Things to do in Tokyo today

Brazilian-American visual artist Oscar Oiwa is returning to Tokyo with a solo exhibition at Shibuya Hikarie. Oiwa is known for his unique way of expressing global issues through social satire and plenty of humour, which he builds into his multimedia compositions. Born in São Paulo, Oiwa started his artistic career in Japan before moving to New York, where he is currently based. He has previously held large-scale exhibitions at prominent museums and art festivals around Japan, including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo and the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale. Oiwa's upcoming exhibition in Tokyo centres on the fictional aquatic creature ‘Oil Octopus’, and how it lives through turbulent times as an expression of ongoing environmental issues. The show features a range of new artworks including 25 paintings, videos and three-dimensional pieces. ‘Oil Octopus’ made its first appearance in Oiwa's 1999 painting 'Aquarium', but here you'll get to experience the creature as a guide to the exhibition as it drifts in and out of Shibuya Hikarie via banners and artwork displays on multiple floors of the building. Another highlight of the exhibition is the massive mural on the fourth-floor Hikarie deck. The final touches of the mural will be completed by Oiwa himself during a public showcase on May 3, and the piece will remain on display until September. Additionally, a giant balloon which was previously shown at the Keelung Art Festival in Taiwan will also be on display. If you're around

Tachikawa's Showa Kinen Park isn't content with merely hyping sakura: its Flower Festival takes place over three months and celebrates the blooms of tulips (in April), poppies and rapeseeds (May) and water lilies (May), of course in addition to the cherry blossoms in March and April. 2024 marks a special milestone for Showa Kinen Park, as the massive green space is celebrating its 40th anniversary. To commemorate the occasion, park officials will be planting a staggering 1.8 million nemophila plants, which will turn into a gorgeous sea of blue once they bloom.  Along with flower-viewing, the park will be hosting a number of floral-themed events, and dedicated photo spots will be set up on the premises. Photo sessions will include time to take pics among the park’s 250,000 colourful tulips without crowds in the background, while a special spot will allow you to capture the nemophila accented with soap bubbles.

Taking over the expansive outdoor lawn within the children’s play area at Meiji Shrine’s Outer Gardens, the Forest Beer Garden distinguishes itself from other boozy events in town with its lush green surrounds and bubbling waterfall. The popular two-hour all-you-can-eat (¥5,880) option includes everything from barbecue beef, pork and lamb to veggies, yakisoba noodles, grilled onigiri and even ice pops. It includes an all-you-can-drink selection of seven kinds of beers including Kirin and Heineken, in addition to whisky, sours, wine and soft drinks. Despite being one of the largest beer gardens in Tokyo with a capacity for around 1,000 people, the event can get extremely busy at weekends, so advance bookings are recommended via the website.

Niku Fes is back this Golden Week, bringing one of Tokyo's biggest meat festivals to Odaiba. It’s celebrating its eleventh anniversary this year, which means there'll be live music as well as an extensive line-up of meat dishes. You can feast on a range of food such as A5 rank steak, wagyu sushi, slow-roasted beef, beef bowls and kebabs from around two dozen restaurants across Japan. Make sure to also try dishes from one of the eleven restaurants participating in the World Meat Showdown. These restaurants have prepared hearty dishes inspired by the cuisines of nine different countries, and you can vote for your favourite.  There will also be sparkling sake from Ichinokura Breweries in Miyagi Prefecture and refreshing Belgian Hoegaarden beer to accompany your meal. You can enjoy desserts, too, including churros, crepes and kakigori shaved ice.  While there are plenty of benches to sit on, purchasing the VIP experience gets you a dining space for four people. You can reserve it in advance on the website for ¥12,000, which comes with free festival merchandise. Groups of up to ten people can go for a high-class VIP upgrade, which costs ¥80,000 and includes a bottle of champagne. If you’re here on April 26, 30, May 1 or 2, the entire facility will transform into a beer garden from 4pm to 9pm, when all beer will be ¥500. The first 500 customers to enter from 4pm will also receive free Niku Fes official goods.  Need a break from all the eating? Head over to the stage area for music

The sixth edition of Flower and Light Movement is taking place at Toneri Park in Adachi this year. The park has around 1,000 cherry blossom trees as well as a field of baby blue eyes (nemophila), both of which will be illuminated from 6pm to 9pm. Ukima Park in Itabashi (about 50 minutes away) is also taking part in the Flower and Light Movement event.

You can catch free movies at Shibuya Stream this spring from April 28 to May 12. One to two different films will be screened each day, including the likes of ‘Top Gun Maverick’, ‘Ghost Busters’, ‘Mamma Mia’, 'La La Land’ and 'Baby Driver'.  Most movies will be in English with Japanese subtitles, but there will also be a few dubbed in Japanese. Screening times depend on the day, but you can check the schedule on the website. The event is free and no tickets are required. However, reservations aren't accepted and space is limited, so we recommend arriving earlier to guarantee a seat.

Yokohama's Minatomirai area will be transformed into a Star Wars galaxy over Golden Week 2024 to celebrate Star Wars Day on May 4. For fans of the iconic space saga, May 4 is known as Star Wars Day, as the iconic line ‘May the force be with you’ cheekily sounds a lot like ‘May the 4th be with you’.  Celebrations include a host of events and exhibitions that will take place across Minatomirai, at venues such as Landmark Plaza, Mark Is Minato Mirai, the Sky Building, Yokohama City Hall, Grand Mall Park and around Sakuragicho Station. At Landmark Plaza, you’ll find an exhibition featuring images of famous scenes from the movies showcased along with music. The plaza will also host a Yoda statue on the third floor as well as posters for all the movies. There'll also be a Star Wars Pop-up Store where you can pick up merch like T-shirts, tote bags, figurines and smartphone accessories. A special screening of all nine Star Wars movies will be held at the new United Cinemas theatre at Mark Is Minato Mirai from May 3 to May 6. The movies will be in English with Japanese subtitles. Additionally, there will be 3D lego models of iconic Star Wars characters like R2-D2 and BB-8 shown at the Mark Is Minato Mirai Grand Galleria. Want to own your own lightsaber? You'll also be able to pick up a lightsaber-shaped balloon here between May 3 and 5 (from 10am, while stocks last).  Head on over to the Sky Building to catch the special Star Wars: Visions exhibition featuring nine short animations cr

The colourful Children’s Day koinobori carp streamers are an annual sight at Tokyo Tower, and this year you can see them at the main entrance from March 20 through Golden Week until May 6. There are 333 streamers set-up here, signifying the 333m height of the iconic tower.  Among the 333 streamers, there's one that's not a carp – see if you can spot the sanma (pacific saury) nobori. This unique inclusion is Tokyo Tower's way of sending hope to the region affected by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. As this display is held right outside the tower on the ground level, you don't need a ticket to see this joyous sight.  

One of Tokyo’s largest koinobori festivals takes place at the foot of Tokyo Skytree with 1,500 carp streamers fluttering in the air. The traditional koinobori carp streamers are put up to celebrate Children’s Day, which happens every May 5 during Golden Week.  If you visit the Postal Museum on the ninth floor, you can participate in a fun workshop to make your own koinobori from used stamps for ¥300 (¥150 for high school students and under) until May 6. Additionally, other activities will also be taking place at venues around Tokyo Skytree Town including a fake food workshop at Ganso Shokuhin, goldfish scooping at Aqua Forest, and a 'Delicious in Dungeon' exhibition at Tokyo Solamachi East Yard.

Head over to Komazawa Olympic Park during Golden Week to spend an entire day sampling some of Japan’s best gyoza. There will be around 18 stalls offering many different styles of this quintessential Japanese dumpling. Enjoy miso butter and beef katsu gyoza from Hokkaido, juicy A5 wagyu gyoza from Fukuoka, cheese-topped xiao-long-bao-style gyoza from Saitama, Hakata-style hitokuchi (bite-size) gyoza, red bean paste and butter dessert gyoza from Tokyo, and much more. There will also be other dishes like fried rice to go with the gyoza, as well as craft beers from Fujizakura Heights Beer, Peccary Beer and Hokkaido Brewing. There’s no entry fee, so you can just pay as you go. If you want to forgo the hassle of paying at each store, there is a package deal sold online for ¥4,000, which includes five meal tickets and a fast ticket to skip one queue.