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    Moon-viewing 月見

    Typical season

    SEP

    秋風によわき尾花はうごけども月にのどけみふけすめる夜半

    Kigo · 尾花 · obana · autumn

    The frail silver grass stirs in the autumn wind — yet beneath the moon, the deepening night lies clear and still.

    Emperor Kōgon · 14th century

    How to time it

    Moon-viewing follows named nights of the old lunar calendar, not a season. In 2026 the harvest moon, Chushu no Meigetsu, is on 25 September and the second viewing night, Jusanya, on 23 October. The named night and the astronomical full moon need not match: this year the full moon comes two days later, at 01:49 on 27 September.

    How long it lastsOne evening each, though organisers often add a night or two: Daikaku-ji's evenings run 25–27 September 2026. Cloud or rain can end it, and the temple decides at 11:00 each day whether the boats go out.

    The nights, year by year

    Harvest moonFull moonJusanya
    202625 Sep27 Sep, 01:4923 Oct
    202715 Sep16 Sep, 08:0412 Oct
    20283 Oct4 Oct, 01:25not yet published
    202922 Sep23 Sep, 01:29not yet published
    203012 Sep12 Sep, 06:18not yet published

    30%Sunny days on 25 September, TokyoShare of years 1991–2020 when the day was classed as sunny. Not the chance of seeing the moon.

    55%Sunny days on 25 September, KyotoShare of years 1991–2019.

    If you are earlyThe named night cannot be moved by travelling north or uphill. Another clear evening shows much the same moon, by the local moonrise table, but it is not Chushu.

    If you are lateJusanya, 23 October in 2026, is a second viewing night with its own customs, not a repeat of the first.

    Sources · checked 21 Sep 2026
    1. Harvest moon, full moon and Jusanya in 2026
    2. Harvest moon dates by year, and why it need not be the full moon
    3. Jusanya
    4. Jusanya 2027 is derived from the new moon of the old ninth month in the 2027 calendar
    5. Moonrise in Tokyo, September 2026
    6. Moonrise in Kyoto, September 2026
    7. Moonrise in Tokyo, October 2026
    8. Moonrise in Kyoto, October 2026
    9. Weather by calendar day in Tokyo, 1991–2020
    10. Weather by calendar day in Kyoto, 1991–2019
    11. Daikaku-ji moon-viewing evenings 2026
    1. SEP

      24–26 SEP · Starting

      向島百花園

      The last Edo townspeople’s garden, lit for three moon nights

      Tokyo Google Maps

      Silver pampas grass, the plant of moon-viewing offerings, in Mukojima-Hyakkaen in NovemberThe wooden gate of Mukojima-Hyakkaen with the garden's name board

      Photos · na0905 · CC BY 2.0 · Arashiyama · CC BY-SA 3.0

      24–26 SEP · Nature · Moon-viewing

      Moon-viewing — Mukojima-Hyakkaen 向島百花園

      Tokyo

      Silver pampas grass, the plant of moon-viewing offerings, in Mukojima-Hyakkaen in November
      The wooden gate of Mukojima-Hyakkaen with the garden's name board

      The one surviving flower garden of the Edo townspeople, opened in the early nineteenth century, and it still keeps their moon-viewing: for three evenings around the harvest moon the garden stays open until 21:00, painted lanterns are lit along the paths from 17:50 and a koto plays from 18:00 to 20:00. The 30 m tunnel of bush clover flowers in the same weeks.

      Dates
      24–26 SEP
      Where
      TokyoGoogle Maps
      Survive
      In 2026 the evenings are 24–26 September, last entry 20:30; tea in the tea house on the 25th and 26th, 15:00–20:00, ¥1,500. The koto and the opening ceremony are cancelled in rain.
      Access
      Higashi-Mukojima Stn on the Tobu Skytree Line, 8 min on foot; Keisei Hikifune, 13 min.
      Heritage
      Place of Scenic Beauty and Historic Site · 1978 向島百花園 名勝・史跡
      Source
      Official siteMoon-viewing page · checked 2026-09-19
      Photos
      2 photos · credits
      1. na0905 · CC BY 2.0
      2. Arashiyama · CC BY-SA 3.0

    2. 25–27 SEP

      大覚寺

      Moon-viewing from dragon boats on a ninth-century pond

      Kyoto Google Maps

      Osawa Pond at Daikaku-ji on an autumn evening, lit trees reflected in the water

      Photo · ttshr1970 · CC BY 3.0

      25–27 SEP · Nature · Moon-viewing

      Moon-viewing — Daikaku-ji 大覚寺

      Kyoto

      Osawa Pond at Daikaku-ji on an autumn evening, lit trees reflected in the water
      The Shingyo pagoda of Daikaku-ji across the pond in autumn colour
      Cherry trees around Osawa Pond at Daikaku-ji in spring

      A former imperial villa in Sagano, whose Osawa Pond was dug in the ninth century so the moon could be watched from a boat. The temple's moon-viewing evenings, Kangetsu no Yube, are held on the nights around the harvest moon: dragon-headed boats cross the pond and the moon rises twice, once in the sky and once on the water.

      Dates
      25–27 SEP
      Where
      KyotoGoogle Maps
      Survive
      Heavy. In 2026 the evenings are 25–27 September, starting on the night of the harvest moon: gates 17:30–21:00, last entry 20:30, and the evening is ticketed separately, so daytime visitors are asked to leave first. The boat ride with tea was sold by advance lottery, ¥7,000, applications 6–24 July, now closed; without it you can still walk the pond and watch from the shore. The temple decides at 11:00 each day whether the evening goes ahead. The dates move with the lunar calendar: check the temple's site each year.
      Access
      Kyoto Bus 28 or 91 to Daikakuji, about 50 min from Kyoto Stn; or a 20 min walk from JR Saga-Arashiyama Stn.
      Heritage
      Place of Scenic Beauty · Osawa Pond, 1922 大沢池 附 名古曽滝跡 名勝
      Source
      Official siteMoon-viewing page · checked 2026-09-21
      Photos
      3 photos · credits
      1. ttshr1970 · CC BY 3.0
      2. m-louis .® · CC BY-SA 2.0
      3. ignis · CC BY-SA 3.0

    3. 25 SEP

      住吉大社

      Poems and court dance on the arched bridge on the night of the harvest moon

      Osaka Google Maps

      The red arched Sorihashi bridge of Sumiyoshi Taisha reflected in its pond; the moon-viewing rite is held on this bridgeThe steep arch of the Sorihashi bridge at Sumiyoshi Taisha seen from the side

      Photos · chiron3636 · CC BY 2.0 · そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

      25 SEP · Nature · Moon-viewing

      Moon-viewing — Sumiyoshi Taisha 住吉大社

      Osaka

      The red arched Sorihashi bridge of Sumiyoshi Taisha reflected in its pond; the moon-viewing rite is held on this bridge
      The steep arch of the Sorihashi bridge at Sumiyoshi Taisha seen from the side

      On the night of the harvest moon the shrine holds its Kangetsu-sai on the Sorihashi, the steep arched bridge over its pond. From 18:00 priests chant the winning poems of a national contest in the old court manner, and then bugaku court dance and the Sumiyoshi-odori are performed on the bridge. In 2026 the harvest moon is on 25 September.

      Dates
      25 SEP
      Where
      OsakaGoogle Maps
      Survive
      Free and unreserved: come by 17:30 for a place with a view of the bridge.
      Access
      Sumiyoshitaisha Stn on the Nankai Main Line, 3 min on foot; the Hankai tram stops at the gate.
      Source
      Official siteMoon-viewing page · checked 2026-09-19
      Photos
      2 photos · credits
      1. chiron3636 · CC BY 2.0
      2. そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

    4. —

      44 prefectures awaiting field notes

      Field research continues across the country. Updates published as verified.

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