What's on in Nagoya, Japan through the year

Busy — Winter break (fuyuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in February.

Peak crowds — Cherry blossom, Spring break (haruyasumi) in Japan

• Nature

  Cherry blossom

  25 Mar – 10 Apr · usuallyCrowded

  The castle moat and the four-kilometre bank of the Yamazaki river are the two everyone walks. Nagoya opens a day or two before Tokyo most years.

Peak crowds — Cherry blossom, Spring break (haruyasumi) in Japan

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Cherry blossom (25 Mar – 10 Apr (usually))

Busy — Golden Week in Japan

Nothing new starts in May.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Tsuyu rain season

  5 Jun – 20 Jul · usuallyMonsoon

  The rain front sits over the Nobi plain for six weeks and takes the edge off nothing — it stays humid throughout. Good weeks for the Tokugawa museum and the underground city.

Busy — Summer break (natsuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament

  5–25 Jul · usuallyMajor festivalBook early

  Fifteen days from the first or second Sunday of July, now in the new arena beside the castle. Same-day standing tickets exist but the queue for them starts before the box office opens. Source ↗

• Season

  Peak summer heat

  15 Jul – 5 Sep · usuallyExtreme heat

  The Nobi basin traps heat and humidity better than anywhere else on the main line, and the city regularly runs hotter than Tokyo or Osaka. Plan the day around the underground arcades.

Still on: Tsuyu rain season (5 Jun – 20 Jul (usually))

Busy — Summer break (natsuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Typhoon season

  1 Aug – 30 Sep · usuallyClosures

  Ise Bay is the reason this city takes storm surge seriously. Practically it means a shinkansen day lost between Tokyo and Osaka, which is Nagoya's whole role for most travellers. Source ↗

Still on: Peak summer heat (15 Jul – 5 Sep (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Peak summer heat (15 Jul – 5 Sep (usually)), Typhoon season (1 Aug – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Nagoya Festival, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Nagoya Festival

  15–25 Oct · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The city's own October weekend of stages and floats. The warlord procession that used to close the roads through the centre is not being run in 2026, so check the programme before planning around it. Source ↗

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in November.

Busy — Winter break (fuyuyasumi) in Japan, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.