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Nikko in October
Good month: October is at the start of the recommended season (May – June, October – November). Plan around: Autumn Colour Traffic on the Irohazaka. Autumn leaves (koyo) and Nikko Toshogu Grand Festival can fall this month.
The season runs to the end of November, next month.
2 days in Nikko in October · from ₹21,568 for two
Stay, food & local travel; getting there extra
Before you book October
Closures, crowds and rules at Nikko this month.
Worth knowing
Autumn Colour Traffic on the Irohazaka
October's autumn colour brings Nikko its biggest crowds: the Irohazaka road up to Lake Chuzenji and Kegon Falls jams for hours on weekends. Go early on a weekday, and book rooms well ahead.
What’s on in October
Timing a trip around these changes what you pay and what you can book.
Autumn leaves (koyo)
The maples turn red from late September in Hokkaido, through October in Nikko and the Alps, to mid-November to early December in Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo. Kyoto's temples open at night with lit-up gardens; trains, buses and hotels are as full as in cherry-blossom season.
Nikko Toshogu Grand Festival2027: 17–18 May; autumn festival 17 Oct
On 18 May about a thousand men in samurai armour and Edo-period dress escort the shogun's spirit in a procession through the shrine; a smaller procession is held on 17 October.
What it costs
For two sharing a room; 2 days on the ground, getting there not included.
Budget
₹21,568 for two
- Room a night₹6,050
- Food a day, each₹2,756
- Main sight entry, each₹970
Mid-range
₹48,337 for two
- Room a night₹14,520
- Food a day, each₹6,360
- Main sight entry, each₹970
Luxury
₹1,18,267 for two
- Room a night₹42,350
- Food a day, each₹14,840
- Main sight entry, each₹970
Totals cover the room (taxes included), food, local transport, entry and a 10% buffer: the figures the planner opens on. These are typical rates; Tourisma has no month-by-month rates for Japan yet, so they don't move with the month.
Getting there
Fly into Tokyo (HND), 120 km away
Then: Train · 2h 12m (Tobu limited express (Asakusa–Tobu-Nikko), or JR shinkansen via Utsunomiya)
Flights from India: from 7 cities, one way from ₹22,000
Fly into Tokyo (NRT), 120 km away
Then: Train · 2h 12m (Tobu limited express (Asakusa–Tobu-Nikko), or JR shinkansen via Utsunomiya)
Flights from India: from 3 cities, one way from ₹31,000
Routes compared
Entry rules
E-visa before you fly for up to 90 days, about ₹1,300
- Book an appointment at the Japan Visa Application Centre (VFS Global) for your area and apply for the single-entry tourist visa, no more than three months before you travel. Walk-ins ended in February 2026. The visa fee is ₹500, plus VFS's service charge of ₹800.
- Apply 3-4 weeks before you fly: processing takes at least 5 working days. The visa comes as an eVISA (an electronic notice), not a sticker; keep it on your phone and as a printout for the airline and immigration.
- Before you fly, fill in Visit Japan Web (vjw.digital.go.jp) for one immigration and customs QR code. It is optional; paper cards are handed out on the plane.
- At immigration, your fingerprints and photo are taken and you are given the stay the visa allows (up to 90 days).
Carry: Passport with at least two blank pages, valid for the whole stay; Visa application form with a 45 x 35 mm photo; Flight booking in and out of Japan; Day-by-day schedule of the stay with hotel bookings; Bank statements for the last 3-6 months and income-tax returns for the last 2-3 years (the VFS centre's checklist says which); Employees: a leave letter or NOC; self-employed: business registration; The eVISA notice, on your phone and printed.
Indians need a visa for Japan, but it is cheap: ₹500, unchanged when Japan raised its visa fees five-fold for most countries in July 2026. JESTA, Japan's planned online travel authorisation, is for visa-free nationalities and is not due before 2028.
Checked 2026-10; confirm with the embassy before you fly.
Elsewhere in Japan in October
Also in season this month.
- Matsumoto · great month
- Sendai & Matsushima · great month
- Mount Fuji & Kawaguchiko · good month
- Nagano (Jigokudani Snow Monkeys) · good month
- Koyasan · good month
- Naoshima · good month
- Beppu · good month
- Fukuoka · good month
Nearby in Tokyo & Kanto:
Want this as a real plan?
Nikko in October, day by day, priced for your group.