Halloween is a time of the year to dress up, enjoy some candy, and pull pranks on those who might not be expecting it. It’s also an opportunity for people to learn more about different cultures and customs from around the world. In Japan, Halloween falls on November 31st and many Japanese celebrate by dressing up as Western-style ghosts or other creatures like vampires, goblins, and witches. The traditional costumes are called “yōkai”. They usually consist of masks with large round eyes that often have exaggerated features such as fangs or long noses.
Do People In Japan Love Halloween?
Not to be stereotypical but Japanese people are known for their discipline, work ethic, and highly immaculate culture. So it might come as a surprise to some but they are very creative and fun-loving person. If they weren’t then how would the world be able to enjoy high-quality anime content? You can also see their creativity when it’s Halloween time. The Japanese people love to celebrate Halloween. Like the rest of the world, people in Japan also like to dress up as their favorite scary character and go trick a treating. It is one of the most popular days in the country.
Let’s take a look at some of the ways people celebrate Halloween in Japan
Dress Up As Ghosts, Spirits, and Other Super Natural Beings and Characters
One of the most popular ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan is by dressing up as your favorite character. For example, you could dress up like a ghost or other supernatural beings and go trick-treating from door to door. You can also visit various events that are going on around the city during this period
Go To the Haunted House at an Amusement Park
There’s nothing scarier than being trapped inside a haunted house with creatures lurking everywhere waiting for their turn to scare you out of your wits! If you’re into that kind of thing then maybe visiting one such attraction will give you some spooking experience. It might not be so bad if it’s just fake blood but what do I know? It’s all about having fun!
Go Trick or Treating Around the City!
Trick or treating is one of the most popular ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan. If you’re living around Tokyo then this should be relatively easy for you because many events are happening all over the city during that period. Many people will walk around their neighborhood and knock on doors asking if they can get some candy from them. It’s pretty safe considering it doesn’t even take place at night but always better to be safe than sorry so try not to go alone just in case something goes wrong. This is also a good way to meet new friends too!
Play Some Pranks on Your Friends, Family, and Neighbors
We’ve all done it at some point in our lives, it’s called pulling pranks on people. One of the most popular forms of this is scaring someone by popping out from behind them without warning and saying something like “Boo!” or even dressing up as a ghost to scare unsuspecting passersby! It’s fun for everyone involved that’s for sure but you should only do things like this if your friends are into that kind of thing otherwise they might not appreciate it.
Don’t Forget To Enjoy Some Candy With Your Family And Friends!
Halloween wouldn’t be complete with candy now would it? You might not get any trick-or-treating opportunities considering Japan doesn’t celebrate Halloween so why don’t try spending more time with your family instead!? I bet they’ll appreciate it. You can also go to an event and enjoy some free candy together as a family! It’s always nice spending time with your loved ones, isn’t it?
Enjoy The Street Parties!
One of the best ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan is by going out and enjoying a few drinks with your friends. Many street parties will be happening so you can check those out too. It’s always fun drinking at a crowded place, isn’t it? You also get to meet new people as well! I recommend you change up your usual hangout spot just for something different from time to time because then things won’t seem so boring now would they?
Join Halloween Parties Being Held At Night Clubs!
Going to a party with your friends is another good way of celebrating Halloween in Japan. If you’re not into dressing up as ghosts and other scary creatures then why don’t you join some nightclubs that are having their Halloween-themed parties? You might even get lucky enough to meet new people at these kinds of events too! I’m sure they’ll be more than happy to talk with someone like yourself so it’s all about striking conversations, isn’t it? That’s something that the Japanese love doing anyway! There will also be free booze which makes things much easier if we can avoid paying for drinks, right guys!?
Give Out Some Candy To The Kids Around Your Neighborhood!
Giving out some candy to the kids around your neighborhood is another great way of celebrating Halloween in Japan. This isn’t just limited to children either, even teenagers will appreciate it too! Plus this might be more fun than trick or treating because you get to talk with everyone that comes by. It’s not all about moping inside the house during that period so I recommend going outside and catching up on how things are going for other people living close by. You also learn a lot from talking with them as well which is always good right?
Have A Costume Party At Home With Your Family And Friends!
If there aren’t any events happening near you then why don’t you have a costume party at home instead!? Having a costume party with your friends and family is a great way to celebrate Halloween in Japan. You can even make it an annual event if you want because everyone will look forward to the next year after seeing how much fun they had last time. It’s also super cheap when compared to going out somewhere which is always good right?
Decorate The House With Scary Items and Ornaments!
Decorating your house with scary items and ornaments was one of the best ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan. You can either buy some new stuff for it or use what you already have lying around somewhere inside your home! It’s always fun decorating things, isn’t it? Not only does this help set up a spooky feel but everyone will appreciate how creative you are because they might not be feeling that way themselves. That means more compliments for me right!?
Have A Scary Movie marathon At Home!
If you don’t feel like going out and doing anything else then why not have a scary movie marathon at home instead!? Watching some spooky movies is another good way of celebrating Halloween in Japan. It’s always fun watching them with friends as well because it gets those shivers down your spine. If there aren’t any scary movies available to watch then I suggest that you make one yourself. That way everyone will be talking about how awesome the costumes were afterward which I’m sure all of us can agree on, right?
Join The Halloween Parade In Kawasaki!
If you’re ever in Japan during Halloween then I suggest that you join the Halloween parade happening over at Kawasaki. This is one of the most unique ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan because it’s not something you can see every day! You get to wear all sorts of costumes and even dress up as your favorite anime character. It doesn’t matter how old are either, anyone who wants to have fun should be able to participate so don’t feel shy about joining this or anything else for that matter. That means more happiness is brought into my life too right!?
Visit Events with Street Zombies
In Japan, there are different events held in parks and other areas where you can see zombies on the streets that chase you. So they try to create a very scary environment where they make people look like real zombies. These zombies slowly roam around the park like any zombie from your favorite movie or TV show would. They just walk around and try to scare people. If you’re brave enough, then why don’t you visit these events as well!?
Instead of Using Pumpkin as an Ornament: The Japanese Eat It
As already mentioned, the Japanese culture is very disciplined. This is why they don’t use a food item as an ornament. However, they know that pumpkins are associated with Halloween so instead of using pumpkin as an ornament they use it to make tasty pumpkin dishes. When it is Halloween time, the Japanese make a range of different pumpkin-related dishes. This includes cakes, cookies, and even pies. They are quite popular among the locals as well so if you ever have a chance to taste them then I suggest that you do!
Attend the Halloween Horror Night at Universal Studio Japan
One of the most unique ways to celebrate Halloween in Japan is by attending the Halloween horror night at Universal Studio Japan. This is an event where they create a very scary environment with lots of scary characters and animatronics. If you’re someone who likes being scared then this would be perfect for you! You could even dress up as one of your favorite characters from any anime or TV show because everyone else will probably do that too right?
Check it out!-https://www.usj.co.jp/web/en/us/events/halloween-2024/halloween-horror-nights-2024
Attend Kid Friendly Events at Tokyo Disneyland
Whether it is in the United States of America Japan or anywhere else in the world, Disneyland knows how to celebrate Halloween in the best and the scariest way possible. There are kid-friendly events at the Tokyo Disneyland where you can watch some movies and even get to go on scary rides. This is a very fun activity for kids because they like going to all these different places with their families! If you ever have a chance then I suggest that you check this out as well. You might not be able to attend it every year but knowing that there will always be one happening during Halloween makes me happy alright?
Check it out!-https://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/tdl/show/detail/945
Ikebukuro Halloween Cosplay Festival
The last thing I wanted to talk about in this blog post is the cosplay festival that happens at Ikebukuro during Halloween. This takes place over two days, so if you’re not too busy then why don’t you join them for an entire weekend? There are lots of interesting events there like performances and other stuff related to anime characters. So it’s perfect for any fan out there! Every year they always get a lot more people than before which results in even bigger lines but trust me when I say that everyone will have fun here alright!?
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