Step on the romantic Christmas lights!
Winter in Tokyo is always full of surprises. Japanese companies and schools often combine Christmas with the end-of-year vacation, giving the holiday a special meaning in the land. More than just a Western religious holiday, it is a cultural celebration of unity and togetherness. At this time of year, couples walk hand in hand through the brightly lit streets, and families sit around a warm dinner table and share good times.
In addition to the traditional Kentucky Fried Chicken as a festive treat, Christmas light displays throughout the city play an integral role. Compared to other Asian countries, Japan's Christmas atmosphere is particularly strong. Perhaps because of their pursuit of aesthetics, the enthusiasm for light displays is even greater than in some Western countries.
This time, I decided to do a compilation of the Christmas light shows I've walked through, and share with you the beauty of those mesmerizing lights and shadows.
↓See the map below for details↓
A Sparkling Evening at Ebisu
It was the night before Christmas when I arrived at Ebisu Station on the JR Yamanote Line with great anticipation. After leaving the station, it was only a five-minute walk to a sea of colorful lights. I arrived at the Ebisu Garden Plaza Tower, where the famous Christmas light show "Baccarat Eternal Lights - Cherry Blossom Birthday" was being held.
Hundreds of thousands of light globes decorate the square like a fairytale. The towering Christmas tree shines with colorful light and is a sight to behold. As you walk along the avenue of stars, the lights beneath your feet seem to beat in time with your heartbeat. At the end of the walkway stands the world's largest Baccarat crystal chandelier, whose splendor takes your breath away.
Standing under the chandelier, I felt like I was in a dream. The refracted light from the crystals is like a river of stars, mesmerizing you.
Moving on, I saw the quaint building, Joel Robuchon ジョエル・ロブション. This three Michelin-starred restaurant is renowned in Japan, and it is said that in the Japanese drama "Tokyo Women's Picture Book", there is this line: "A woman is an excellent woman if she is able to have a date at Joel Robuchon Restaurant before the age of 30". This shows the high status it holds in the hearts of Japanese women.
The restaurant looks even more noble and elegant under the Christmas lights. Although you don't have a reservation, you can still feel the unique romance and luxury when you stand in front of the door.
If you'd like to treat your significant other to a special night out, click on the image or button below to make a reservation!
Supplementary
"Ichigo Restaurants is a website that provides online reservation service for selected fine dining restaurants. Whether it's a special occasion such as an anniversary, birthday, or a banquet, you can use this site to find the ideal restaurant.
The main services include restaurant search, reservation, and point accumulation. You can filter restaurants based on various criteria such as region, cuisine type, budget, etc., and choose a restaurant by referring to detailed information, photos, and customer reviews. Reservation service is available online 24 hours a day. Users can also accumulate points by using the service and use them for their next reservation.
In addition to restaurants, Ichigo also has its own "Ichigo.com", which is a website for making reservations for selected high-class hotels and spas. Basically, all of the stores listed on this website have a certain level of quality assurance, and there are almost no disappointing hotels or services. Whether you're an event manager looking for a venue or want to surprise your partner, it's definitely a good idea to make a reservation on this site, and you'll even be praised for your sense.
In addition, whether it's a restaurant or a hotel, Ichigo will categorize its members into four levels based on the amount of money spent in the past six months: Regular, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Different levels enjoy different reward point ratios, the higher the spending, the higher the reward, and the highest level of ダイヤモンド members even enjoy exclusive privileges. Member level every 6 months1It is re-evaluated once and updated on the 7th of the following month. The table below shows the point feedback rates for each level.
| Membership Level | general | Gold | white gold | Diamond |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Months | Less than 50,000 yen | 50,000 yen or more | Over 100,000 yen | 300,000 yen or more |
| Domestic Accommodation (Credit Card Payment) | 2% | 3% | 4% | 5% |
| Domestic Accommodation (On-site Payment) | 1% | 1.5% | 2% | 2.5% |
| Restaurant (Package Reservation) | 1% | 1.5% | 2% | 2.5% |
| Restaurant (lunch reservation only) | 25 points | 37 points | 50 points | 50 points |
| Restaurant (dinner reservation only) | 50 points | 75 points | 100 points | 100 points |
| Spa (credit card/on-site payment) | 1% | 1.5% | 2% | 2.5% |
| Overseas Accommodation (Credit Card Payment) | 5% | 5% | 5% | 5% |
Personally, when my family comes to Japan, I use Ichigo to book restaurants and hotels. Not only can my family avoid bad hotels, but I also become a Diamond member very quickly, and when I book hotels again later, I will receive all kinds of Diamond member services, such as late check-out, welcome red wine, or brand-name cosmetics, and so on, so I highly recommend this booking site.
The Double Charm of Roppongi
In bustling Roppongi, there are two famous Christmas light displays, Tokyo Midtown and Roppongi Hills, each displaying its own unique beauty.
Star Garden in Tokyo Midtown
As night fell, I strolled through Shiba Sengen Plaza in front of Tokyo Midtown, and in front of me was the "Starlite Garden" sponsored by the Toshiba Group. The entire plaza seemed to be transformed into a giant light garden, immersing you in a vast sea of lights.
About 180,000 light globes dance to the music, putting on a magnificent light show every three and a half minutes. The lights are so unpredictable, sometimes like a shooting star passing by, sometimes like a star cloud spinning, that people can't take their eyes off of them. Standing in the middle of the sea of lights, I felt like I was in the center of the universe, surrounded by light and shadow, and my heart danced with them.
To get a fuller view of this colorful feast of lights, I climbed up the nearby bridge and Tokyo Midtown Tower to see the whole sea of lights from above. It was unforgettable to see the magnificence and beauty of the lights.
After seeing the Star Garden, I took a stroll along the Forest of Lights. On both sides of the road were colorful Christmas trees and decorative lights, and there was even a show where water and lights were intertwined. The interplay of light and shadow brought a stunning visual enjoyment.
Romantic streets of Roppongi Hills
After leaving Tokyo Midtown, I went to Roppongi Hills. The Christmas light show here is also very special.
The first thing that catches your eye is the towering Christmas lighthouse. The colors of the lighthouse change over time, from warm red to cool blue, and the trees around the lighthouse create a warm and festive atmosphere. A total of 12,000 LED lights and 1,200 incandescent lamps make the whole plaza glow with color.
Another amazing thing was the streets lit up by the lights. The trees on both sides of the road were all dressed up in lights, and as I strolled along, I felt like I was surrounded by a gentle glow. The seemingly simple street is actually lit up with about 1.2 million light globes, and the colors of the lights change over time, with two themes, "Snow and Blue" and "Candle and Amber," creating different atmospheres. (The following video was taken in 2024/12)
At night in Roppongi, I experienced another kind of romance in the city, not only in the colorful lights, but also in the details and changes that bring the heart.
Recommended Restaurants in Roppongi
Union Square Tokyo
Union Square Tokyo, located in Roppongi Tokyo Midtown, is a fine-dining restaurant serving "modern American cuisine" that originated from Union Square Cafe in New York City, and has become a favorite destination for celebrating special occasions such as special holidays, as it combines the fine dining experience of New York style with Japanese food culture.
SUSHI権八 西麻布
Located in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo, SUSHI Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu is a popular Japanese restaurant that serves traditional Japanese cuisine with a focus on sushi and skewers. Its charming décor is especially famous for inspiring the "Aoba-ya" scene in the movie "Bill the Hunter". The restaurant is also popular for being used as a filming location for Japanese TV dramas and variety shows, such as "Gonpachi Nishimabu," an izakaya run by Nagaya Holdings, which was used as a filming location for "Roppongi Class," the Japanese version of the popular drama series "Itaewon Class.
(Updated 2024/12) Here is my personal account of my meal after entering the restaurant. I personally recommend the restaurant as it not only retains the Japanese atmosphere, but also caters to foreign tourists, and each dish is memorable and worthwhile. It's hard to get a reservation at the end of the year because all the Japanese people go back to their hometowns, so if you want to visit this restaurant, it's recommended to make a reservation early.
Restaurant Interior
Set of food (to present the original flavor, only the original color of the iPhone is presented)
The glittering streets of Tokyo Station
Tokyo Station, a building that combines history and modernity, has a unique charm when night falls. I went to the Marunouchi exit and walked into the 6th floor of the KITTE department store. This is the best place to see the whole of Tokyo Station, and it's also a favorite spot for many photographers.
Standing high above the city, Tokyo Station looks grand and elegant against the backdrop of the lights. The red brick walls and domed roofs give off a classical atmosphere at night.
I strolled along two streets, "Marunouchi Nakadori" and "Otemachi Nakadori," along the periphery of the station. The trees on both sides of the street were lit up, and the 1.2-kilometer-long street was decorated with about 1.03 million light globes.
Walking on such a street is like entering a colorful world. With the breeze and the lights flashing in front of you, the hustle and bustle of the city seems to be covered by this beautiful scenery.
Recommended Restaurants in Tokyo Station
Fishmonger Ginpei Marunouchi
Fishmonger Ginpei Marunouchi is a Japanese restaurant specializing in fresh seafood cuisine. The signature dish, "Tilefish Rice," is cooked with fresh seafood from Minoshima in Wakayama and Muroto-misaki in Kochi, and the restaurant is decorated in a modern style with a Japanese and Western atmosphere, making it an ideal setting for receptions, banquets, and family dinners.
Arcana Tokyo
Arcana Tokyo, located on the 6th floor of KITTE Marunouchi in Tokyo Station, is a French restaurant and bar specializing in healthy and delicious cuisine featuring fresh vegetables. Using freshly harvested vegetables from the Miura Peninsula and cooking with minimal oil and salt, Arcana Tokyo offers a wide range of choices for lunch, dinner and afternoon tea, with a variety of seating areas, including private rooms and an outdoor terrace, to suit all occasions. Arcana Tokyo is dedicated to providing an innovative French dining experience that combines the seemingly contradictory concepts of "delicious food and healthy eating" and "surprise and tenderness" to create unforgettable dining moments for its customers.
Shiodome's Dream Music
Among the many light shows in Tokyo, Shiodome's light show is one of the most fantastic in my mind.
That night, the temperature plummeted, the wind stung my bones, and my hands were shivering. However, when I stood in front of Shiodome's light show, all the coldness seemed to be dispelled by the beauty in front of me.
The perfect combination of lights and music, as if telling a fairy tale of the elf kingdom, the 270,000 light globes create a fantasy scene, the bells of the elf bells echo in the night sky, and eight elaborately decorated Christmas trees stand in the square, creating an enchanting atmosphere.
The light show starts at 6pm and runs every 20 minutes. The changing lights dance to the music, and the colors are so vivid that you can't stop watching. I tried to capture the moment with my camera, but my frozen fingers couldn't press the shutter.
Nonetheless, the light show has stuck in my heart.
Shiodome Recommended Restaurants
Nitori Keita Shiodome
Located on the 46th floor of Caretta Shiodome in Shiodome, Tokyo, Aria is an upscale honky-tonk Japanese restaurant known for its stunning 200-meter elevation view, carefully designed menus, and a dining environment suitable for a variety of occasions (e.g., business banquets, anniversary celebrations, etc.). The restaurant offers a wide range of set menus and a la carte dishes using quality ingredients from all over Japan, prepared by a team of experienced chefs who strive to provide customers with an unforgettable dining experience. In addition, AMPLE also emphasizes on customer service and hygiene safety by providing comprehensive facilities and measures, such as parking spaces and a total ban on smoking.
Iron plate, food and iron.
Located on the 46th floor of Caretta Shiodome in Shiodome, Tokyo, Teppan Wagyu and Wine Mantei is a high-class restaurant where you can enjoy Teppan Wagyu cooked with carefully selected seasonal ingredients while enjoying a breathtaking view from 200 meters in the air. Set menus are available for anniversary celebrations, receptions, and banquets, and include luxurious ingredients such as kuroge wagyu beef, Ise lobster, and abalone, creating a special atmosphere.
Annotation Area
- Usage amount per 6-month period: The cumulative amount of usage for each 6-month period from April to September/October to March. ︎
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