Sumidagawa is a pretty big one but I’d warn you that there will be a LOT of people. (A big emphasis to lot)
You can buy seats for the one held in Jingu Stadium. However, it started raining almost the moment the show started last year. I presume the people who got seats either got wet or didn’t see much of the show because they went home.
We usually watch the show nearest our place from a pedestrian walkway that goes over a nearby highway. The fireworks are a little small, but there’s no problem at all with access or crowding.
If you’re willing to travel, Nagaoka, Niigata is one of the top fireworks in Japan.
Really, all of the shows in Tokyo (23 wards at least), are reasonably train accessible, so no real worries there.
My summer recommendations are the Adachi and Katsushika shows.
Adachi will be on a Saturday, so maybe most convenient in that context. It will be bigger than usual this year, so the crowds may be crazy too, but if you go to the north side of the river, it’ll be easier to get a decent spot vs the mysteriously more popular south side.
Katsushika is on a Tuesday and in the Shibamata area, so it’s not the most convenient, but at 20,000 fireworks, it’ll probably be the biggest in the city this year. Here too, it’s usually better to go out to the east, Chiba-side, of the river. It’s a longish walk from the closest station, but not undoable, even in the summer heat.
Sumidagawa is overrated due to its historical significance, but given its locations and layout, it’s basically impossible to get as full an experience as you can get with other shows. You’re compromising on comfort, visibility and/or intensity no matter where you watch from. For the other shows I mentioned it’s not that hard to get all three as long as you properly consider where to watch from and don’t just follow the crowd.
Omagari in Akita Prefecture is considered one of the best displays in Japan. I know it’s super far from Tokyo but you can ride the Shinkansen to Sendai and they have shuttle buses from there.
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Sumidagawa is a pretty big one but I’d warn you that there will be a LOT of people. (A big emphasis to lot)
You can buy seats for the one held in Jingu Stadium. However, it started raining almost the moment the show started last year. I presume the people who got seats either got wet or didn’t see much of the show because they went home.
We usually watch the show nearest our place from a pedestrian walkway that goes over a nearby highway. The fireworks are a little small, but there’s no problem at all with access or crowding.
If you’re willing to travel, Nagaoka, Niigata is one of the top fireworks in Japan.
Really, all of the shows in Tokyo (23 wards at least), are reasonably train accessible, so no real worries there.
My summer recommendations are the Adachi and Katsushika shows.
Adachi will be on a Saturday, so maybe most convenient in that context. It will be bigger than usual this year, so the crowds may be crazy too, but if you go to the north side of the river, it’ll be easier to get a decent spot vs the mysteriously more popular south side.
Katsushika is on a Tuesday and in the Shibamata area, so it’s not the most convenient, but at 20,000 fireworks, it’ll probably be the biggest in the city this year. Here too, it’s usually better to go out to the east, Chiba-side, of the river. It’s a longish walk from the closest station, but not undoable, even in the summer heat.
Sumidagawa is overrated due to its historical significance, but given its locations and layout, it’s basically impossible to get as full an experience as you can get with other shows. You’re compromising on comfort, visibility and/or intensity no matter where you watch from. For the other shows I mentioned it’s not that hard to get all three as long as you properly consider where to watch from and don’t just follow the crowd.
Omagari in Akita Prefecture is considered one of the best displays in Japan. I know it’s super far from Tokyo but you can ride the Shinkansen to Sendai and they have shuttle buses from there.