What to Book Before Your Japan Trip: When Tickets Go on Sale for the Ghibli Museum, teamLab, Sumo, Disney and the Shinkansen, and What You Don't Need to Book

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Some of Japan's best-known experiences can't be bought on the day. The Ghibli Museum, teamLab Planets and Tokyo Disney Resort sell no tickets at the door, sumo tournaments can sell out, and on the busiest holidays the fastest Shinkansen (bullet train) has no unreserved seats at all. This guide lists what to book before you fly, when each booking opens according to the official pages, and, just as useful, the many things you can simply turn up for.

Planning around sale dates can feel like one more job before a trip. In practice, it comes down to a handful of dates in your calendar, and our Japan trip checklist covers everything else.

Book these first: no tickets at the door

These three are sold only in advance, so don't plan to buy on the day.

• Ghibli Museum, Mitaka (Tokyo): the museum's ticket page says no reservation or ticket purchase can be made at the museum. Tickets for the next month go on sale at 10:00 Japan time on the 10th of each month, online through Lawson Ticket; the other official route from overseas is a bus tour by Sunrise Tours JTB. Buying tickets to resell is not allowed. See Ghibli Museum tickets and rules.
• teamLab Planets TOKYO (Toyosu, Tokyo): the museum's FAQ says tickets are not sold on-site. Tickets can't be cancelled or refunded, but tickets from the official ticket store can be moved to another date or time up to 3 times, no later than 2 hours before your entry time. See teamLab Planets tips.
• Tokyo Disney Resort (Urayasu, Chiba): the official FAQ says park tickets are not sold at the resort, and asks guests to buy a ticket with a fixed date in advance. Online tickets go on sale every day at 14:00 Japan time for the same date 2 months later. See Tokyo Disney Resort tickets and rules. Going to Universal Studios Japan in Osaka instead? See is the USJ Express Pass worth it.

Book on the sale date: sumo and festival seats

Professional sumo holds six 15-day tournaments a year, and advance tickets go on sale roughly one to two months before each one. The Japan Sumo Association's schedule lists the January 2027 tournament in Tokyo (January 10 to 24, 2027) with advance tickets from December 5, 2026, and the March 2027 tournament in Osaka (March 14 to 28) from February 6, 2027. Tickets can sell out. Buy from the official ticket site, not resale sites; our sumo tickets guide explains how, and what to do if your dates miss a tournament.

Some big festivals sell paid seats along the procession route. For example, the Kyoto City Tourism Association sold paid viewing seats for the Aoi Matsuri (Kyoto's festival procession on May 15) online through Ticket Pia, with general sales from April 1, 2026. Sale dates change from year to year, so check the official festival page a few months before you travel.

The Shinkansen at busy times

JNTO, Japan's national tourism organization, lists the Shinkansen among the things that need a booking. On the busiest holidays, the rules change: JR Central says that during these periods every Nozomi train between Tokyo and Hakata (Fukuoka) runs with reserved seats only, while Hikari, Kodama, Mizuho, Sakura and Tsubame trains keep their unreserved cars. JR Central lists these remaining all-reserved periods for the year to March 2027:

• November 21 to 23, 2026 (a three-day holiday weekend)
• December 25, 2026 to January 5, 2027 (the year-end and New Year holidays)
• January 9 to 11, 2027 (a three-day holiday weekend)
• March 20 to 22, 2027 (a three-day holiday weekend)

When can you book? JR Central says reserved seats go on sale at 10:00 Japan time 1 month before the travel date at stations and on JR's other booking sites. On smartEX, its own booking service for the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen, you can apply from 5:30 1 year before, but the train, time and seat are only confirmed after 8:00 1 month before, by email. smartEX also lets you change your train for free, as many times as you like, before you collect your ticket or go through the gate (within 3 months of the original purchase).

Two more things to book with the seat: a seat with an oversized baggage area if your suitcase is large (see trains and buses in Japan), and the right ticket if you're weighing up a rail pass (see Japan Rail Pass or single tickets).

Rooms in the busiest seasons

JNTO's guide to reservations names spring cherry blossom season and autumn foliage season as the busiest times, and says weekdays and dates away from major holidays such as Golden Week (a run of national holidays from late April to the first days of May) and Obon (Japan's summer holiday for honoring ancestors, around mid-August) are easier to book and often cheaper. If your trip falls in one of these periods, book your rooms first and plan the rest around them. See the best time to visit Japan, month by month, cherry blossom season and autumn leaves.

Restaurants

JNTO says many restaurants need a booking, especially in the downtown areas of the most popular destinations. Booking windows run on Japan time, some places ask for a card or deposit, and some online services ask you to confirm 24 to 48 hours before. If plans change, cancel as early as you can. Our guide to restaurant reservations covers how to book without speaking Japanese.

What you usually don't need to book

Not everything has to be planned. JNTO notes that subways, commuter trains and local buses don't need reservations, and that casual places such as fast-food chains, family restaurants and ramen shops usually seat people first come, first served. On the Shinkansen, the unreserved cars on Hikari and Kodama trains stay open even on the busiest holidays, although they can be crowded. Many attractions that do use booked entry times don't limit how long you stay once you're inside.

Once the few fixed sale dates are in your calendar, the rest of the trip can stay flexible. For everything else to sort out before you fly, go back to the Japan trip checklist.

Last reviewed: October 23, 2026. Sale dates, prices and booking rules change. Please check the official pages below before you book.