya Hibiya Step Plaza
👉Official website🚇Direct connection from Hibiya Station, approx. 4 min. walk from Yurakucho Station, approx. 5 min. walk from Ginza Station
🎟️ Free (free entry and exit)
5, Oktoberfest 2024 in Jingu Gaien (October 11-31)
Oktoberfest, held annually in Munich, Germany from September to October, arrived in Japan in 2003. This year, the festival will be held at three venues, starting with Shiba Park in September, followed by Toyosu and Jingu Gaien. Enjoy German beer and traditional German food, which are usually hard to find in Japan.
📍 Meiji Jingu Gaien, in front of Seitoku Memorial Picture Gallery and General Ball Stadium
👉Official website🚇Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line, 10-minute walk from Aoyama-itchome Station, 5-minute walk from Shinanomachi Station, 5-minute walk from National Stadium Station
🎟️Admission feeAdults (junior high school students and older) 1,000 yen
6, TOKYO ISLAND 2024 (October 12-14)
An outdoor festival in a space that is 10 times the size of Tokyo Dome, 15 minutes by bus from Odaiba, and offers a panoramic view of Tokyo. During the festival, visitors can stay overnight in tents set up in the camping area. Performing artists include Stray Tenor, Yabai T-shirt Man, and Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra.
📍 Umi-no-Mori Park Forest Creation Area (in Umi-no-Mori 3-chome, Koto-ku, Tokyo)
👉Official website🚇All shuttle buses departing from and arriving at Tokyo Teleport Station only, except for ticket purchasers with parking tickets.
🎟️1 day ticket 12,000 yen
7, Ariake Urban Sports Park (Opened on October 12)
Ariake Urban Sports Park, which aims to create a bustling atmosphere triggered by urban sports , opens on October 12. In addition to the skateboard park, indoor bouldering building, and “3×3” basketball court that have already opened, the park will also feature an outdoor athletic facility, running stadium, and other sports facilities, as well as cafes, restaurants, and other dining facilities.
📍 1-13-7 Ariake, Koto-ku, Tokyo
👉Official site *Preparation site
8, Otsukimi Stroll at Hamarikyu Gardens – Love the chestnut moon in the Shogun’s garden (October 15 – October 19)
During the period, the opening hours will be extended and the garden will be illuminated at night. In addition to a reenactment of “Gagaku on board a boat” once enjoyed by the shogun, an offering ceremony on the moon-viewing platform, a “special moon-viewing tour” that introduces nighttime highlights, and the sale of special otsukimi (moon-viewing) tea sets, Japanese sake, and event-only lanterns, “EV Boat” (small electric boat) operation from Takeshiba, which was very popular last year, will also be held.
📍 1-1 Hamarikyu Garden, Chuo-ku
👉Official website🚇About 7 minutes walk from Tsukiji Ichiba Station and Shiodome Station to Otemon Gate, about 12 minutes walk from Shinbashi Station.
🎟️ Entrance fee 300 yen for general admission
9, Tokyo Night Market (October 23-27)
This is a new night culture in Shibuya, which attracted a total of 200,000 visitors, including tourists, families, and couples after work, during the previous five-day event. This year, until 10:00 p.m., visitors can enjoy Thai food, ramen noodles, and small basket wraps at the food stalls that have a connection to Shibuya. There will also be art exhibits that are being completed daily, and live performances by artists.
📍 Zelkova trees in Yoyogi Park, Shibuya Ward
👉Official website🚇About 9 min. walk from Harajuku Station or Meiji-jingumae Station
🎟️ Admission free
10, Yomiuri Land Jewelmation 2024 LIGHT is LOVE – Diamond 60 Celebration – (October 24 – April 6, 2025)
The world’s first illumination using LEDs inspired by jewel colors, developed by Mikiko Ishii Design Office, a leading lighting designer active not only in Japan but also in various parts of the world. The highlight of the illumination is the production inspired by the “Diamond Wedding Ceremony,” a celebration of the 60th wedding anniversary of the Yomiuri Land amusement park, and the harmony between the night view of Tokyo spreading out below and the illumination based on jewelry colors.
📍 4015-1 Yanoguchi, Inagi City
👉Official website🚇About 1 min. walk from Keio Yomiuri Land Station, about 13 min. walk from Yanoguchi Station
🎟️ One-day pass window price Adult 5,800 yen
11, Tokyo Ramen Festa 2024 (October 24-November 4)
A total of 36 kinds of ramen will be gathered at this gourmet festival. This year, popular flavors of ramen stores recommended by popular local ramen restaurants from ramen events and ramen organizations held throughout Japan will be gathered again.
📍 Komazawa Olympic Park
👉Official Website🚇About 12 minutes walk from Komazawa University Station, about 22 minutes walk from Toritsudaigaku Station, about 25 minutes walk from Jiyugaoka Station
🎟️ Admission free, ramen meal ticket 1,100 yen per bowl
12, Arakawa Dr. Nash Painting’s a Pop Stars (October 30-December 16)
The first solo museum exhibition in Asia for US-based artist Dr. Nash Arakawa, who has been showing performance art at international exhibitions and museums since the 2000s, will be held at the Tate Modern in London in 2021. Please Feel Free to Paint” and a space of paintings related to balancing art activities and child-rearing, the exhibition will continue to be a club-like space where paintings speak of philosophy.
📍 The National Art Center, Tokyo, Special Exhibition Room 2E (7-22-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku)
👉Official website🚇5 min. walk from Nogizaka and Roppongi Stations
🎟️ free