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July 12, 2026
 

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NEW YEAR

Anton (right) came to Japan in 1975 and, through her participation in the community, formed long-lasting relationships with her neighbors.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Dec 22, 2025
Making a home in Japan with holiday meals and memories
An American writer reflects on Christmas cake, New Year’s food and the communities she has found in Japan over the course of 50 years.
Japan’s year-end and new year outbound travel is projected to reach 1 million, up 31.5% from last year and about 90% of prepandemic levels, according to a JTB survey.
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2025
One million Japanese estimated to travel abroad during year-end holidays
Travelers are expected to take advantage of a longer break this year, boosting demand for long-haul destinations such as Hawaii and Europe.
A spice-infused matcha cake conjures up the flavors of Christmas with a Japanese twist.
LIFE / Food & Drink / The Recipe Box
Dec 16, 2025
Christmas brings the smell of cinnamon, cloves and matcha
Work the flavors of an “o-toso,” a spice-infused sake, into your green tea cake to create a delicious Japanese-inspired alternative to your traditional yuletide dessert.
Over 70% of workers in their 20s and 30s want to attend year-end parties with colleagues, according to the survey conducted in late October by Nonpi, a Tokyo-based operator of employee cafeterias and other food-related services.
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2025
Many young employees positive about year-end parties with colleagues, survey finds
The poll covered workers between the ages of 20 and 59 who work in Tokyo and live in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
A poster put up in Tokyo's Chuo Ward asks tour operators to refrain from guiding tourists to the Tsukiji Outer Market toward the end of the year to avoid overcrowding.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 15, 2025
Tsukiji market urges tourists to avoid visiting at year-end to ease congestion
The Toyosu Senkyaku Banrai tourist facility, meanwhile, welcomes tourists throughout the year-end and New Year holiday season.
People in Japan are increasingly opting for digital New Year greetings as postage prices rise.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 5, 2025
Are new year postcards becoming a thing of the past in Japan?
Japan’s new year postcard tradition is fading as more people opt for digital holiday greetings.
Doll-maker Kyugetsu unveiled its 2025 wooden paddles, featuring Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, on Wednesday in Tokyo’s Taito Ward.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 2025
Hagoita paddles depicting newsmakers of 2025 unveiled
Wooden paddles featuring Shohei Ohtani, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and 10 others were unveiled by Tokyo-based doll-maker Kyugetsu on Wednesday.
DxP head Noriaki Imai explains the results of a survey conducted on young people who use the organization's consultation service, on Nov. 26 in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2025
Over 30% of youths in need are anxious about New Year’s holidays, survey finds
For reasons for the anxiety, with multiple answers allowed, 65.5%, the largest group, pointed to financial difficulties, followed by 29.3% who said they have no place to be.
This year's "Kohaku Uta Gassen" will be broadcast on NHK from 7:20 p.m. on Dec. 31.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 14, 2025
Chanmina and aespa among 10 acts to debut on NHK’s ‘Kohaku Uta Gassen’
The New Year’s Eve music spectacle on NHK will feature first-time acts such as idol group Fruits Zipper and long-awaited returns from bands like Okinawa’s Orange Range.
Takashimaya will sell ¥20,260 lucky bags through a lottery that allow customers to experience as if they are a horse owner throughout the year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 10, 2025
Horse-themed lucky bags to hit Japan during 2026 New Year’s sales
Next year’s bags include those providing customers an opportunity to interact with horses as consumers are increasingly prioritizing experiences over goods.
On Dec. 31, rock duo B’z appeared on NHK's year-end "Kohaku Uta Gassen" music extravaganza for the first time in a career spanning more than three decades.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jan 10, 2025
An explosive B’z set on ‘Kohaku’ hints at a strategy to win over viewers
Japan’s best selling act delivered one of the biggest moments of the year-end music blowout and reinforced the importance of catering to a more middle-aged market.
The number of passengers who used express services operated by Japan Railways Group companies during the 10-day period through Sunday was 2% higher than in fiscal 2018, surpassing the level seen before the COVID-19 pandemic for the first time.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 7, 2025
Number of passengers on JR express services during New Year rose 11%, firms say
The figure for the 10-day period through Sunday surpassed the level seen before the COVID-19 pandemic for the first time.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako attend a New Year ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 2, 2025
Emperor wishes for peaceful year for those affected by disaster
Emperor Naruhito expressed his wish on Thursday for a peaceful year for people affected by disasters, following a strong earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula a year ago.
A man offers prayers at Hebikubo Shrine in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward. The shrine is one of several across the country dedicated to the snake.
LIFE / Lifestyle / Longform
Jan 1, 2025
Shed your skin and reinvent yourself in the Year of the Snake
The Year of the Snake is characterized by wisdom, calm and steady progress. It urges introspection, calculated moves and a journey of reinvention.
On the first day of the 2000s, the world was relieved that the Y2K computer glitch was mostly nothing. And in Russia, Vladimir Putin came to power.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Jan 1, 2025
Japan Times 2000: Japanese celebrate new year
Check out what was on the front page on Jan. 1 in 1925, 1950, 1975 and 2000.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako pose for a photo at the Imperial Palace Small Hall in Tokyo on November.
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2025
Emperor prays for world peace in New Year’s message
Emperor Naruhito stressed the “importance of people recognizing their differences and working hand in hand to realize a peaceful world.”
The start of the 2024 Hakone Ekiden in Tokyo's Otemachi district. Every year on Jan. 2 and 3, Hakone Ekiden brings millions of fans across Japan to a standstill.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 31, 2024
A newcomer’s guide to the Hakone Ekiden experience
Every year on Jan. 2 and 3, Hakone Ekiden brings millions of fans across Japan to a standstill, even people who normally don’t care about running.
A transport ministry panel experiments with a dummy to determine how quickly a person lying on the road during the night would be spotted when drivers use low and high beam lights.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 27, 2024
Japan drivers warned to steer clear of drunk pedestrians sleeping on road
Collisions involving pedestrians asleep on the road typically spike in December, when more people get imbibed at New Year’s gatherings.
At each shrine and temple, priests create festive, decorative go-shuin stamps, and you can collect the marks of all seven of the lucky gods on one piece of paper (called a shikishi) to serve as a good-luck talisman.
LIFE / Travel
Dec 27, 2024
Start the new year not with one temple visit, but seven
The seven lucky gods pilgrimage is a less hurried alternative to the often-crowded first temple or shrine visit of the year.
Writer Baye McNeil and his wife, Miki, host a Kwanzaa gathering in Yokohama together. The end of the year at the McNeil’s home is a mix of several different holiday traditions, including those of Kwanzaa.
COMMUNITY / Voices / Black Eye
Dec 23, 2024
A holiday season built on creativity and care
Fusing African heritage with Japanese spirituality, our columnist crafted a holiday season that celebrates cultural understanding.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

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One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
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