G’day all. We will be in Tokyo from December 26 until January 03 (travelling to Hakuba that morning) and seeking some advice particularly on any closures during the New Years period.
The itinerary is not too detailed in terms of activities and food as we are quite happy to just wander around and eat what we feel like at the time. Also happy to bring our luggage with us on days where we’re swapping hotels.
* **Tuesday, Dec26:** Land in the evening; check-in to Akasaka sleep capsule; dinner at Tsujihan (Akasaka Ark Hills)
* **Wednesday, Dec27:** Check-out of sleep capsule (just wanted to try one for a night); teamLab; Tokyo Joypolis; check-in to Asakusabashi hotel
* **Thursday, Dec28:** Tsukiji Market; explore Ginza; Pokémon Café (hopefully); dinner at Manten Sushi
* **Friday, Dec29:** DisneySea
* **Saturday, Dec30:** Explore Yokohama; Cup Noodles Museum; Gundham Factory. Explore Harajuku.
* **Sunday, Dec31:** Explore Akihabara. Skytree in the evening followed by dinner there (Sky Restaurant 634); then go out for some drinks, karaoke, and see fireworks?
* **Monday, Jan01:** Check-out Asakusabashi hotel; Senso-ji; Tokyo Tower; Yoyogi Park; check-in to Shibuya hotel; Inokashira Park; explore Sangenjaya
* **Tuesday, Jan02:** Explore Shibuya; Shibuya Sky during sunset. Explore Shinjuku at night (bars, karaoke, and jazz clubs would be nice)
* **Wednesday, Jan03:** Check-out Shibuya hotel and travel to Hakuba
Main questions:
1. Particularly on December 31 and January 02 when we are out at night (will only be out until 01:00 the latest I presume); how late does public transport run? What’s the easiest way to get back to the hotel otherwise?
2. Are there any obvious closures or time presses in the itinerary? How “dead” will shopping places like Akihabara, Shibuya, and Harajuku be during the times we’re there?
3. Do fine dining places typically close during this period? I’ll check when it’s time to book each one but a general heads-up would be nice. Specifically looking at *Sky Restaurant 634* (on NYE), *L’Effervescence*, and *Harutaka*, and hopefully any others I’m able to book.
Any and all advice is much appreciated, cheers!
4 comments
Public transport stops running around midnight. A couple of Yamanote, Shonan-Shinjuku and Chuo line services are usually running on New Year’s Eve throughout the night, but they were cancelled last year, so you should see how it goes.
Note that any night services will be focused on getting people into/out of Meiji-Jingu area though.
Let’s start with an easy one: there are no fireworks on NYE in Tokyo. It’s not a thing.
I was in Japan for new years 2023 and my advice would be to manage your expectations on restaurants being open for the first few days of the year. We walked or trained to many spots in Tokyo that were closed (and Google maps said they were open.) no shade to them, they were lil mom and pop spots but it did get a little frustrating. So just keep this in mind.
There are typically fireworks in Hakuba for New Years but not in Tokyo. Hakuba will have far more of a New Year’s party environment if that’s what you want. In Tokyo there are cool winter illuminations and you could go to hear the ringing of the bells at midnight but be prepared for massive crowds. See these past posts for more on traveling in Japan during New Years.
– [Winter Travel Tips](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
– And [Winter Travel Tips: Part II](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/zmplkv/tips_for_winter_travel_and_new_years_in_japan/j0camjw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3)