Tokyo Autumn Foliage Guide: Timing, Spots, and Planning

Foliage guides say to visit Tokyo "mid-November to early December" for peak colors. This flattens three weeks into one recommendation and misses how Tokyo's fall foliage works.

The Two Waves Most Guides Don't Explain

Tokyo has two separate fall foliage peaks on different schedules:

Tree Type	Peak Dates	Color
Ginkgo	November 25-27	Yellow
Maple	November 28 - December 2	Red
Both near peak	November 27-29	3-day window

These are different trees. Visit November 15-20 and you're seeing pre-peak colors—mostly green with hints of yellow. Visit December 5 and you've missed ginkgo entirely, catching only the tail end of maple.

Why Timing Varies More Than Cherry Blossoms

Fall foliage timing shifts 1-2 weeks year-to-year based on autumn temperatures. Cherry blossoms shift about a week.

The difference: cherry blossom forecasts become accurate 4-6 weeks before bloom when green buds appear. Fall foliage timing stays uncertain until mid-October when temperature patterns become clear.

Warmer autumns push peak later. Colder autumns bring it earlier. The Japan Meteorological Corporation releases weekly foliage forecasts starting in October, shifting by several days as new data comes in. Seasonal tour timing covers how guides monitor these forecasts and adjust recommendations.

When "Mid-November" Actually Means

Mt. Takao, in western Tokyo, peaks 2-4 weeks earlier than central Tokyo—early to mid-November. Visit Tokyo November 10-15 and Mt. Takao will be 80-100% peak while Meiji Jingu Gaien is still mostly green.

Central Tokyo locations (Meiji Jingu Gaien, Rikugien Garden, Shinjuku Gyoen) hit peak late November to early December.

Dates locked in for early November? You're seeing foliage at different elevations and stages, not missing it entirely.

The complexity isn't knowing where the trees are. You can Google "Meiji Jingu Gaien" and find the ginkgo avenue. The complexity is knowing when to visit each spot, how to sequence locations efficiently, and what timing makes the difference between mediocre photos and worthwhile ones.

The Four Things That Aren't Obvious Until You Miss Them

Location scatter creates navigation problems. Meiji Jingu Gaien (ginkgo) is in one part of Tokyo. Rikugien Garden (maple) is in another. Shinjuku Gyoen has both but only certain gates give you efficient access. Mt. Takao is an hour from central Tokyo.

First-time visitors lose 2-3 hours per day to navigation: wrong station exits, transfer confusion, figuring out which entrance to use. By the time you navigate to three locations, you've spent more time on trains than looking at leaves.

Crowd timing changes everything. Meiji Jingu Gaien at 7:30 AM on a weekday is peaceful. The same spot at 1 PM on Saturday is wall-to-wall tourists.

Rikugien Garden on a weekend during peak season requires lining up just to enter. The same garden on a weekday afternoon has space to enjoy.

Photography timing matters as much as location. Ginkgo trees need backlit golden hour light—early morning or late afternoon. Harsh midday sun washes out the yellow tones. Photos taken at noon look flat compared to early morning shots.

Maple trees are different. They photograph better in soft overcast light, avoiding harsh shadows on the red leaves. Cloudy days actually improve maple photography while making ginkgo look dull.

Real-time adaptation requires monitoring forecasts. Following last year's peak dates misses by a week. Guides check weekly foliage reports from the Japan Meteorological Corporation and adjust based on current conditions.

Ginkgo peaked early that year? Shift focus to maple and secondary locations. Rain forecasted? Prioritize indoor-outdoor combinations or evening illumination.

Why 7:30 AM Matters More Than Which Spot You Visit

The difference between arriving at Meiji Jingu Gaien at 7:30 AM versus 1 PM on a Saturday:

	7:30 AM	1 PM Saturday
Crowds	Peaceful	Wall-to-wall; some give up after 20 minutes
Light	Golden hour, backlit	Harsh midday, washed out
Photos	Clean shots, full tunnel effect	Nearly impossible unobstructed
Street	Open to traffic, empty	Closed, pedestrian mall

This pattern holds at every major foliage location. Early morning or late afternoon beats midday. Weekdays beat weekends.

What Evening Illumination Changes

Rikugien Garden holds evening illumination during foliage season, November 28 - December 9. The garden stays open until 8:30 PM (last entry 7:30 PM) instead of its normal 5:00 PM closing.

The trees are lit from below, maple leaves reflecting on the pond surface, projection mapping on the storehouse walls. A completely different experience from daytime viewing—and most tourists don't know about it.

Tickets cost ¥1,200 day-of (cash only at counter, expect 10-20 minute waits on weekends) or ¥1,000 advance purchase online. Advance purchase recommended for weekends, which sell out.

Fall foliage tours aren't for everyone. The decision isn't "guided or wrong"—it's "guided or DIY," and both work depending on your situation. Are private tours worth it covers the general trade-offs.

The Time vs. Experience Trade-off

DIY saves money but costs time—2-3 hours per day on navigation, wrong exits, transfer confusion.

A guide costs money but saves time. The guide handles navigation, knows optimal timing for each spot, and adjusts the day based on lighting and crowds.

The question: Is your Tokyo time limited enough that navigation time feels expensive? Or do you have 5+ days and enjoy figuring things out?

When DIY Makes Perfect Sense

DIY works if you...	Guide makes sense if you...
Have 5+ days in Tokyo	Have 2-3 days
Are comfortable with trial-and-error	Care about photography timing
Just want to see pretty leaves	Want both ginkgo and maple in one day
Plan to visit one location	Are visiting during peak window (Nov 25 - Dec 2)
Enjoy figuring things out	Can't afford to guess wrong

Fall foliage doesn't blow away in rain like cherry blossoms. Once peak arrives, leaves stay colorful for several days. Time to adjust and try again tomorrow? DIY works.

The guide isn't showing you where the trees are. The guide is optimizing timing, lighting, sequencing, and real-time adaptation based on that day's conditions. What it's like touring with a private guide covers how this works in practice. If photography is central to your trip, photography-focused tours structure the day around golden hour timing and evening illumination.

A foliage tour isn't about location knowledge. You can Google "best fall foliage Tokyo" and get 10 listicles. The tour solves the optimization problem: when to visit which spot, in what order, at what time of day, based on current conditions.

Not Location Knowledge — Timing Knowledge

Timing optimization. Visiting during the crossover window (November 27-29)? A guide can show you ginkgo at its tail end and maple at peak in one day. Visiting earlier? The guide focuses on Mt. Takao and early-changing locations. Visiting later? The guide adjusts to maple-heavy locations and secondary spots still showing color.

Crowd avoidance. Meiji Jingu Gaien at 7:30 AM instead of 1 PM Saturday. Rikugien on a weekday instead of weekend chaos. Aoyama Cemetery (adjacent to Meiji Jingu Gaien, equally beautiful ginkgo, one-tenth the crowd) instead of fighting through tourists.

Photography strategy. Golden hour for ginkgo (backlit, warm light). Soft light for maple. Evening illumination at Rikugien for dramatic nighttime shots.

Efficient sequencing. Meiji Jingu Gaien → Aoyama Cemetery (5-minute walk, peaceful alternative) → travel to Rikugien (maple) → Shinjuku Gyoen (both types). Minimizes train time, maximizes foliage time.

Real-time adaptation. Ginkgo at 80% peak but maple at 100% that day? Adjust focus. Rain? Shift to evening illumination or indoor-outdoor combinations. Crowds heavier than expected? Pivot to secondary locations.

Rikugien vs Yanaka: The Famous Garden Tradeoff

Rikugien Gardens is Tokyo's most famous fall foliage spot. That fame creates friction.

	Rikugien	Yanaka
Foliage quality	Best in Tokyo—multiple maple and ginkgo, meticulously maintained	Good, not spectacular—integrated into streetscape
Travel time	30-40 min each way from central Tokyo	10-15 min from Shimbashi/Ueno
Peak crowds	10-20 min waits; illumination events much longer	No waits, no queues
What else is there	Garden only	Temples, Yanaka Ginza shopping, old Tokyo atmosphere
Wheelchair access	NOT fully accessible—much of garden inaccessible including most scenic spots	Temple areas vary; shopping street is flat and manageable
Best for	7-10 day trips, foliage-priority visitors	3-4 day trips, foliage as context

Accessibility note: If mobility is a concern, Shinjuku Gyoen offers better wheelchair access than Rikugien—free wheelchair rentals available at each entrance, accessible toilets, and paved paths throughout most areas. The Japanese Garden section within Shinjuku Gyoen is harder to navigate, but the Western and French formal gardens are fully accessible. For wheelchair users, use Shinjuku Station or Shinjuku-sanchome Station to access the Shinjuku Gate—other nearby stations have stair-only exits.

Rikugien deserves its reputation. Built 1695-1702 as an Edo-period strolling garden, it has the best foliage intensity in Tokyo. The illumination events during peak season create photo opportunities daytime visits don't offer.

The problem is logistics. A Saturday afternoon during peak: 30 minutes there, 20 minutes waiting, 45 minutes inside, 30 minutes back. That's 2+ hours of overhead for 45 minutes of viewing. On a 3-4 day trip, that allocation matters.

Yanaka offers a different equation. What travelers rate higher is integration: you're already there for temples, Yanaka Ginza shopping street, the old Tokyo atmosphere. Foliage becomes context rather than destination.

The timing differential matters too. At 7 AM in late November, gardens and temples are nearly empty. By 11 AM, they're crowded. Weekdays are dramatically less crowded than weekends. Unlike cherry blossom season where crowds are extreme regardless, fall crowds concentrate but vary by time and day—making timing execution valuable.

The 7:30 AM Advantage

Most tour operators start at 9 or 10 AM. Starting at 7:30 AM means:

• Arriving at Meiji Jingu Gaien before crowds

• Getting clean photos without tourists in frame

• Experiencing golden hour lighting

• Having time to visit 3-4 locations efficiently instead of 1-2 rushed spots

Not every traveler wants to start at 7:30 AM. But if photography is a priority or you want to avoid crowds, early starts change the experience.

If you're doing DIY foliage viewing, knowing exact stations and exits saves significant time:

Location	Nearest Station	Line(s)	Exit	Walking Time
Meiji Jingu Gaien	Gaienmae	Ginza Line	Exit 2	3 min
Meiji Jingu Gaien	Aoyama-itchome	Ginza/Hanzomon/Oedo	Exit 1	5 min
Rikugien Garden	Komagome	JR Yamanote/Namboku	South Exit	7 min
Shinjuku Gyoen	Shinjuku-gyoenmae	Marunouchi	Exit 1	5 min
Shinjuku Gyoen	Shinjuku-sanchome	Marunouchi/Fukutoshin	Exit C1	8 min
Koishikawa Korakuen	Iidabashi	JR/Metro	Exit A1	8 min
Yanaka Cemetery	Nippori	JR Yamanote	West Exit	5 min
Mt. Takao	Takaosanguchi	Keio Line	Main Exit	At trailhead

Navigation tips:

• Use Google Maps with "walking" mode after exiting stations—GPS is reliable above ground
• Meiji Jingu Gaien's ginkgo avenue runs north-south; approach from Gaienmae for the iconic tunnel view
• Rikugien has two entrances—main gate (染井門) and side gate (駒込門); main gate has ticket office
• Shinjuku Gyoen closes at 4:30pm (4pm in winter); last entry 30 min before

Here's the honest cost breakdown for a fall foliage day:

Expense	DIY	With Guide
Transportation	¥800-1,500 (~$6-10)	Included in walking; you pay trains
Garden admissions	¥500-1,200 (~$3-8)	Same—you pay directly
Lunch	¥1,500-3,000 (~$10-20)	Same—you pay directly
Guide fee	$0	$430-550 for 6-8 hrs (2 people)
Navigation time lost	2-3 hours	0
Wrong timing mistakes	Likely on first attempt	Unlikely
Total (2 people)	~$40-60 + time	~$470-600

The math: A guided foliage day costs roughly $400 more than DIY for a couple. That's the price of expertise in timing, sequencing, and real-time adaptation.

When DIY makes sense:

• You have 5+ days and can absorb a "learning day"
• Photography isn't a priority
• You're visiting one location, not optimizing multiple spots
• Budget is the primary constraint

When guided makes sense:

• You have 2-3 days during peak window
• Photography timing matters (golden hour, illumination)
• You want both ginkgo and maple in one optimized day
• November 27-29 crossover window (most complex timing)

The Evening Illumination Secret

Rikugien Garden's evening illumination runs November 28 - December 9 (dates vary slightly year-to-year). Most tourists visit during daytime and miss it.

The illumination shows maple leaves lit from below, reflecting on the pond. Projection mapping on storehouse walls. Different mood, different colors, different experience.

A foliage-focused tour can combine daytime viewing at multiple locations with evening illumination at Rikugien, showing both perspectives in one day.

Timing your visit correctly matters more than which spots you choose.

When to Check Forecasts

Start checking forecasts 4-6 weeks before your trip. Initial forecasts are preliminary but give you a rough window. Two to three weeks out, they become more accurate.

The Ideal Window for Both Types

Want to see both ginkgo (yellow) and maple (red) near peak?

Your Dates	What You'll See	Best Strategy
November 15-25	Ginkgo ramping up, maple mostly green	Head to Mt. Takao for early color
November 27-29	Both near peak (crossover window)	Prioritize this window
November 30 - December 7	Ginkgo past peak, maple at full color	Focus on maple locations; fallen ginkgo creates golden carpet effect

What to Do If Your Dates Are Off

Arriving too early (early November)? Focus on Mt. Takao (peaks 2-4 weeks before central Tokyo) or accept pre-peak colors.

Arriving too late (mid-December)? Focus on maple locations (Rikugien, Koishikawa Korakuen) where some color may remain.

Build flexibility if possible. Having 2-3 days of flexibility in your schedule helps you adjust to actual conditions.

Here's what to expect in terms of format, booking windows, and how guides handle variability.

Tour Format Options

Format	Duration	Best For
Full-day	6-8 hours	Ginkgo or maple focus depending on timing
Multi-day	2 separate tours	Both types, 3-5 days apart
Photography-focused	Starts 7:00-7:30 AM	Golden hour timing + evening illumination

Full-day vs half-day options covers how to choose based on your schedule. All tours are fully customizable. Specific locations you want to prioritize or photography goals? The guide adjusts the itinerary accordingly. Infinite Tokyo works for combining foliage with other interests, while Tokyo Essentials works well for a foliage-focused full day.

Booking Windows for Peak Season

Fall foliage season (mid-November) is peak demand, equal to cherry blossom season.

8-12 weeks advance booking recommended for November dates. Prime dates (Thanksgiving week, November 27-29 crossover window) book up 6 months in advance. How far in advance to book breaks down timing by season.

Last-minute bookings work but with limited guide availability. Booking within 2-3 weeks of your dates? Availability becomes hit-or-miss.

Booking earlier also allows more time for pre-tour consultation—you discuss interests, the guide begins planning the customized itinerary. The booking process explains how consultation and guide assignment work.

What Happens If Colors Are Off

Foliage timing varies 1-2 weeks year-to-year. Guides monitor weekly reports and adapt: shifting to maple-heavy locations if ginkgo peaked early, or adjusting to Mt. Takao if maple is late. The tour happens regardless—the itinerary just flexes to current conditions.

Tours proceed in all weather unless you cancel. Rain doesn't ruin foliage (leaves don't blow away like cherry petals). What happens if it rains explains how guides adapt routes.

Foliage spots vary significantly in wheelchair and mobility-impaired accessibility. Traditional Japanese gardens prioritize aesthetics over accessibility—gravel paths, uneven stepping stones, and subtle grade changes create challenges.

Location Accessibility

Location	Wheelchair Access	Walking Difficulty	Notes
Meiji Jingu Gaien	Excellent	Easy (flat sidewalks)	Best accessibility of all foliage spots. Wide paved paths.
Shinjuku Gyoen	Good	Easy-moderate	English/French gardens accessible. Japanese garden section has gravel. Wheelchair rental available at gate.
Ueno Park	Good	Easy	Broad paved paths throughout. Adjacent museums fully accessible.
Koishikawa Korakuen	Limited	Moderate	Traditional garden. Some paved sections, but gravel paths and uneven terrain dominate.
Rikugien Garden	Limited	Moderate	Classic stroll garden with gravel, bridges, and uneven surfaces. Wheelchair users can access perimeter but not full circuit.
Hamarikyu Gardens	Partial	Moderate	Main paths accessible. Tea house on island requires bridge crossing with steps.
Mt. Takao	Not accessible	Difficult	Mountain hiking. Cable car accessible but trails are not.

Accessibility-Focused Foliage Itinerary

If mobility is a concern, the most rewarding foliage day focuses on:

1. Morning: Meiji Jingu Gaien ginkgo avenue (flat, excellent access)
2. Midday: Lunch in Omotesando (accessible restaurants)
3. Afternoon: Shinjuku Gyoen English/French gardens (paved paths, wheelchair rental)

This avoids traditional gardens where the best foliage often requires navigating difficult terrain.

Station Accessibility Notes

Station	Elevator Access	Notes
Gaienmae (Ginza Line)	Yes	All exits
Komagome (Rikugien)	Yes	South exit elevator available
Shinjuku-gyoenmae	Yes	Exit 1 has elevator
Iidabashi (Korakuen)	Yes	JR and Metro elevators available

All stations serving major foliage spots have elevators, though some require navigating longer routes to accessible exits. Check Toei/Metro accessibility maps or ask station staff.

Fall foliage tours can work well for families, but require different pacing and location choices than adult-only trips.

Stroller-Friendly Locations

Location	Stroller Access	Notes
Shinjuku Gyoen	Good	Paved paths throughout French and English gardens. Japanese garden section is harder. Wheelchair/stroller rentals available.
Meiji Jingu Gaien	Excellent	Flat, wide sidewalks along ginkgo avenue. Easy viewing.
Ueno Park	Good	Broad paved paths. Multiple playgrounds nearby for breaks.
Rikugien	Limited	Traditional garden with gravel paths and uneven terrain. Not recommended for strollers.
Mt. Takao	Not practical	Hiking trails. Leave stroller at hotel.

Kid-Friendly Strategies

Shorten viewing time, add play breaks. Kids don't need 45 minutes at each garden. Ten to fifteen minutes of "look at the pretty leaves," then a playground stop or snack break. Ueno Park has multiple playgrounds within the foliage viewing area.

Morning over afternoon. Kids have better energy and patience in morning. The crowds are also lighter before 10am, which means less stroller navigation stress.

Ginkgo over maple for young kids. The golden carpet of fallen ginkgo leaves at Meiji Jingu Gaien is tactile and playful—kids can kick through leaves, pick them up, make leaf piles. Maple viewing at traditional gardens requires more "look but don't touch" behavior.

Have an indoor backup. If kids hit a wall, pivot to an indoor activity. Ueno has museums (National Museum of Nature and Science has dinosaurs). Shinjuku has department store rooftop playgrounds.

Evening illumination is magical but late. Rikugien's illumination starts at 5pm and runs until 8:30pm. Doable for older kids (8+), challenging for toddlers who are used to early bedtimes.

Peak foliage in Tokyo lasts days, not weeks. A guide who tracks the color progression gets you to the right garden on the right morning — before the crowds arrive.

Book your private fall foliage tour →