Rainy season & typhoon season in Japan 2026 – when to travel, when to avoid

When guests from Europe ask us about the best time to travel, a cautious remark often comes with it: “We would rather not go in June – because of the rainy season.” That is understandable. The term sounds like grey days, humidity and ruined plans. In reality tsuyu – the Japanese rainy season – is one of the most underrated times to travel of all. And the typhoon season in late summer is far less frightening than its reputation suggests. In this article we explain honestly what awaits you, which regions are particularly affected, when a journey in June is genuinely worthwhile – and when we would advise against it.

What is tsuyu – the rainy season?

Tsuyu (梅雨, literally “plum rain”) is the annual rainy phase that arises over Japan when warm Pacific and cooler continental air masses meet. It lasts about four to six weeks per region and has been a fixed part of the Japanese calendar for more than a thousand years – plums ripen during this time, rice fields are flooded, and the hydrangeas (ajisai) show themselves in full splendour.

A widespread misunderstanding: tsuyu does not mean continuous rain from start to finish. The reality is far more varied:

• About half of all days are free of rain or have only short showers in the evening.
• Heavy downpours lasting an hour alternate with dry, sometimes sunny spells – even within a single day.
• Humidity is often between 75 and 90 per cent – it feels muggier than the temperatures alone suggest.
• Temperatures during the day usually range between 22 and 28 °C – more pleasant than high summer from the end of July onwards.

So it is less a kind of “weather” than an atmosphere: the trees deep green, the stone lanterns glistening with moisture, the gardens in a quieter light. For many returning guests – and for us as well – it is the aesthetically richest time of the year in Japan.

The rainy season by region

The rainy season travels from the south-west to the north-east: it begins in early May in Okinawa and only reaches Tōhoku in mid-June – so every region has its own window of about four to six weeks. The reason is geography: Japan is long and drawn out – from Okinawa to Hokkaidō it is around 3,000 kilometres in a straight line. The figures below are averages from the past ten years; every year the actual start shifts by about a week.

The practical consequence: a journey to Japan in June does not have to mean tsuyu throughout. If you visit the main island in Kyoto and Tokyo and add a few days in Hokkaidō, you experience almost two weather regimes in one journey – that is one of the beauties of this country.

What is the typhoon season?

In short: the typhoon season officially runs from June to October, with a clear peak in August and September; on the long-term average about three typhoons make landfall on Japan directly and around twelve come close enough to affect the weather; the warning time given by the JMA is three to seven days. While tsuyu is an atmospheric, gentle season, typhoons are the other extreme: tropical cyclones in the western Pacific that regularly hit or graze the Japanese islands in late summer.

What you should know as a traveller, in concrete terms:

• Number per year: three to five typhoons hit Japan directly, others graze the coasts. Most of them pass over Okinawa and southern Kyūshū; a few reach Kantō or Tōhoku.
• Warning time: three to seven days. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) and the weather app from Tenki.jp provide reliable forecasts with a high level of accuracy.
• Duration of a typhoon: as a rule 24 to 48 hours of serious weather per region – before and afterwards the sky is often bright blue.
• Transport: shinkansen lines and flights are suspended early as soon as storm warnings apply. Once the storm has passed, rail services usually resume within a few hours.

Current situation: rainy season & typhoons 2026 – 5 August

The situation in two sentences: the rainy season has been over across the whole of Japan since 4 August – heat and typhoons now shape the summer. What matters most at present is Typhoon No. 13, which passes over Okinawa on 7 and 8 August; on the main islands you will notice nothing of it, and there the heat is the topic.

Typhoon season 2026: the current situation

Typhoon No. 13 (Dolphin) is currently the only storm that plays a role for a journey to Japan. The weather agency expects it near the Daitō Islands on 6 August and over Okinawa on 7 and 8 August. What is decisive here is less its strength than its speed: a high over China is slowing it down, so that it makes only slow progress over the islands and does not move away into the East China Sea until around 9 August. Wind and rain there therefore last about two days at a stretch. If you are travelling on Okinawa or the Amami Islands between 6 and 9 August, you should firmly reckon with cancelled flights and ferries – and not only on a single day. If these islands appear in your journey, now is the right moment to look at the connections before and after. On the main islands – Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima – nothing changes. In the south of Kyūshū there can be heavy rain; particular care is called for there after the earthquake at the end of July, because the ground has been loosened.

As of 5 August 2026, 21:00 local timeNo. 13 · DolphinNo. 14 · KujiraNo. 15 · Chan-hom

The season has begun early: by 5 August fifteen typhoons had formed – about five more than is usual at this time of year and therefore around a month ahead of the accustomed pace. Two were added on that day alone, which is why three typhoons are currently standing over the western Pacific at the same time: early in the morning No. 14 (Kujira) in the South China Sea, and in the afternoon No. 15 (Chan-hom, a tree name submitted by Laos) near Wake Island. For your planning, however, the total number says little, because most of them pass far to the south of Japan towards the Philippines or China. So far only a single one has reached the Japanese main islands – Typhoon No. 6 in early June. The two new arrivals change nothing in that respect: No. 14 dissipates again over the Philippines. No. 15 is large, but weak and without a storm field; by 9 and 10 August it passes east of Japan on its way north. Should it run along the western edge of its forecast circle, it may come close to the Pacific coast of Tōhoku and Hokkaidō – anyone travelling there around the middle of the month should keep an eye on it. For the year as a whole the Japan Weather Association expects a normal range with a slight peak in August – the month with the most typhoons in any case.

Sources: the track, the speed and the forecast for Typhoon No. 13 as well as the formation of Typhoon No. 14 follow Weathernews, the Japan Weather Association (both 5 August 2026). The long-term averages follow the JMA typhoon statistics 1991–2020, the forecast for the year the typhoon outlook of the Japan Weather Association. The formation, the name and the track of Typhoon No. 15 (Chan-hom) at 15:00 local time on 5 August follow Weathernews of 5 August.

Our assessment as an operator on the ground: an early, active start to the season is no reason to cancel a summer journey. It means that we follow the situation more attentively from August onwards – as we do for our guests every year in any case. Because the weather agency warns three to seven days in advance, an affected travel day can almost always be exchanged instead of calling the whole journey into question.

The rainy season of 2026 has ended

On 4 August the Japan Meteorological Agency declared the end of the tsuyu for Hokuriku (Kanazawa) as well as for southern and northern Tōhoku – the last three regions that were still open. The rainy season is therefore over everywhere it exists at all; Hokkaidō does not have one. In the north it held on unusually long this year: in Hokuriku it ended twelve days later than usual and more than a month later than in the previous year. That the tsuyu there reaches into August at all has happened only nine times since records began in 1951. Rainfall was also considerably higher than normal – in Sendai more than twice the average. The reason was a Pacific high that reached only weakly to the north this summer and left the rain front lying over Tōhoku for weeks.

One peculiarity on the side: these dates are at first only provisional values. The weather agency reviews them again in the autumn on the basis of the actual course of the weather and occasionally corrects them by a few days. The end of the tsuyu in Japan is not a switch but a transition of about five days, which the agency subsequently pins down to a single date.

Sources: all dates in the table follow the announcement of the Japan Meteorological Agency (provisional values, as of 4 August 2026) ; the assessment of the end on 4 August – the gaps to the long-term average and to the previous year, the rainfall totals and the cause – follows Weathernews, the Japan Weather Association and the Mainichi Shimbun of the same day.

What this means for your journey

• The heat is what counts now – but not everywhere to the same degree. No sooner was the rainy season over than the kokusho-bi began – the term the Japan Meteorological Agency has used officially since this year for days from 40 °C, alongside manatsu-bi (from 30 °C) and mōsho-bi (from 35 °C). The west lies in settled high summer: plenty of sun, high humidity, widely above 35 °C. In Kumamoto more than 40 °C was measured in early August, more than ever before in that prefecture. In the east it is at times considerably milder – in Tokyo it repeatedly stayed below 30 °C, though it was cloudier. For the classic route Tokyo–Hakone–Kyoto–Hiroshima this means: the further west you come, the more severe the heat becomes. Where it is hot, our guests are out early in the morning and in the late afternoon; the midday hours are spent somewhere cool – in a museum, in a tea house or in the basement of a department store, where the depachika hides a fine-food world of its own.
• The north is currently the most pleasant corner of the country. In Hokuriku (Kanazawa) and in Tōhoku summer has officially arrived since 4 August, and for the week that follows the weather services expect mostly sun – at noticeably milder temperatures than in the west. If you have planned Kanazawa, the Japanese Alps or Tōhoku for August, you hold the better cards. After the long, wet rainy season we continue to plan mountain routes there with an eye on the official warnings.
• The hydrangeas are over, Hokkaidō remains the way out. The ajisai season on the main islands ended in July; it can now only be experienced at higher altitudes and further north. If you would like to avoid the heat altogether, combine the main island with two to four days in Hokkaidō – this recommendation applies in 2026 as it does every year.

The rainy season in Tokyo 2026

In Tokyo the rainy season has been over since 20 July; since then the summer heat has set the rhythm of the day. It had begun on 7 June, roughly on the long-term average. Anyone who experiences the city during this phase gets humid days, short and at times heavy showers and dry, sunny hours in between – and about one to two weeks after the start, the famous ajisai temples in Kamakura and in the city reach their peak.

The rainy season in Okinawa 2026

On Okinawa the rainy season has been over since 29 June, on the Amami Islands since 1 July; stable high summer has prevailed there ever since. It begins earliest here – in 2026 already in early May – and is more tropical than on the main islands: humid and warm, with heavy but mostly short showers. The end usually falls towards the end of June, in good time before the settled heat of high summer. If you travel here in summer, it is best to follow the typhoon situation – as with Typhoon No. 13 at the moment.

Case study: Typhoon No. 6 – how a typhoon really unfolded in 2026

Typhoon No. 6 (Jangmi) was the first storm of the season to reach Japan in early June 2026 – and even so it was usually over after half a day to a day in each region. This concrete example from this year shows well what a typhoon means for a journey in practice. Formed on 27 May east of the Philippines, it approached Okinawa on 1 June, passed Kyūshū and Shikoku on 2 June and made landfall on the main islands near Wakayama on the Kii Peninsula in the early morning of 3 June (at around 04:30). That was the fourth-earliest landfall since the statistics began in 1951 and the first June landfall in 14 years – on the long-term average three typhoons make landfall on Japan directly each year. It then moved along the Pacific coast over Tōkai to Kantō and turned into an ordinary low east of Tokyo on the evening of that same 3 June (at around 21:00).

As of 3 June 2026, 21:0027 May · formation1 June · Okinawa3 June, 04:30 · landfall Wakayama3 June, night · extratropical

Strength at its peak

• Central pressure min. approx. 975 hPa
• Max. wind approx. 30 m/s (10-min mean)
• Storm field (from 25 m/s): radius up to approx. 190 km
• Strong-wind field (from 15 m/s): up to approx. 650 km

The sequence of events

How strong it was – and how long it lasted

What is decisive for the assessment: in each individual region the severe weather itself lasted usually only half a day to a day. The storm moved on briskly and the heavy weather went with it. The values now measured do show, however, that it was quite serious on the Pacific coast – with rainfall totals that in places came close to records:

• Rainfall (measured): in Mie Prefecture (Tōkai) around 535 mm fell in Owase within 24 hours, on the Kii Peninsula locally 320–380 mm, in Kōchi Prefecture more than 400 mm. In Tokyo 173 mm fell within twelve hours – in each case the highest June figures since records began.
• Records: in Mie Prefecture alone, ten out of twenty measuring stations set a new June rainfall record; inland in Kansai (among others Nara, Yao, Kōbe) the highest June wind in the history of measurement was reached.
• Wind (measured): peak gusts of about 35 m/s (around 125 km/h) on the Izu Islands, widely 25–29 m/s along the coast.
• Consequences: in Tokushima, Wakayama and Mie “linear rainbands” (senjō kōsuitai) formed; for the Kozagawa river in Wakayama the highest warning level 5 applied for the first time.

Honestly said: this is not weather in which you are out and about light-heartedly. But it was also limited to a few hours per place – and foreseeable a good day in advance.

Effects on transport

Air travel was affected most: for 3 June the two large airlines (JAL and ANA) together cancelled around 600 flights – almost 80,000 travellers had to rearrange their plans, including at the hubs Haneda and Narita. On the shinkansen there was temporarily restricted operation above all on the Tōkaidō and the Yamagata lines; in local transport around Tokyo individual lines and express trains were cancelled. After the storm had passed, rail services usually returned to normal within a few hours – the shinkansen is comparatively robust against wind and rain.

Sources: Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), information on Typhoon No. 6; Japan Weather Association (tenki.jp), report on the landfall near Wakayama of 3 June 2026 as well as further Japanese media reports, as of 4 June 2026. The rainfall and wind figures are measured preliminary AMeDAS values from 3 June; the finally checked values are published by the JMA afterwards.

Advantages and disadvantages of a journey during the rainy season

The result first: a journey in June is worthwhile above all because of the peak hydrangea season, the smaller crowds and the lower prices; the disadvantages are the humidity, occasional showers and viewpoints more often hidden in cloud. We do not want to paint you a one-sided picture. A journey in June has clear advantages – and equally clear downsides. Both side by side:

Our honest conclusion on this section: anyone who depends on bright blue skies and a perfect view of Fuji should avoid the rainy season. Anyone who can give themselves over to atmosphere, plants and quieter temples gains more in June than they lose in sunshine.

The ajisai wonder – hydrangea temples across the country

If the rainy season in Japan has a secret leading actress, it is the ajisai – the Japanese hydrangea. More than a dozen temples and shrines across the country have been known for centuries as ajisai-dera (“hydrangea temples”). Some tend hundreds of plants, others several thousand – and the peak of the bloom falls exactly within the tsuyu.

Here is a selection of the loveliest places, arranged by travel region. The flowering period shifts by about a week each year – the dates given are averages.

Kamakura – the classics near Tokyo

A good hour by train from Tokyo: Kamakura is the ajisai place of Japan, and you notice that in the visitor numbers as well. If you come early – before 9 in the morning – you will experience these temples in their quiet beauty all the same.

• Meigetsu-in (明月院) – the very embodiment of the “ajisai-dera”. The famous “Meigetsu blue” hydrangeas (around 2,500 plants) flower in mid-June in a uniform, almost surreal shade of blue. The stone steps up to the temple entrance are among the most photographed images of Japan.
• Hase-dera (長谷寺) – on a rise with a view of the sea. About 2,500 hydrangeas in shades of pink, violet and blue line a walking path around the temple; admission is regulated with time slots – arriving early is worthwhile.
• Jōchi-ji (浄智寺) – less well known, noticeably quieter, situated between Meigetsu-in and Engaku-ji. An overgrown bamboo grove with hydrangeas along its edge – atmosphere rather than spectacle.

Kyoto & Uji – hydrangeas in the old capital

• Mimuroto-ji (三室戸寺) near Uji – with around 10,000 hydrangeas, one of the largest collections in Japan. In June there is illumination in the evening; the famous heart-shaped hydrangeas are at the southern end of the garden. Peak bloom mid to late June.
• Fujinomori-jinja (藤森神社) – a Shintō shrine in the south of Kyoto with about 3,500 hydrangeas in two separate gardens. Less touristy than Mimuroto-ji, ideal for travellers who are in Kyoto anyway.
• Yoshimine-dera (善峯寺) – a mountain temple west of Kyoto. Hydrangeas grow on a slope spread along the whole temple path; a magnificent view over the Kyoto basin in clear weather.

Nara – the original hydrangea temple

If you combine Nara with Kyoto, you should plan in Yata-dera (矢田寺) – historically the origin of the Japanese ajisai-dera tradition. About 8,000 hydrangeas in 60 varieties, considerably quieter than the temples of Kyoto and Kamakura. A meditative experience rather than a spectacle – exactly what the rainy season actually promises.

Greater Tokyo – the ones close to the city

• Takahata Fudōson (高幡不動尊) – about an hour from Shinjuku on the Keiō line. Around 7,000 hydrangeas on a temple hill; considerably fewer visitors than in Kamakura, and instead the intimate character of a neighbourhood temple.
• The Hakone mountain railway line – if you are travelling to Hakone anyway, early summer is a good choice: between mid-June and early July the winding narrow-gauge railway runs through whole corridors of hydrangeas. In places it deliberately slows down for them.

North and south – if you would rather avoid the crowds

On Hokkaidō the hydrangeas flower later (July to early August) and in a cooler climate – the island is generally a good alternative destination when the main islands lie under tsuyu. In Kyūshū it is above all Senkō-ji near Kurume (Fukuoka Prefecture), with around 7,000 hydrangeas on its slopes, that is worth a detour; in the Chūgoku region the hydrangea path at the Kibitsu shrine in Okayama is rewarding – both of them away from the crowded Kansai classics. If you are generally looking for such quiet places far from the great streams of tourists, you will find further ideas in our Japan hidden gems.

Should I avoid the typhoon season?

Our short answer: not across the board. Anyone planning a tightly timed round trip takes a certain risk in August and September; anyone who travels flexibly and builds in buffer time can travel well during the typhoon season – especially in the northern regions. We are asked this question often – and the answer depends more on the way you travel than on the calendar. Late summer does after all have its lovely sides as well: festivals, fireworks and the Obon period. Which ones these are, you can read in our article on summer in Japan.

If you are planning a round trip with a fixed route – for example Tokyo → Hakone → Kyoto → Hiroshima → Miyajima in fourteen clearly timed days – a typhoon in August or September can indeed lead to frustration. Cancellations of high-speed trains, closed sights and rebooking a ryokan at short notice cost nerves, above all without someone to mediate on the ground.

If you travel flexibly – few fixed dates, a willingness to stay two days longer in one place, good indoor alternatives (museums, onsen, meals out) – then August and September are not an exclusion period either. We have had guests who “sat out” a typhoon in a rural ryokan in Tōhoku and later described those two quiet days as the emotional high point of the journey.

A clear recommendation from us:

• First-time travellers on a first visit and with a fixed plan: better May, June (early to mid), October or November.
• Experienced Japan travellers who are willing to be flexible: August and September work – above all in the more northerly regions (Tōhoku, Hokkaidō).
• Families with small children: better to avoid the typhoon weeks, if only because of the heat and the humidity. How a journey to Japan with children can be planned in a relaxed way is shown in our family guide.

Practical tips for tsuyu and the typhoon season

What you should pack

• A folding umbrella rather than a rain jacket. In the humidity of June you will sweat under a rain jacket faster than the rain can make you wet. A good folding umbrella (available at any Japanese station for 500–1,500 ¥ if needed) is the better choice.
• Breathable clothing. Linen, thin cotton and quick-drying functional fabrics are more pleasant than tight synthetics.
• A second pair of shoes. Even waterproof shoes often need to air overnight. A change of shoes is worth its weight in gold.
• A laundry bag. Damp clothing has to be carried back to the hotel – a waterproof bag in your day pack is the simplest solution.
• A small towel. People in Japan carry a small towel with them at all times – for hands, forehead, glasses. Indispensable in summer and in the rainy season.

Apps and information

• Tenki.jp or Weathernews – the most reliable weather apps in Japan, with hour-by-hour rain radar forecasts. Both have English versions.
• Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) – the official weather agency. For typhoon tracks and warning levels the most reliable source (available in English as well).
• NHK World – an English-language TV app with current weather updates, above all in the event of a typhoon.

When a typhoon is coming

• Three days before: review your travel plans, identify alternative indoor activities at your destination.
• 24 hours before: have food and water for half a day at the hotel (convenience stores are often bought out the day before).
• On the day of the typhoon: stay in the hotel or ryokan. A day in an onsen with a good book is a profoundly Japanese experience.
• The day after: rail services usually run again within a few hours, often at full capacity – in our experience most guests travel on the same day.

If you would rather travel at another time

If, after this article, you come to the conclusion that neither tsuyu nor the typhoon season is your idea of Japan – that is entirely understandable. There are three windows that we particularly recommend to first-time visitors:

• Early to mid-May – after the cherry blossom, before the rainy season. Fresh temples, mild weather, lower prices than in the sakura high season.
• Mid-October to mid-November – the beginning of the autumn leaves in Tōhoku and the Japanese Alps; calm weather, clear air. Everything about it in our guide to the autumn leaves in Japan.
• Late March to early April – the classic sakura high season, with all its advantages (beauty) and disadvantages (crowds, prices). When and where the bloom is expected in 2027 and how early you should book is set out in our guide to the cherry blossom in Japan 2027.

A detailed breakdown of all the seasons can be found in our separate article Best Time to Visit Japan 2026: The Ultimate Guide.

Frequently asked questions

Our conclusion

Tsuyu and the typhoon season are not travel taboos but times of year with a character of their own. The rainy season gives you hydrangeas in full splendour, quieter temples and lower prices – the price for that is a few showers and a humidity that can be handled well with the right equipment. The typhoon season is more demanding, but it is not a reason to stay away – above all not for guests who travel flexibly, or for routes in the northern regions of Japan.

Our advice is always the same: build your journey around what you are looking for, not around what you want to avoid. If you are looking for ajisai, moss gardens in the rain and quiet temples, June is your month. If you want the blue view of Fuji and flawless days for walking, May or October are better. Both are legitimate. Both are Japan.

We are Japan Privat: a Japan-based tour operator for individual journeys through Japan, advising you in English. If you are wondering whether the rainy season is the right thing for you – or how a summer journey can be cushioned against the risk of typhoons – do get in touch with us; there is no obligation.

About the author

Kentaro Asakura

Founder of Japan Privat · A Japan specialist who guides you in English

Kentaro Asakura was born and raised in Japan. His student years took him first to the UK, where English became second nature to him, and later to Munich, where he met his wife, who is German – together they returned to Japan. With Japan Privat, he has been designing individual journeys for European travellers for more than ten years – in English, with the eyes of a local and a genuine feel for what guests from Europe are looking for.