September 2026 events, festivals and things to do in Tokyo

This September, Shimokitazawa welcomes the return of its annual lunar art festival that will coincide with the upcoming autumn moon. Back for its fifth edition, Moon Art Night Shimokita will span several venues in the neighbourhood, including the open plaza in front of the station, Shimokita Senrogai Open Space near Shimokitazawa police box, the rooftop of Higashi-Kitazawa Station, and the Bonus Track complex.

Exhibits include an outdoor moon installation by UK artist Luke Jerram, whose giant floating model features striking details of the moon’s surface as captured by Nasa. This particular installation – titled ‘Museum of the Moon’ – is set to be on show every day at the vacant lot of the Shimokita Senrogai complex. 

The festival is also hosting Tokyo-based contemporary artist Shoei Matsuda, whose giant eight-metre-tall inflatable recreates the iconic 'tears of joy' emoji at the Bonus Track complex. Inspired by the evolution of emoji from a feature of Japanese mobile phone culture into a universal visual language, the interactive installation explores the relationship between the digital and physical worlds. Visitors can also use an AR filter to transform their own faces into the 'tears of joy' emoji and share the results on Instagram, blurring the boundaries between online expression and real-world experience.

Moreover, Japanese sculptor and artist Teppei Kaneuji is participating with an interactive installation titled ‘A Thousand Faces of the Moon’ at the paid Higashi-Kitazawa Station rooftop venue. Inspired by the idea that while there is only one moon, its appearance and meaning can vary depending on where you are and your own perspective, the work invites visitors to throw, roll and photograph a collection of moon-shaped sculptures. Kaneuji will also host a silkscreen printing workshop, where participants can create and take home their own moon-themed artwork.

Aside from the art exhibitions, the festival will feature several immersive theatre performances, live music, video installations and pop-ups. Several shops around Shimokitazawa Station will also offer full moon-inspired food and beverages and limited-edition products during the festival.

Tickets to access paid venues and performances are on sale via the official website.

Hakkeijima Island near Yokohama is bringing back its music-synced pyrotechnic shows this summer, with approximately 2,500 fireworks being launched during a span of 10 minutes. Happening on select weekends and holidays from May 30 to November 22, the fireworks are viewable from the island’s free-to-enter boardwalk area or the paid Hakkeijima Sea Paradise amusement park grounds.

Utilising state-of-the-art digital controls, the fireworks are timed to blast with musical beats to the nearest tenth of a second, illuminating the night sky as if the sparks danced to the music.

Shows start from 8.30pm (8pm from October onwards) on May 30, Jun 27, Jul 18-19 & 25, Aug 1, 8, 15 & 29, Sep 19-22, Oct 10-11, Nov 21-22 and Mar 20-21, 2027.

Check the event website for the latest details.

One of Tokyo's three German beer fest spin-offs this autumn (including Shiba Park and Tachikawa), Munich Oktoberfest kicks off on September 18 at Urban Dock LaLaport Toyosu. This beer extravaganza at least manages to fall within a few weeks of the original German beer-fuelled festival it's copying, running from September 18 until October 12.

As with all the other Oktoberfests in town, you can enjoy pints of German beer served in glasses that can fill up to a litre, alongside bratwurst and sauerkraut. There will be oompah bands to sweeten the mood.

Entry is free and you can pay as you go. Do note that the event is mostly cashless; you can pay via credit card, PayPay, IC card, QuicPay, ID and other forms of electronic payment.

South Korean digital art and design firm D’strict is joining hands with Sanrio to bring a popular interactive exhibit to Japan for the first time after a successful run in Seoul last year. Utilising the latest digital media technologies, the hotel-themed exhibition in Shinjuku’s Tokyu Kabukicho Tower takes you on a photogenic and immersive journey through 11 themed areas in the imaginary hotel, with characters such as Hello Kitty, My Melody, Kuromi, Cinnamoroll and Pompompurin appearing in their own dreamy, fairytale-like rooms.

While the full details are still under wraps, expect to see a plentiful line-up of exclusive Sanrio merch, including Hotel Floria room key charms, hotel sticker sets and travel-themed accessories.

The exhibition space is located on the fourth floor. Tickets are now on sale via Eplus.

Sound, visual art and site-specific elements blend together in innovative and challenging ways at Ambient Kyoto, a multisensory, immersive exhibition that now makes its first foray into Tokyo, landing at Azabudai Hills Gallery. The display centres on the installation ‘async – immersion’, envisioned by the much-missed Ryuichi Sakamoto and Shiro Takatani of Dumb Type and first presented in Kyoto in 2023.

Inspired by Sakamoto’s 2017 album async, ‘async – immersion’ features visuals by Takatani and spatial audio design by sound engineer ZAK, whose fingerprints are all over many of Sakamoto’s late-career projects. At Azabudai Hills, the work has been reconstructed exclusively for the venue, with the setup including a 26-metre-wide screen for displaying the video elements of the installation.

True to the title of the work, the aural and visual components are aligned but not fully synchronised; their constantly shifting relationship rewards attentive viewing and encourages visitors to approach the work on their own terms.

A visionary who worked along the boundaries between art, design and everyday life, Ettore Sottsass (1917–2007) was one of the most influential figures in 20th-century Italian design. Rising to prominence in the 1950s through his groundbreaking work for the typewriter and computer manufacturer Olivetti, Sottsass redefined industrial design by infusing functional objects with emotion, symbolism and wit. His restless creative spirit culminated in the 1981 founding of the Memphis Group, an international collective whose bold colours, playful forms and radical aesthetics came to define post-modern design and reshape global visual culture.

‘Design begins where magic begins’ at the Artizon Museum is the first comprehensive retrospective of Sottsass’s work in Japan. Drawing from the Ishibashi Foundation’s extensive collection, the exhibition brings together 112 works spanning the entirety of its subject’s long and prolific career, from early experiments to later, more philosophical creations.

Through furniture, industrial design and conceptual works, the exhibition traces Sottsass’s lifelong challenge to strict rationalism and his belief that design should reflect the emotional and spiritual dimensions of human life. Humour, colour and sensuality emerge as tools with which he sought to illuminate the lived experiences, desires and contradictions of modern society. Offering a rare opportunity to encounter Sottsass’s work in depth, the exhibition reveals a visionary who insisted that true design begins with imagination and magic.

To celebrate its 100th anniversary, the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum hosts an exceptional exhibition showcasing masterpieces borrowed from one of the world’s most iconic institutions. Founded in 1753, the British Museum houses the most comprehensive collection of Japanese art outside Japan, reflecting over a century and a half of fascination with Japanese aesthetics.

‘Edo in Focus’ brings together a carefully curated selection from the museum’s 40,000-piece collection, including folding screens, hanging scrolls and narrative handscrolls from the Edo period (1603–1868). You’ll also encounter celebrated ukiyo-e prints by eight masters, including Utamaro, Sharaku, Hokusai and Hiroshige, that capture the vibrancy of Edo culture.

Beyond the artworks themselves, the exhibition sheds light on the history of Japan-UK cross-cultural exchange and the figures who shaped it, such as the surgeon and early collector William Anderson. By tracing how Japanese art inspired and connected people across continents, the show invites visitors to reflect on the enduring dialogue between Japan and the world, and on Edo’s timeless artistic spirit.