For the second year in a row, I found myself in Tokyo for New Year’s. Unlike most of the world, where New Year’s Eve is another excuse to get smashed and celebrate loudly, New Year’s in Japan is pretty much the exact opposite of that, with family time taking priority over debauchery. As a result, many people in Japan “go home” and stay in over New Year’s, filling family obligations before connecting with friends and visitors. Most restaurants and businesses close early (by 1600) if they’re open at all. A lot of businesses take several days off during the New Year’s holiday, so if you’re doing your first Japan visit during this time, you will find that a lot of businesses and attractions will be closed.
New Year’s is also unique in that this is the only day of the year when the trains (JR, Eidan and Toei) run all night. Granted it’s a abbreviated schedule, but at least they’re running. If you find yourself out that evening, take a picture of the schedule that’s posted so you don’t come back to the station and have to wait for an hour for the next train back.
One tradition that visitors can partake in is hatsumode (初詣), the first shrine visit of the new year. The way to think about the new year is that it’s an opportunity to wipe the slate clean. Pay your debts and make amends for the past year and make wishes and pray for a good new year. Many of the major shrines in Tokyo get slammed over the first days of the new year as practically everyone is off work. Meiji-Jingu in Shibuya which is probably the best known shrine had over 3 million people visit over the first three days of the year. Many choose to visit on New Year’s Eve night, as I’ve done the past couple of years.
During my New Year’s visits, I stayed at the Hyatt Regency Tokyo (Shinjuku). Even though it’s overshadowed by it’s glam cousins, the Park Hyatt and the Grand Hyatt (Roppongi), the Hyatt Regency Tokyo has a good location, the club rooms are very nice and best of all, there’s a 7-11 in the basement AND has direct underground access to Tochōmae Station on the Toei Oedo Line. The hotel had a small New Year’s celebration in the lobby with singers and free champagne to toast at the stroke at midnight. The entire shindig ended just short of 0030. When I visited the Meiji Shrine last New Year’s, my friends and I arrived at the shrine close to 0100 and wound up queuing with 400,000 others to pay our respects. That took just about 3.5 hours. So, I thought, if I leave later, perhaps the queues won’t be as thick and I won’t be outside so long in the cold. At 0200, I made my way to the subway and 20 minutes later, I was at the Meiji Shrine. Where there was a slightly shorter queue. The wait was only two hours before I made it to the front.
Due to the lateness (or earlyness) of the hour, after I made my offering, I purchased new omamori and recycled my old ones and hightailed it back to the hotel where my warm bed and room awaited me. Usually there’s food stands and amakaze just outside the shrine area for snacking and fun but many of the booths were closed due to the late late hour.
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