# Shinjuku (Tokyo) > Shinjuku gives two shoots in one ward: the smoky lantern alleys east of the tracks after dark, and one of the city’s great gardens a ten-minute walk south by day. This page as HTML: https://www.komorebis.cc/destinations/shinjuku - Coordinates: 35.6905, 139.7004 - Nearest airport: HND Shinjuku Station is the busiest in the world by passenger numbers, and the district splits around it. West is the skyscraper quarter, with the twin-towered Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building and its free observatories. East is Kabukicho and the post-war alleys — Omoide Yokocho by the tracks and Golden Gai’s six lanes of tiny bars — which are the reason most people come at night. South-east is Shinjuku Gyoen, a national garden with an entry fee, opening hours and some of Tokyo’s longest cherry season. The alleys need a light touch. Many bars post no-photo signs, the lanes are barely two people wide, and a camera pointed into a doorway is unwelcome. We shoot the passages from the ends, keep each stop to a few minutes, and buy a drink where we linger. In Kabukicho we keep the frame on you and the signage, not on the touts or hosts working the street. ## When to go Shinjuku Gyoen has about 65 cherry varieties, so blossom runs from the early trees in late March to the double-flowered yaezakura in late April — the safest bet if your dates are not fixed. Autumn colour peaks there in late November to early December, and the chrysanthemum exhibition runs in early November. The alleys are a year-round night subject; in July and August they are hot and close, so we shoot after eight. - **Cherry blossom**: Late March to late April in Shinjuku Gyoen (early and late varieties) - **Autumn leaves**: Late November to early December ## Getting there Shinjuku Station is served by the JR Yamanote, Chuo and Saikyo lines, the Marunouchi, Shinjuku and Oedo subway lines, and the Odakyu and Keio railways. Tokyo Station is 15 minutes by the Chuo Rapid line; Shinjuku Gyoen’s Shinjuku Gate is a 10-minute walk from the south-east exit, or one stop to Shinjuku-gyoemmae on the Marunouchi line. ## Kimono There are only a few rental shops in Shinjuku. For a kimono session in Shinjuku Gyoen you dress in Asakusa and come over on the Marunouchi or Toei lines (about 30 minutes); a dresser at your hotel can be quoted separately. Kimono in Golden Gai is possible but awkward on the narrow stairs and wet lanes. ## Rules on location In Omoide Yokocho and Golden Gai, respect no-photo signs, do not shoot through doorways or photograph customers, and keep the lane clear. Some Golden Gai bars charge a seating fee. Shinjuku Gyoen bans alcohol and play equipment, and requires a permit for commercial shoots and tripods. In Kabukicho, decline touts politely and keep moving. ## Drone We do not fly drones here: the area is a densely inhabited district or the landowners forbid it. ## Photo spots ### Omoide Yokocho - Coordinates: 35.6931, 139.6995 - Best time: 6–8 pm - Access and permits: Free to walk; obey stall no-photo signs and never photograph diners A post-war maze of yakitori counters squeezed against the tracks north-west of the station. Charcoal smoke catches the red lanterns, which is the whole picture; we shoot along the lane from its ends with a fast lens. - **Winter**: Dark by five; the smoke hangs in cold air and glows under the lanterns. - **Summer**: Light lingers until after seven and the lanes are hot; ten minutes here is enough. ### Shinjuku Golden Gai - Coordinates: 35.694, 139.7045 - Best time: 5:30–7 pm, before most bars open - Access and permits: Free to walk; many bars ban photos, some lanes post signs against photography, and bars may charge a seating fee Around two hundred tiny bars across six parallel lanes, each two storeys high and a few metres wide. The lanes beside Hanazono Shrine are the ones where photographs are tolerated; we keep it brief and respect any sign. ### Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden - Coordinates: 35.6852, 139.7101 - Best time: Opening time, 9 am - Access and permits: ¥500 entry; closed most Mondays. Alcohol banned; tripods and commercial or wedding shoots need a permit from the garden office Fifty-eight hectares combining a formal French garden, an English lawn and a Japanese landscape garden with a pond and teahouses. The skyline of the Docomo Tower rising behind the Japanese garden is the Tokyo frame people look for. - **Late March–late April**: The weeping and Somei-yoshino cherries peak first, the yaezakura on the English lawn two weeks later; arrive at nine. - **Late November**: Maples around the Japanese garden pond and the plane-tree avenue in the French garden turn together. ### Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building - Coordinates: 35.6896, 139.6917 - Best time: Dusk from the observatory; projection after dark - Access and permits: Free 45th-floor observatory at 202 m, with a security check; no tripods. The façade projection show is free to watch from the Citizens’ Plaza The twin towers designed by Kenzo Tange. Upstairs, west-facing windows show Mt Fuji on clear winter afternoons; downstairs, the east façade carries a large projection-mapping show on most evenings. ### Kabukicho Godzilla Road - Coordinates: 35.6951, 139.702 - Best time: 7–9 pm - Access and permits: Free public street; do not photograph touts, hosts or club staff Central Road runs from the red Kabukicho gate to the Toho building, where a life-sized Godzilla head looks over the street from the eighth floor. It is the neon, maximal Shinjuku frame, best kept short. ## Covered at no travel charge Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku Sanchome, Kabukicho, Shinjuku Gyoen, Yoyogi, Okubo, Nishi-Shinjuku hotel district ## Popular here - [Tokyo night photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/tokyo-night-photoshoot.md) — from $240; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Japan photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/japan-photoshoot.md) — from $220; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Solo travel photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/solo-travel.md) — from $195; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Couple photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/couple-photoshoot.md) — from $220; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Cherry blossom photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/sakura-photoshoot.md) — from $260; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Autumn leaves photoshoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/autumn-leaves-photoshoot.md) — from $260; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Content creator shoot](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/instagram-content.md) — from $260; 15 edited photos within 3 days - [Reels & short video](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/reels.md) — from $260; 1 vertical reel, 15–30 s, within 5 days - [Travel film](https://www.komorebis.cc/services/travel-film.md) — from $430; 30–45 s film + 15 s vertical cut within 7 days ## Frequently asked questions ### Is it all right to take photos in Golden Gai? In the lanes, briefly and where no sign says otherwise; inside bars, only with the owner’s permission. We go before the bars fill, around half past five, and never photograph customers. ### Can we do a sakura shoot in Shinjuku Gyoen? Yes, and its early and late varieties make it forgiving if the main bloom passes. Alcohol is banned, tickets may need booking online in peak weeks, and a wedding-style shoot needs a garden permit, which we apply for when you book. ### Can we see Mt Fuji from Shinjuku? On clear days between November and February, from the Metropolitan Government observatory in the late afternoon. In summer it is almost always hidden by haze. --- Komorebi · https://www.komorebis.cc