While Tokyo enjoys plenty of sunshine throughout the year, it also experiences its fair share of rainy days. If you visit between late June and mid-July, during the rainy season (known as “Tsuyu” in Japanese), you’ll quickly realize that an umbrella is an essential accessory. Wondering how to spend your rainy days in Tokyo? Fear not! Below, you’ll find some ideas to keep you entertained even in the wettest weather.
Relax at an Onsen (Hot Spring Bath)- Enjoy hot water inside when it’s raining outside. (MORE ON THIS)
Experience interactive art – Enjoy a unique immersive art experience (MORE ON THIS)
Visit an aquarium – Enjoy a jellyfish kaleidoscope tunnel, a penguin exhibit, and more (MORE ON THIS)
Cultural Experiences– Try your hand at the Tea Ceremony and making Japanese sweets (MORE ON THIS)
Explore the Tokyo National Museum- Age restrictions and using the bicycle outside Tokyo (MORE ON THIS)
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You don’t need to go to the mountains to experience natural hot springs. Tokyo has a number of onsen (hot spring) facilities for you to enjoy. One example of this is the “Yumetenku no Yu Ariake Garden.” This is a 24-hour hot spring facility located within the Ariake Garden complex in Tokyo Bay. This onsen offers a variety of baths, including an open-air bath with natural hot spring water sourced from 1,500 meters underground, known for its high sodium content and moisturizing properties. The facility features eight types of baths and saunas, such as bubble baths, carbonated springs, and jet baths, catering to diverse relaxation needs. Additionally, visitors can enjoy bedrock baths, body care services, massages, and scrubbing treatments. The complex also includes restaurants and lounges, allowing for a full day of relaxation. Opened in June 2020, Ariake Garden also houses a large shopping mall, restaurants, a hotel, and a theatre, which will give you plenty of things to do on a rainy day.
Usage Fee: ￥2,600 for adults (￥3,800 on the weekends), Children 4 to 12 – ￥1800 on any day. Overnight fee charged if you use facility between 1AM to 5AM.
Access: Approximately 4 minutes on foot from Ariake station or Ariake Tennis no Mori station on the Yurikamome Line.
The Google map link is here
Another fun thing to do on rainy days is to visit the teamLab Borderless digital art museum. This is a truly unique experience in which digital technology is used in an interactive way to create immersive environments that transform how visitors experience art. Known as a “museum without a map,” it features a seamless world of artworks that move out of rooms, relate to other works, influence each other, and intermingle without boundaries, creating a continuous, borderless experience. Spanning a massive 10,000 square meters and divided into five zones, the museum encourages visitors to immerse themselves in the art, explore with intention, and create new worlds with others. It showcases about 50 digital artworks that move around the space, interacting both with other pieces and visitors. Highlight exhibits include the Forest of Resonating Lamps, where lamps light up and change colors with movement; Crystal World, an installation of thousands of LED lights; and the En Tea House, where digital flowers bloom on your tea. This innovative use of digital technology makes teamLab Borderless one of Tokyo’s most popular immersive art experiences.
Entrance Fee: ￥3,800-4,800 for adults (depends on day of week), ￥2,800 for 13 to 17-year olds, ￥1500 for children aged 4 to 12. (Prices may vary depending on the time of year or day of week)
Access: Approximately 2 minutes on foot from Kamiyacho station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line, or 9 minutes from Roppongi-Itchome station on the Namboku Line.
The Google map link is here
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Located on the 5th and 6th floors of Tokyo Skytree, the tallest building in Tokyo, the Sumida Aquarium is home to 10,000 sea creatures from 400 different species. One of its highlights is the Jellyfish exhibit, featuring a huge petri-dish-like display with 500 jellyfish and a 50-meter-long “Jellyfish Kaleidoscope Tunnel” with sloped walls and a mirrored ceiling. Another notable exhibit is the “Tokyo Bay Tank,” which replicates the aquatic environment of nearby seas, allowing visitors to learn about its inhabitants. Additionally, there is a large open-air tank containing penguins and fur seals. A great advantage of visiting the Sumida Aquarium on a rainy day is that it’s located within the Tokyo Skytree complex, offering a full day of indoor activities, including observation decks, a planetarium, the “Solamachi” shopping zone, art and cultural exhibits, and kids’ play areas.
Entrance Fee: Varies greatly depending on day of week/time of year, and number of people in your party. You can purchase tickets at the vending machines, when you get there but it is recommended to buy online here as it is a highly popular spot.
Access: Direct access to Tokyo Skytree Town on Tobu Skytree Line. A 3-minute walk from Oshiage station (subway Hanzomon and Asakusa lines, and Keisei Oshiage line)
The Google map link is here
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If you are at a loss for what to do on a rainy day in Tokyo, you could do a lot worse than visit Tokyo Maikoya in Asakusa and learn about and then try your hand at performing the Japanese Tea Ceremony. Depending on the option you choose, the package includes the loan of a kimono, which (of course) they will help you put on, a demonstration of the tea ceremony in English and an opportunity for you to try it yourself. Naturally, Japanese green tea and Wagashi (Japanese sweets) come included.
Usage Fee: There are a range of options, starting out at around ￥3600 per person for a 45-minute introduction to the tea ceremony without kimonos, to around ￥12,000 for the full works – Japanese tea ceremony + Japanese sweet making and wearing a kimono in a 120 minute session. See here for options and bookings.
Access: Approximately 2 minutes on foot from Asakusa station on the Tsukuba Express or 10 minutes on foot from Asakusa station on the Metro Ginza line.
The Google map link is here
The Tokyo National Museum, located within Ueno Park, is Japan’s oldest and largest museum and a great place to spend a rainy day in Tokyo. Established in 1872, it houses an extensive collection of art and cultural artifacts from Japan and other Asian countries, focusing on the preservation, exhibition, and research of cultural properties from Japan and East Asia. The museum’s main buildings include the Honkan (Japanese Gallery), which features Japanese art from ancient times to the 19th century; the Toyokan (Asian Gallery), displaying art and artifacts from various Asian countries; the Heiseikan, focusing on Japanese archaeology and special exhibitions; and the Hyokeikan, a historic building used for special events. The museum also features a beautiful traditional Japanese garden open to visitors during specific times of the year and boasts a host of national treasures and important cultural properties from its impressive collection of over 100,000 items.
Admission Fee: As of the time of writing, admission is ￥1,000 for adults (ages 18-70), ￥500 for students with ID, and free for everyone else (including disabled). Separate fees may be required for certain exhibits.
Access: Approximately 10 minutes on foot from Ueno station (JR and subway lines)
The Google map link is here
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