What to Book When: A Countdown for Your Japan Trip
Tokyo Disney, Ghibli, Pokémon Cafe, Shinkansen seats and SHIBUYA SKY each open bookings on a set day, from two months to two weeks before your visit, each at its own time of day. Enter the day you land and the day you fly home: the countdown below lists every opening and every preparation step in date order, in Japan time and yours.
We checked each opening rule on the operators' official pages on 9 November 2026. Rows that start with "Our reminder" are suggestions, not deadlines.
Some links on this page are affiliate links. The countdown itself has none, and we name the official way to book first.
Your countdown: every booking and step, in date order
Enter the day you land in Japan and the day you fly home. Booking openings show the exact time in Japan and in the time zone you pick. Reminders show only a day.
How to read the countdown
It's Japan time
Every opening rule runs on Japan time (UTC+9), so the moment can fall on the day before where you live. Pick your time zone above to see both.
Two kinds of rows
A row with a time is a booking opening set by the operator (for Pokémon Cafe, the pattern of its recent monthly notices). A row with only a day is our reminder: if it doesn't suit your trip, move it in your own calendar.
Daily or monthly
Disney, SHIBUYA SKY and JR seats open day by day, so later days open later. Ghibli and Pokémon Cafe release a whole month at once.
What should I book two months or more before?
Two big bookings open two months ahead, and one lottery opens three months ahead. If your trip includes any of them, they set your first alarm.
Tokyo Disney Resort
Tickets for a date open at 14:00 JST on the same date two months before, and you can buy until an hour before the park closes. Sold-out dates can't be bought on the official site.
Affiliate links. Partners have their own terms on the product page.Ghibli Park (Aichi)
A whole month of day passes goes on sale on the 10th, two months ahead: January 2027 opens on 10 November 2026. Sold online only, on LAWSON TICKET or Klook, and not at the park.
Affiliate link. Klook is one of the park's two official sellers.Nintendo Museum (Kyoto)
Tickets are sold by random draw. Entries open three months before your visit, and results come on the 1st of the month after you apply.
Restaurants
There's no single rule. On TableCheck, a booking system used by restaurants in Japan, each restaurant sets how far ahead it takes bookings. The countdown reminds you 60 days out to look each one up.
What opens about a month before?
This is the busiest stretch: four openings come close together in the month before your trip, each at a different time of day.
Is the JR Pass worth it? JR's own site charges ¥50,000 for a 7-day Ordinary pass; JR's price through its overseas agencies is ¥53,000. Add up your actual train rides first with the JR Pass calculator to see whether the pass pays off for your route.
Affiliate links. JR's official site is cheaper than JR's agency price, so check the partner's price before you pay.
The last two weeks: SHIBUYA SKY, Visit Japan Web and mobile data
- SHIBUYA SKY: web tickets open two weeks ahead at 00:00 JST Entry is by 20-minute slot. Eligible web tickets can be cancelled free until the day before. SHIBUYA SKY tickets and sunset slots
- Visit Japan Web: fill it in before you fly It's Japan's online service for immigration and customs on arrival. Register your passport and trip, enter the immigration and customs details, and show the 2D code on a phone or tablet when you land. Visit Japan Web, step by step
- Mobile data: set it up before you leave If your phone supports eSIM, buy a Japan eSIM and follow the seller's instructions on when to install it and when the plan starts. Pocket Wi-Fi is the other option. eSIM or pocket Wi-Fi?Check your carrier's roaming price first. If it's cheap enough, you don't need anything else.Compare Japan eSIMs on Klook ↗
What do I do on arrival day?
Get a card for trains and buses, then head into the city. Both visitor cards below need no deposit.
More on the cards: Suica and PASMO for visitors, ICOCA in Kansai. Into the city: Narita to Tokyo, Haneda to Tokyo, Kansai Airport to Osaka.
Before you fly home: when do I send my luggage?
Sending a big suitcase to the airport lets you spend the last day without it. The deadline is two days or more before your flight, so plan it with your last hotel.
Affiliate link. Yamato takes bags at its counters without a booking.
Already sold out? What to do next
Missed an opening, or was your date gone when you got there? Here's what you can still try for each.
A tour with a museum ticket included
Compare its price with the ¥1,000 direct ticket, and read the cancellation terms: they differ by tour. The museum's own site lists a bus tour by Sunrise Tours (JTB) for overseas visitors. Check your date first.
Affiliate linksWatch for cancellations
Bookings can be cancelled online until 22:00 the day before, and you can book until 8:00 on the day, so check the reservation site again the night before and that morning. At the cafe, seats are offered only after last-minute cancellations.
Check the ticket page again
When adult web tickets are sold out, the counter is sold out too. Other visitors' cancellations can put a sold-out slot back on sale.
Check a partner for your date
The official site can't sell a sold-out date. See whether a partner still lists yours, and read its terms on the product page.
Affiliate linksA package with a hotel stay
The park's ticket page names travel agencies such as JTB, Viator and KKday that sell tickets bundled with accommodation.
Ride in a non-reserved car
Hikari and Kodama keep non-reserved cars. During the peak periods when every Nozomi seat is reserved, you can stand on the deck of an ordinary car on a Nozomi.
Every attraction's rule in one place: when bookings open.
What we checked
Tokyo Disney Resort FAQ: same date two months ahead, daily at 14:00; the 1st of the next month if the date doesn't exist.
Ghibli Park ticket page: two months ahead on the 10th at 14:00; January 2027 opens on 10 November 2026.
Ghibli Museum ticket page: the 10th at 10:00 for the following month.
Pokémon Cafe news page: October, November and December 2026 each opened at 18:00 on the 1st of the month before; January 2027 not yet announced.
JR Central and JR Kyushu: reserved seats at 10:00 one month before, with the 1st of the month for dates the earlier month lacks. JAPAN RAIL PASS Reservation FAQ: passes from 4:00 one month before the start date.
SHIBUYA SKY FAQ: two weeks before at 00:00. Yamato and JAL ABC airport delivery pages, Narita Airport, JR East, PASMO and the Digital Agency's Visit Japan Web pages.
Set your alarms
Put each opening in your calendar in your own time zone, and have your account and card ready before the moment. If an official site shows something different from this page, the official site wins. Please tell us on the contact page and we'll update it with the date.
Affiliate link