Art & Culture

With a myriad of museums, temples, shrines and locally distinct festivals Ota is one of Tokyo's most cultural and historical locations. Join the locals in making the most out of your time in an area which breathes tradition and the arts.

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Ikegami Jissouji

Taking the idea that “temples transmit culture” to heart, this temple elementary school holds concerts and other traditional events. In addition, to respond to each and every visitor’s prayers, you can create a unique omamori (protection charm), called an OMAMO. It’s somet...

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Lantern Floating at Senzokuike Pond

The lit lanterns in the darkness of the Senzokuike Pond illuminate a sense of warmth to those visiting. The beautiful reflection that shines on the water surface is a sight to behold.

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Ota Expo

The annual Ota Expo is held at Haneda Airport Domestic Terminal, operated by Japan Airport Terminal Co, Ltd, on the second weekend of June. This year will see the sixth edition of the exposition, with performances, exhibits, and workshops based on the themes of “Touch...

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Setsubun (Bean-Scattering Festival)

Setsubun marks the end of the winter season and the arrival of spring, according to the old lunar calendar. Japanese people scatter beans to bring good luck into their homes. In Ikegami-Honmonji temple, a Setsubun event that features bean-throwing is held on the 3rd of February.

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Tamagawadai Park Kofun (Tumulus) Exhibition Room

A huge tomb called “Kofun (tumulus)” that was made from the 4th to the 7th century has been reproduced as a life-size replica. This is a part of the back circular part of the large keyhole-shaped tomb mound, which has a horizontal stone chamber that was built in the 6th century in ...

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Ryushi Memorial Hall

Ryushi Memorial Hall was established in 1963 by the master of modern Japanese painting Kawabata Ryushi (1885-1966) to commemorate the Order of Culture award and his 77th birthday. It has about 120 works by Ryushi from 1912 to postwar days (1945) that introduce Ryushi’s painting works fro...

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Sannou Soudou Memorial Hall

Tokuhomi Soho issued Japan’s first general magazine “Kokumin no Tomo (The Nation’s Friend)”, then started the “Kokumin Shinbun.” Soho’s masterpiece “Kinsei Nippon Kokumin Shi (History of the Japanese People in Modern Times)” was started in 191...

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Shiro Ozaki Memorial Hall

The house in which Shiro Ozaki, who was the central figure of the Magome-bunshi-mura (Magome writer village) spent 10 years until his death in 1964, has been restored as his memorial hall. Shiro moved to the Sanno neighborhood in 1923 and established his permanent place as a popular writer wit...

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Kumagai Tsuneko Memorial Hall

The former residence of Tsuneko Kumagai (1893-1986), a contemporary female kana calligrapher who is known for giving a lecture to Empress Michiko. The site has been renovated and showcases several of Kumagai’s works. There are seasonal exhibitions throughout the year. In addition to abou...

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Nishi-Rokugo Park (Tire Park)

Known as Tire Park, this park has beds of seasonal flowers at the entrance, as well as various equipment made with old tire rubber scattered around the grounds. The dinosaur-shaped tire creation, measuring 8m tall and 20m in length, is very popular with children. The attraction has even cap...

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Nitta-jinja Shrine

The quiet grounds of Nitta-jinja Shrine belie a long and colorful history. The shrine dates back over 650 years to the Namboku Period (which spanned much of the 14th century), when factions from the northern and southern halves of Japan were engaged in constant conflict. One of the warriors,...

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Magome Writers’ Village (Magome Bunshimura)

In the early 1900s, the area of Magome in Ota City attracted a number of Japan’s top writers and artists. Novelists, sculptors and calligraphers all moved to the quiet countryside outside the capital to practice their crafts in a supportive community. Today, their cultural contributions are...

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Kamata Hachiman-jinja Shrine

If you’re passing by Ota City during your trip to Japan, be sure not to miss the Kamata Hachiman-jinja Shrine. Originally founded in 1600, the Kamata Hachiman-jinja Shrine is dedicated to Inari which is the Japanese god of foxes. Even though the shrines were partially burnt in 1945,...

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Haneda Chronogate Logistics Tour

Get inside Japan’s largest parcel delivery terminal Japan’s technology has been globally recognized as cutting-edge for half a century, but if only electronics or automobiles first come to mind, it won’t be a stretch to realize that Japan also has first-class logistics operat...

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Haneda Matsuri

A traditional summer festival The Haneda Matsuri, or Haneda Festival, is held annually during the last week of July and boasts an average attendance of around 30,000, most of whom are locals. Being a fisherman’s town, Haneda Matsuri provides a unique experience. Matsuri are a great ...

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Anamori Inari-jinja Shrine Lantern Festival

Every year in late August, the parishioners of Anamori Inari-jinja Shrine in Ota City join the priests and their attendants to light handmade lanterns, asking Inari-sama, the god of rice, to grant their wishes. The lanterns, which bear images made by children and adults alike, are set up on th...

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Senzoku-Ike Autumn Festival

Senzoku-ike is a relaxing park and pond area located in Northern Ota City. Senzoku-Ike is home to several yearly events throughout the season, but one of the best is the Autumn Festival held each year in early September (typically the first Sunday of September). During this time, tourists can ...

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Dondo-Yaki

A Flaming Start To The New Year What would you do to start your New Year? Would you go to see an exciting show with friends, or would you prefer some warm and cozy family time? Here in Ota City, the Dondo-Yaki is the perfect event for both friends and families to celebrate the New Year and pra...

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Tenso-jinja Shrine Negi Dance

A traditional dance to repel evil spirits and wish for fertility is held at Tenso Shrine every year on April 21st. After the dance, a ritual called “Oyubana” is performed, which is said to have begun in the Edo period.

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Children’s Horseback Archery

This intangible folk cultural property of Tokyo is held on the 7th of January every year at Rokugo Shrine to wish for health and sound growth of children. Boys in Samurai armour shoot four pairs of targets with eyes drawn on, riding on a wooden horse.

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Haneda-jinja Shrine

Just a short distance from Haneda Airport, visitors to Japan can get their first taste of traditional culture at the Haneda-jinja Shrine. Haneda-jinja Shrine can trace its history back eight hundred years to the Kamakura Period. In the Edo Era (1603–1868), the Tokugawa shoguns who reside...

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Ikegami Honmonji Temple Oeshiki

Ikegami Honmonji Oeshiki Festival is one of Tokyo’s most famous and memorable festivals, with a history dating back more than 730 years. The festival celebrates the anniversary of the death of famous Buddhist teacher and saint Nichiren. Oeshiki celebrations to honor Nichiren, founder of ...

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Ikegami Temple Town

The founding of Ikegami Honmonji in 1276 by the Buddhist monk and scholar Nichiren led to the growth of a small town in the surrounding environs to support the visitors of the temple. As Honmonji grew in popularity as a pilgrimage destination, the shops at the base of the complex began catering t...

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Kojiya Awa Dance

Kojiya Awa Dance is known as a seasonal tradition of Ota City. Across two days, about 600 people cooperate and line up in 10 rows to cheer up the crowd with their dance. About 150 kids line up in three rows and dance as well. It is definitely a sight to see.

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Omori Nori Museum

During the Edo Period (1600–1868), the area of Omori in Ota City was known for its cultivation of nori, the crackly sheets of seaweed most commonly wrapped around plump rice balls or sushi rolls. While development along the shores of Tokyo Bay after World War II led to the collapse of the O...

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Ikegami Honmonji Temple

The Ikegami Honmonji temple complex sits on a hill in central Ota City, a ten-minute stroll from Ikegami Station. The temple dates from the end of the 13th century, when famed Buddhist devotee Nichiren Shonin constructed the religious site at the request of local feudal lord and faithful fol...

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Anamori Inari Shrine

Anamori Inari Shrine is located within walking distance from Haneda Airport. It was built in the Edo period as a guardian deity of the current airport’s embankment. After the Meiji era, hot spring towns and beaches became popular. At the same time, the Keihin Anamoru Line (currently the ...

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Hashigo-nori

Hashigo-nori is a traditional performance that attempts to pass on the techniques and methods of firemen in the Edo period. The performance is held every year on the Coming-of-Age Day (second Monday of January) in front of the main hall of the Ikegami Honmonji Temple by the Omori Steeplejack Asso...

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Katsu Kaishu Memorial Museum

The Katsu Kaishu Memorial Museum opened near Senzokuike Pond in Ota City in September 2019. Who was Katsu Kaishu? Katsu Kaishu’s life spanned the turbulent years that saw the end of the Edo Era and Japan’s metamorphosis from a feudal society into a modern nation during the Meiji...

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Shunsho-no-Hibiki: A Spring Evening Concert of Traditional Japanese Music

The Shunsho-no-Hibiki Concert was started in 1995 in order to commemorate the completion of the Iketsukihashi Bridge, a triple-arched bridge built on the west bank of Senzokuike Pond, and featured a performance from the great fue master Sanzaemon Takara, a Living National Treasure. Musi...

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Ota Folk Museum

The Ota City Folk Museum offers a host of exhibits related to the physical and cultural history of Ota City. On the ground floor, take a journey back in time to the early traces of settlement in the area, with pottery shards and other recovered artifacts. A floor map details the location and role...

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Showa no Kurashi Museum (Museum of Life in the Showa Era)

Tokyo may seem like all steel and skyscrapers, but a visit to the Museum of Life in the Showa Era will make you feel as if you’ve slipped back in time about 60 years. The Showa Period in Japan lasted from 1926 to 1989, and this small but carefully curated museum, housed in both an old wo...

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Rokugo-jinja Shrine Children's Lion Dance

A trio of children perform a Japanese lion dance to the music of flute and sasara (Japanese percussion instrument). This folk art dance, said to repel the evil spirits with the lion's energy, has been passed down over generations.

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Heiwajima Boat Races

Spice up your time in Tokyo with a day at the races. The boat races, that is. Ota City is home to one of Japan’s few boat racing stadiums, where groups of six boats at a time compete in a watery arena in a sport not unlike horse racing. The races in Ota City take place in a saltwater can...

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