Christmas equates illumination and in Tokyo Marunouchi is one of the famous spot to enjoy the festive mood. Marunouchi Christmas implies the beautiful illumination on Marunouchi Naka-Dori, the backside of the Marunouchi Building opposite Tokyo Station. A million LED lights powered by green energy add beauty to a posh fashion street filled with customers in festive mood. Located in the historical neighborhood of Tokyo Station and the Imperial Gardens, I love this spot not only for the lights but also the Gingko Biloba leaves which turn yellow color in the second half of November. The illumination starts at 17:00 in the evening and goes on until late night 23:00.
I purposefully visited this year on a weekday, the weekends get quite crowded. It is peaceful in the late nights on a weekday with all the lights shining only for you! Leave office at 19:00, have dinner at Tokyo Station and then go on the streets to beat crowds.The cat near the office building Maru Biru caught my attention. Standing still with lights all around, the moment I took a snap, many other Japanese passersby started doing the same. I carried a 100 yen Christmas snowman doll with me to the venue and placed it in front of the lights and took a macro snap of the same. Love that kind of a contrast at these locations….
Just as a matter of luck a limousine made an entry on the illuminated road. RICH Christmas for someone, I guess.Took some snaps of the road signs on the footpath, Marunouchi Naka Dori.I started chatting with a few people there and exchanging photography ideas. One lady was passionately taking snaps of the illumination. I was impressed since she was not having a tripod and was placing her camera on the ground to take shots, something I do very frequently since I too do not own a tripod and depend on the “flat” earth to help me with taking shots. She agreed that taking a tripod everywhere was just a bother, in crowded areas is a pain and most attractions do not allow a tripod to be used anyways.In the vicinity is Maru Biru (Building) and on entering the building I noticed that they have an interesting Marunouchi Bright Christmas event going on where one can enjoy skating on an ice rink built inside the building! In collaboration with professional Japanese figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu I could see many salarymen in black suits and OL’s (Office Lady) in their regular dress enjoying on the ice rink. People were slipping, getting their clothes wet but still enjoying the experience. A big beautiful Christmas Tree on the side too.This is a snap from 2014 on a weekend and you can see that the crowds are heavier than on a weekday….The streets on the backside of the Marunouchi Building attracts a lot of shoppers who stop by to watch the illumination. The illumination can even be enjoyed from inside a car, as there are no traffic restrictions.Apart from the cat like statue which we covered earlier, there was also a bear standing witness to the illumination. The LED lights use solar renewable power as per the promotional material I collected on the spot.One tip : Don’s just watch the lights and return, walk a minute from the location towards the Imperial palace Grounds and you will see the Gingko Biloba trees which have turned yellow on the road adjoining the Palace moat. Beautiful Marunouchi…
You can access this spot from the Nijyubashi Mae Station exit. It is just outside the station exit.
Walking for over an hour on the Imperial Palace ground, I made my way back to the Tokyo Station and headed home. Marunouchi Illumination is a highly recommended spot in Tokyo around the Christmas time.
Location : Two minute Walk from Tokyo Station Marunouchi Exit (South or North)