When to Come to Japan? [introduction to Japan]
For most English speakers, coming to Japan is probably a once in a lifetime vacation. It’s really far, from my hometown’ it’s 14 hours of flying time, plus a transfer. The tickets are also really expensive. That means when coming here, you should make the most of your tip.
One way to maximize your experience in Japan, is to choose a good time to come. Japan is a fairly large country, and it spans a great deal from tropics in the south to what I would call sub artic in the north. There is a lot in between. Taking a flight, and bringing a large variety of clothes just isn’t practical. Also, you don’t want to be here when there are essentially public holidays.
Cherry blossom season, or cherry blossom viewing is a great time to come. It starts in early to mid-March in the south, and slowly moves north when the last flowers have blossomed by early May. The Tokyo area has peak blossoms around mid/late March. I think that’s the perfect time to come here. The weather is more mild, you just need a jacket, and you are fine. It’s usually not that rainy either.
What is also really cool, is that you can follow the blossoms as they bloom going north. In Japan a lot of people head to parks and areas with cherry trees, and have blossom viewing parties. They spread out sheets on the ground, bring some food, and drink some serious beer. It’s fun to see Japanese people let their guard down. As a foreigner here, this might maximize your interactions with otherwise shy Japanese people. You might just be able to share a sheet and drink under some blossoms. Who knows?
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Another good time to come is the end of May. You miss Goldern Week in early May. There are 3 days off, that are public holidays, and everyone either goes on vacation or goes to their parent’s house. It makes traveling hard, and going to public places like Disneyland, parks museums a terrible option. Disneyland will actually get so full they close the gates until some people leave. So missing Golden Week is a good idea. I was a student in the Osaka area in 2008, and went to Tokyo for Golden Week. The Bullet Train was standing room only.
In Tokyo and most of Japan May is pretty warm to hot, so you’ll be able to get around with jeans, T-shirts and maybe long sleeves. You pretty much won’t need anything heavier than a wind breaker. This also means you can enjoy the outdoors a lot, and be able to check out some of the temple gardens in Tokyo and Kyoto that are in bloom. It also means if you go to northern Japan, that you don’t have to bring cold weather clothing.
Summer in Japan is VERY humid. I don’t think I can stress that enough. I like summer, but it’s hot here. If you can stand it, the middle of July is a good time. There are a lot of local and regional festivals. From everything from local shrines and neighborhoods, to major cities having festivals. These are great, because you can sample food from stalls. You can see what people are getting, and what looks good. There are games, but it is the dancing that is interesting. There will be different groups that put on dances, from hip-hop to traditional dancing, to Taiko drums. After that, there usually is a chance for everyone to dance a traditional dance. A very cool chance to see come local fare as well as interact.
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Winter is pretty chilly. I’m from near DC, so snow is nothing new to me. The winters are pretty windy and marine like. I went to Hakodate, in Hokkaido during the winter. It was COLD! Even with warm clothes, it was pretty cold. It was an a amazing place to visit, but the cold made it hard to do as much as we wanted to do. It doesn’t help that they don’t clear the streets and sidewalks of snow and ice.
Fall can be beautiful as well. At the end of September, the humidity breaks, and a cooler crispness falls over the Tokyo area. The days are hot, but the nights are cool and crisp. This is another good time, as it’s still warm, but not uncomfortably so.
Anyhow, hope you come , and hope you enjoy your trip. Come and experience it!
One way to maximize your experience in Japan, is to choose a good time to come. Japan is a fairly large country, and it spans a great deal from tropics in the south to what I would call sub artic in the north. There is a lot in between. Taking a flight, and bringing a large variety of clothes just isn’t practical. Also, you don’t want to be here when there are essentially public holidays.
Cherry blossom season, or cherry blossom viewing is a great time to come. It starts in early to mid-March in the south, and slowly moves north when the last flowers have blossomed by early May. The Tokyo area has peak blossoms around mid/late March. I think that’s the perfect time to come here. The weather is more mild, you just need a jacket, and you are fine. It’s usually not that rainy either.
What is also really cool, is that you can follow the blossoms as they bloom going north. In Japan a lot of people head to parks and areas with cherry trees, and have blossom viewing parties. They spread out sheets on the ground, bring some food, and drink some serious beer. It’s fun to see Japanese people let their guard down. As a foreigner here, this might maximize your interactions with otherwise shy Japanese people. You might just be able to share a sheet and drink under some blossoms. Who knows?
Sponsored Link
Another good time to come is the end of May. You miss Goldern Week in early May. There are 3 days off, that are public holidays, and everyone either goes on vacation or goes to their parent’s house. It makes traveling hard, and going to public places like Disneyland, parks museums a terrible option. Disneyland will actually get so full they close the gates until some people leave. So missing Golden Week is a good idea. I was a student in the Osaka area in 2008, and went to Tokyo for Golden Week. The Bullet Train was standing room only.
In Tokyo and most of Japan May is pretty warm to hot, so you’ll be able to get around with jeans, T-shirts and maybe long sleeves. You pretty much won’t need anything heavier than a wind breaker. This also means you can enjoy the outdoors a lot, and be able to check out some of the temple gardens in Tokyo and Kyoto that are in bloom. It also means if you go to northern Japan, that you don’t have to bring cold weather clothing.
Summer in Japan is VERY humid. I don’t think I can stress that enough. I like summer, but it’s hot here. If you can stand it, the middle of July is a good time. There are a lot of local and regional festivals. From everything from local shrines and neighborhoods, to major cities having festivals. These are great, because you can sample food from stalls. You can see what people are getting, and what looks good. There are games, but it is the dancing that is interesting. There will be different groups that put on dances, from hip-hop to traditional dancing, to Taiko drums. After that, there usually is a chance for everyone to dance a traditional dance. A very cool chance to see come local fare as well as interact.
Sponsored Link
Winter is pretty chilly. I’m from near DC, so snow is nothing new to me. The winters are pretty windy and marine like. I went to Hakodate, in Hokkaido during the winter. It was COLD! Even with warm clothes, it was pretty cold. It was an a amazing place to visit, but the cold made it hard to do as much as we wanted to do. It doesn’t help that they don’t clear the streets and sidewalks of snow and ice.
Fall can be beautiful as well. At the end of September, the humidity breaks, and a cooler crispness falls over the Tokyo area. The days are hot, but the nights are cool and crisp. This is another good time, as it’s still warm, but not uncomfortably so.
Anyhow, hope you come , and hope you enjoy your trip. Come and experience it!
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