How to celebrate Easter in Japan

Back home in Australia, Easter is one of the biggest holidays of the year. We get a four day weekend, and there are numerous events held to celebrate the event. The large regional city back home where I spent most of my twenties hosts an amazing Easter festival annually, and it's fun for the whole family. It's honestly a time of year where I get a little homesick, and that doesn't happen all that often these days because Japan has been home for so long now.

So, how can you celebrate Easter here if it's an occasion you're used to celebrating back home? You may have to change your expectations of festivals, but there are still a number of fun ways to get into the Easter spirit! Here are a few options available this year.

Celebrate with food at an Easter afternoon tea event

If you're used to having an Easter meal with family back home, you can channel that vibe with an Easter afternoon tea event. A number of hotels offer them, including the Tokyo Prince Hotel. Their Easter Picnic Party event is running from April 11th until May 8th and it's priced at ¥ 4,500 per head. The menu lineup includes a range of sweet and savory dishes, with many of them presented in a really adorable way!

Many hotels offer Easter themed afternoon tea events, with some beautifully presented dishes on offer. Pic Credit: PR Times

Head to a theme park

One theme park offering an Easter event this year is Sanrio Puroland in Tokyo's Tama area. They've been running "Puro Easter" since 2017, and the festivities include Sanrio characters dressed in Easter-themed costumes, an Easter egg hunt, Easter themed goods for sale (such as plush toys), and more. The event started on March 11th and it runs all the way until early July, so even if you can't make it over the Easter weekend you've still got plenty of time to get in on the fun. More details can be found on the official Sanrio Puroland website.

Make your children Easter baskets with goodies from 100 yen stores

Something that wasn't really a thing when I was a kid but seems to be nowadays back home is making Easter baskets for children. They are usually filled with various goodies – small toys, coloring books, practical things like seasonal pajamas or socks, and yes...a little bit of chocolate or candy for good measure. We tend to pick up goodies for our children's Easter baskets at our local Daiso, and you can often find some fun and inexpensive Easter-themed items there.

If you celebrate Easter, how will you be celebrating the day this year in Japan?