When To Go - Best Time to Visit Japan?

City life
Modern and exciting cities make up much of the Japanese landscape, encapsulated by sleek bullet trains, flashing neon lights and dizzying skyscrapers. Scratch the surface to find hidden temples, preserved samurai quarters and local markets.
City life
Food
From delicate sashimi to prime grade steaks washed down with a local beer or a cup of hot sake, every mouthful you try in Japan will certainly be memorable and more often than not, delicious.
Food
Ryokan accommodation
A stay in a Japanese ryokan inn is an unbeatable opportunity to experience true Japanese hospitality, including kaiseki cuisine, hot onsen baths and sleeping on a tatami mat.
Ryokan accommodation
Scenery
Although the image of Japan is that of skyscrapers and flashing neon, most of the country is rural, rugged and mountainous, providing excellent walking and hiking in the summer and skiing in the winter.
Scenery
Temples & shrines
Kyoto alone has over 1600 Buddhist temples and 400 Shinto shrines paying homage to a number of different deities and gods. Enter the through the large torii gate and contemplate.
Temples & shrines
Traditional culture
From tea ceremonies and flower arrangements to lavish Geisha attended kaiseki banquets, Japanese culture is the most refined and elaborate in the world.
Traditional culture

Japan

By Post Download Online 9063986

When to Go to Japan

This is a rough guide to when to travel to this region. Choose a month of travel to see typical temperature and rainfall around the country. The ticks indicate our recommended months to travel.

38.281

134.396

46.483264729155586

29.190532832294554

150.88623046875

127.6611328125

Sapporo

43.0547222
141.3538889

Janurary
- -2
- 110
- 3
February
- -1
- 90
- 4
March
- 3
- 79
- 5
April
- 11
- 64
- 6
May
- 17
- 58
- 6
June
- 21
- 67
- 6
July
- 25
- 76
- 5
August
- 26
- 140
- 5
September
- 22
- 140
- 5
October
- 16
- 114
- 5
November
- 8
- 105
- 3
December
- 2
- 106
- 2

Fukuoka

33.5883113449015
130.400848388672

Janurary
- 9
- 76
- 3
February
- 10
- 75
- 4
March
- 14
- 102
- 5
April
- 19
- 142
- 6
May
- 23
- 147
- 6
June
- 26
- 254
- 5
July
- 31
- 266
- 6
August
- 32
- 166
- 7
September
- 28
- 202
- 5
October
- 23
- 90
- 6
November
- 18
- 78
- 4
December
- 12
- 63
- 4

Tokyo

35.685
139.7513889

Janurary
- 10
- 47
- 6
February
- 10
- 62
- 6
March
- 13
- 101
- 5
April
- 19
- 122
- 5
May
- 23
- 138
- 6
June
- 25
- 184
- 4
July
- 29
- 132
- 4
August
- 31
- 147
- 6
September
- 27
- 185
- 4
October
- 21
- 174
- 4
November
- 16
- 90
- 5
December
- 12
- 50
- 6

Select a month
of travel:

JanuaryJan
FebruaryFeb
MarchMar
AprilApr
MayMay
JuneJun
JulyJul
AugustAug
SeptemberSep
OctoberOct
NovemberNov
DecemberDec

Climate data provided by Weather2Travel.com

The Japanese Archipelago covers 20 degrees of latitude, and so the climate varies greatly, ranging from temperate in the north island of Hokkaido to sub-tropical in Okinawa in the far south. Essentially Japan’s four seasons resemble our own, but conditions are more pronounced, with a significantly colder and snowier winter and a much hotter, stickier summer.

Spring and autumn are the best times to travel, with the delicate cherry blossom or turning leaves adding a gorgeous hue to the scenery. The cherry blossom begins its journey northward in mid-March, reaching Kyoto and Tokyo by early April, and finally arriving in Sapporo by early May. The autumn leaves reverse the pattern, touching the high peaks of Hokkaido in mid-October and marching steadily south to Kyoto by mid-November.

For hikers and lovers of the outdoors the summer months offer ideal conditions in the mountains of the Japanese Alps and Hokkaido’s wild national parks, or for a very different experience why not visit Japan in the winter, when the people of the snowy north brighten the dark days with a host of colourful festivals and events.

Okinawa can be visited all year round but for the best weather and least chance of typhoons, May and October are ideal. Summer is the peak season for domestic tourism and also sees the highest levels of rain and threat of high winds.

View Map & Highlights

Highlights Of The Year

{5EB26F7C-E0B4-41D0-81FD-FC3A3A7D81F0}Japanese cherry blossom season, Japan

March

April

The cherry blossom season (called hanami locally) is a national institution in Japanese society. Hanami (hana meaning flower and mi meaning to see or view) sees families, friends, work colleagues and sporting teams gather to sit on blue tarpaulin on avenues lined with cherry blossom trees and sing, chat and generally make merry until darkness falls.

View experience

{808A08AF-A6D7-478D-9E03-BF17ABD682FC}Obon Festival, Japan

August

Taking place across Japan, the Obon Festival, also known as the 'festival of lanterns' is a wonderful spectacle of Bon dances, floating lanterns and a huge bonfire. This is lit on the side of Mt Daimonji, Kyoto to help guide the spirits of one's ancestors back to the other world.

View experience

{D38BE562-BF98-4382-B8E9-0CFDBC3A6EDC}Autumn colours of Japan

November

Autumn is a glorious time to be in Japan as the countryside blazes with the fiery reds and dazzling oranges of the turning leaves of indigenous momiji maple tree.

View experience