Shirakawago Light-Up 2027: 5 Ways In and Their Sale Dates
The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association overview of the 41st Light-Up sets every rule in this guide. The 2027 event is the 41st, and the village limits numbers with a full reservation system and admission tickets. If you arrive without a ticket, staff ask you to leave.
Shirakawago Light-Up 2027 dates and what happens on the day
Each of the four nights runs from 17:30 to 19:30. The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association 2027 Light-Up schedule announcement explains the Monday: 11 January is a public holiday at the end of a three-day weekend. Our January public holidays page lists the other holidays that month.
The venue is the Ogimachi district of Shirakawa Village, the World Heritage settlement of gassho-zukuri farmhouses. The Tourist Association may cancel a night if a severe nationwide cold wave threatens major transport disruption.
The photo above shows what the event is about: thatched farmhouses under snow, lit up after dark. On other nights of the year, Ogimachi does not accept night-time sightseers unless they stay overnight. This protects the privacy of residents.
A light-up day has two halves. During the day, anyone can visit, and regular cars need no parking reservation. Daytime parking for regular cars opens at 8:00, takes its last car at 15:00 and must be empty by 17:00. The Tourist Association suggests 2 to 3 hours for the village and strongly recommends parking by 12:00.
The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association access and parking page adds one more step. On light-up days, the Seseragi Park car park becomes a booked-bus area from 15:00. Regular cars move to the Terao temporary car park by 15:00.
From 15:30, a gate goes up at the entrance to the village, and only people with an admission ticket get through. If you come by route bus for daytime sightseeing, take a bus that reaches Shirakawa-go by 15:20. A later bus will not get you in. We checked these times on 15 October 2026 against the Tourist Association pages.
Every booked visitor collects an admission ticket on the day. It comes as a neck holder in that night’s colour and is valid for that date only. Wear it around your neck the whole time you walk the village. On the Japanese pages, the admission ticket is 入場チケット (nyūjō chiketto, “admission ticket”) and the deck pass is 展望台チケット (tenbōdai chiketto, “observation deck ticket”).
5 ways in to the Shirakawago Light-Up
You pick one of 5 ways in and book it before the day. The Tourist Association sells only the first three: an inn stay, a parking space for your own car and a parking space for a taxi. You book the two kinds of bus tour directly with the bus company or the travel agency.
| Way in | Deck ticket | When to book | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Village inn (Tourist Association email lottery) | Yes, at every lottery inn | Apply 1 Oct, 13:00 to 31 Oct, 23:59; winners told 10 Nov (planned) | Set by each inn |
| 2. Own car at Midashima (Tourist Association website) | No | Round 1 sold out; round 2 from 1 Dec, 13:00 | 7,000 yen per car (1-5 people), 10,000 yen (6-10) |
| 3. Taxi with a Midashima space | No | Book the parking first, then the taxi | Same parking fee, plus the taxi |
| 4. Bus company tour (five companies) | Some tours | 13 Oct to 2 Nov, 14:00, by night | 13,000 to 18,500 yen per adult |
| 5. Travel agency bus tour | No | Links posted 2 Dec, 13:00 (planned) | Set by each agency |
The table puts the five options side by side. Only the inn stay and some bus company tours include the Observation Deck Ticket.
1. Stay in the village. The Tourist Association gives out light-up rooms by email lottery, not first come, first served. Applications run from 1 October at 13:00 to 31 October 2026 at 23:59, and each person may send only one. If you apply for two dates or two inns, all of your applications become invalid.
The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association accommodation lottery page lists the inns for each night and the address to email. Put the date and the inn name in the subject line. Apply in the name of the person who will actually stay, because the names are checked after the draw.
The draw runs from 1 to 9 November. Only winners get an email, on 10 November (planned), and they then book and pay by card on a page for winners. If winners decline or cancel, a first-come round opens on 26 November at 13:00 (planned). If nobody cancels, that round does not happen.
Every inn on the lottery list includes an Observation Deck Ticket. You receive it at check-in, together with the admission ticket and a map. The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association lottery page in Japanese states that the plan covers the room only, so you arrange your own transport. The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association inn list for 11 January sets the cancellation fees. You pay 20% from 15 days before, 50% from 7 days before and 100% on the day.
Some lottery inns are in the Hirase Onsen area, about 15 minutes by car from the venue. Guests there who drive in need a separate parking space at 6,000 yen per car.
2. Drive and park at Midashima. The light-up car park is the Midashima car park, for regular cars only. Microbuses, larger buses and camper vans cannot park there. Spaces go first come, first served in two rounds, and the first round, on sale from 10 September at 13:00, has sold out.
| Place | Midashima Car Park (light-up parking) |
|---|---|
| Price | Round 2: 7,000 yen per car for 1-5 people, 10,000 yen for 6-10 people; credit card only |
| Hours | Light-up nights: enter from 15:00, leave by 20:00. Round 2 sales open 1 Dec 2026, 13:00 |
| Official site | Shirakawa-go Tourist Association light-up parking page |
The second round opens on 1 December 2026 at 13:00 on the Tourist Association website, with payment by credit card only. A car costs 7,000 yen for 1 to 5 people or 10,000 yen for 6 to 10 people, and 10 is the limit. If you book for up to 5 and 6 or more arrive, you pay 4,000 yen extra on the day.
You cannot change or cancel the booking, apart from the number of people, and there is no refund. The one exception is when the organisers cancel the event because of heavy snow or a major transport breakdown. The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association light-up parking page warns that the booking site may be slow when sales open. On the night, you can drive in from 15:00 and must leave by 20:00. A parking permit arrives by email between late December and early January.
3. Come by taxi. A taxi needs the same Midashima parking reservation, so book the parking first and then the taxi. There is no taxi waiting area. The taxi parks at Midashima and waits there, and a car that enters generally cannot leave and come back. Passengers may not get on or off on the road. The car can hold 10 people at most, driver included. The village’s own Hakusan taxi company does not operate on light-up days.
4. Join a bus company tour. Five route-bus companies run reservation-only light-up tours: Nohi Bus, Kaetsuno Bus, Toyama Chitetsu Bus, Hokutetsu Bus and Iruka Kotsu. Some tours include the Observation Deck Ticket and some do not. The next section lists the sale dates and prices.
5. Join a travel agency tour. Travel agencies also sell light-up bus tours, without the deck ticket. The Tourist Association plans to post links to these tours on its website at 13:00 on 2 December. You then book with the agency itself.
The calendar above puts the dates in order. The inn lottery fills October and the bus tours open from 13 October. Car parking follows on 1 December.
Bus tours from Takayama, Kanazawa and Takaoka
Highway buses do not normally run at night. For the 2027 Light-Up, the bus companies run special reservation-only tour buses instead. Apart from a lottery inn, these tours are the only way onto the observation deck. Sales are staggered by night, and all five companies open at the same time.
| Light-up night | Sale starts (Japan) | Taiwan and Hong Kong | South Korea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 11 Jan 2027 | Tue 13 Oct, 14:00 (on sale) | 13:00 | 14:00 |
| Sun 17 Jan 2027 | Mon 19 Oct, 14:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 |
| Sun 24 Jan 2027 | Mon 26 Oct, 14:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 |
| Sun 31 Jan 2027 | Mon 2 Nov, 14:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 |
Each night goes on sale 90 days before it, at 14:00 Japan time. That is 13:00 in Taiwan and Hong Kong and 14:00 in South Korea. Tours for 11 January went on sale on 13 October. On that day you could book only 11 January, so for 17 January you wait until 19 October.
From Takayama: Nohi Bus. Course A costs 13,000 yen for adults and elementary school children. It includes entry to the Gassho-zukuri Minkaen open-air museum, but not the observation deck. Course B costs 16,000 yen and includes an Observation Deck Ticket. It leaves Takayama Nohi Bus Center at 15:10, stays in Shirakawa-go from 16:20 to 19:45 and gets back to Takayama at 20:45. Nohi Bus sells its tours online through Japan Bus Online and does not take bookings by phone.
From Kanazawa: Hokutetsu Bus. The tour leaves Kanazawa Station West Exit at 14:30 and stays at Shirakawa-go Bus Terminal from 16:30 to 19:50. It costs 18,500 yen per adult and 16,500 yen per child. The price covers the round-trip bus and an Observation Deck Ticket, but no meals.
From Takaoka: Kaetsuno Bus. The S course includes an Observation Deck Ticket and costs 18,000 yen for adults and 16,000 yen for children. Toyama Chitetsu Bus and Iruka Kotsu also run light-up tours, and their own pages list the courses.
The lookup above matches your base to a way in. The inn lottery closes on 31 October, and drivers wait for 1 December.
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Parking, 1-5 people (per car) | 7000 yen | |
| Parking, 6-10 people (per car) | 10,000 yen | |
| Nohi Bus Course A | 13,000 yen | No deck |
| Nohi Bus Course B | 16,000 yen | With deck |
| Kaetsuno Bus S course | 18,000 yen | With deck |
| Hokutetsu Bus tour | 18,500 yen | With deck |
The chart compares the prices. Parking is a price per car, while the bus tours charge per person.
The observation deck ticket at Ogimachi Castle Ruins
The Observation Deck Ticket is never sold on its own. It comes only with a lottery inn plan or a bus company tour that includes it. With the admission ticket alone, you cannot go up to the deck for any reason. Both routes have a limited number of tickets, and staff check them at the gate.
The photo shows why people want the ticket: the whole of Ogimachi seen from above. The deck is the village-run Ogimachi Castle Ruins Observation Deck.
| Place | Ogimachi Castle Ruins Observation Deck |
|---|---|
| Price | Observation Deck Ticket only, from a lottery inn or a bus tour; not sold on its own |
| Hours | Event days: walking route open until 15:45, closed at 16:10; three viewing sessions at night |
| Access | About 15-20 minutes on foot by the trail behind the Wada House |
| Official site | Shirakawa-go Tourist Association overview of the 41st Light-Up |
On the night, deck visits are split into three sessions, and staff assign your time; you cannot choose it. After the ticket check at the deck gate, you walk up. Camera tripods are banned on the deck, pets are not allowed, and heavy snow can close it. You cannot resell or transfer a deck ticket.
A separate shuttle bus runs for people who have trouble walking, people with disabilities, pregnant visitors and others with special needs. It needs a reservation, so contact the Tourist Association before your trip.
In the daytime on event days, private cars cannot drive up to the deck. You walk about 15 to 20 minutes up the trail behind the Wada House, or take the regular deck shuttle bus. The walking route is open until 15:45 and closes at 16:10 while staff prepare for the evening.
How to get to Shirakawa-go: Kanazawa, Takayama, Nagoya and Tokyo
Shirakawa-go has no train station nearby, so you ride a highway bus. It takes about an hour and a half from Kanazawa or Toyama. From Nagoya it is a little over 2 hours, and from Takayama Station about 50 minutes.
Highway buses stop at Shirakawa-go Bus Terminal, where the Tourist Association also has its office. On light-up days, the last route buses leave Shirakawa-go between about 16:00 and 17:00, before the lights come on. You cannot ride a route bus home after the event, so plan on a tour, a village stay or a car.
| From | Route | Total time |
|---|---|---|
| Kanazawa Station | Highway bus, about 1 h 20 min | About 1 h 30 min |
| Takayama Station | Highway bus | About 50 min |
| Nagoya Station | Walk about 5 min to Meitetsu Bus Center, then highway bus about 2 h 30 min | About 2 h 50 min |
| Tokyo Station | Hokuriku Shinkansen to Toyama, about 2 h 15 min, then highway bus about 1 h 20 min | About 4 h |
The times in the table come from the Tourist Association access page. From Tokyo, our Tokyo to Shirakawa-go route page compares two trips. The Kagayaki plus a bus takes 3 h 39 min of riding time for 17,400 yen. The Hakutaka plus a Kaetsuno highway bus takes 4 h 4 min for 16,250 yen. Our Kagayaki vs Hakutaka comparison explains the two trains.
To join the Hokutetsu tour, you first need to reach Kanazawa; our Tokyo to Kanazawa route page has the Shinkansen times. For Nohi Bus, see the Tokyo to Takayama route page. On rail, the Takayama-Hokuriku Area Tourist Pass costs 19,800 yen for 5 days and covers JR trains between Nagoya and Toyama on the Takayama Line.
Flying in, Komatsu Airport is 40 minutes from Kanazawa Station by bus for 1,400 yen. Toyama Airport is about 20 minutes from Toyama Station by bus. Chubu Centrair Airport is 28 minutes from Nagoya Station by train.
If you drive, fit studless winter tires; the Tourist Association makes them a condition for every car. By car, Shirakawa-go is about 1 h 10 min from Kanazawa and about 2 h 15 min from Nagoya. From 1 December 2026, tour buses of every size must also book bus parking at Seseragi Park in advance on the official Shirakawa-go Parking website.
Shirakawa-go in winter: cold, snow and what to wear
Light-up hours are the coldest of the night: around -10°C to 0°C, with frozen roads. Japan Meteorological Agency normals for its Shirakawa station give January an average of -1.0°C, a daily high of 2.8°C and a daily low of -4.4°C. The month brings 340 cm of snowfall, and the average deepest snow cover is 148 cm.
The steep thatched roofs in the photo carry that snow all winter. First snow usually falls in early December, and the ground stays white from late December to late February. Our Shirakawa-go in January guide covers the snow season, and Shirakawa-go by month shows the rest of the year.
The checklist above follows the Tourist Association advice. Wear warm clothing, waterproof insulated boots and spikes on your shoes. Bring a flashlight, because the paths are dark underfoot once you leave the lit houses.
Our hand warmers page explains that you can fly with the disposable kind. For layers and boots, see our Japan packing list for winter. If you stay a night in Takayama or Kanazawa, our Takayama in January and Kanazawa in January guides list what else is on.
Village rules: drones, smoking and parking
Shirakawa-go is a World Heritage village where people live, so drone filming is strictly banned, light-up nights included.
Stopping, parking or dropping people off anywhere except the designated car parks is also banned. Anyone who breaks this rule is banned from the light-up for good, together with every company in their group.
The thatched roofs catch fire easily. If you smoke, including e-cigarettes, use the smoking area at the Seseragi Park car park before you enter the village. Inside the village, smoke only at the 3 designated smoking spots.
The village has no rubbish bins, so carry your rubbish home. For questions, call the Shirakawa-go Light-Up Committee at the Tourist Association on 05769-6-1013, open from 9:00 to 17:00. The Shirakawa-go Tourist Association Light-Up overview in Japanese holds the full rule list.
FAQ
Can you visit the Shirakawa-go Light-Up without a reservation?
No. The event is strictly by advance reservation, and admission tickets are not sold on the day. From 15:30, a gate at the village entrance turns away anyone without a ticket.
When is the Shirakawa-go Light-Up in 2027?
It runs on four nights: Monday 11 January and Sundays 17, 24 and 31 January 2027. Each night the lights are on from 17:30 to 19:30. A severe cold wave can cancel a night.
How do you get to Shirakawa-go from Kanazawa or Takayama on a light-up night?
Book a bus company tour, because the last route buses leave Shirakawa-go before the lights come on. From Kanazawa, Hokutetsu Bus leaves Kanazawa Station West Exit at 14:30 for 18,500 yen per adult. From Takayama, Nohi Bus Course B leaves at 15:10 for 16,000 yen. Both include an Observation Deck Ticket.
What should you wear to the Shirakawa-go Light-Up?
Dress for -10°C to 0°C on frozen roads. The Tourist Association recommends warm clothing, waterproof insulated boots and spikes. Bring a flashlight too, because the paths are dark.
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