Christmas in Japan

Christmas in Japan falls on December 25 (not a public holiday). For many families the celebration stretches across several days, with quieter moments at home alongside the busier public events.

Cities are decorated with extensive illumination displays known as iruminēshon. Christmas Eve is often spent as a date night, similar to Valentine's Day in other countries.

A bucket of fried chicken, popularised by a long-running marketing campaign, is one of the most common Christmas Eve meals. Many families also buy a soft sponge Christmas cake topped with strawberries and cream.

Gifts are exchanged mainly between couples and from parents to younger children. Adults rarely exchange gifts on Christmas Day itself.

The festive figure most associated with Christmas in Japan is Santa-san. Names, costumes and gift giving dates can vary from family to family and from region to region.

Japanese strawberry shortcake, light sponge layered with cream and strawberries, has been the iconic Christmas cake in Japan since the 1920s.

For most families in Japan, Christmas is not a single day. It is a stretch of four to six weeks that starts in late November and runs into early January. Advent shapes the first half. Shops, streets and homes warm up gradually. By the time the main date of December 25 (not a public holiday) arrives, the city has already been festive for a month.

The week between Christmas and the New Year is quieter than the build up. Many workplaces close. People visit older relatives, take long walks, eat the leftovers slowly and watch the same films they watched as children. Epiphany on January 6 closes the season in most Christian traditions.

• How early the season starts. Christmas lights in Japan usually appear in the second half of November, well before December begins.
• How small the gift exchange can feel compared with the food, the music and the time spent at the table. Christmas here is more about gathering than about unwrapping.
• How important Santa-san is to the children, and how stories about the gift bringer differ from town to town and from family to family.
• That most shops close on the main holiday. Plan grocery runs a day in advance and you will avoid the only stressful part of the trip.

Christmas markets and main festive events usually run from late November to a few days before December 25. If you want the full atmosphere, aim for the first or second week of December. Book trains and intercity buses early. Prices on the busiest travel days can double.

Pack for the weather you would expect in late winter in this region, plus one warmer layer for evenings outside. Bring small gifts if you are staying with a family. A box of sweets from your own country always lands well.

For the rituals, dishes and gift bringers in other countries, browse our Christmas around the world hub or compare customs side by side in the Christmas Traditions Explorer.

Most households start the Christmas list in the first week of December: who is coming, who is cooking, who is travelling and on which day. Gift shopping is usually finished by the second or third weekend of December. The last week is for food, decoration and the small rituals that children remember more than the presents.

Our Christmas checklist works for this kind of season. If the budget is tight this year, the Christmas on a budget guide has ideas that fit most households.