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Enoshima Illumination 2026–2027 (Shonan no Hoseki): 1 December to 28 February, Lighting Hours, ¥500 Garden Ticket and the Evening Trip from Tokyo

Updated 2026-10-21

Shonan no Hoseki 2026–27 runs from Tuesday 1 December 2026 to Sunday 28 February 2027. The lights are on 17:00–20:00 on weekdays and 17:00–21:00 on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays and every night from 20 to 30 December; from 10 January they come on at 17:30. The main venue is Samuel Cocking Garden with the Sea Candle lighthouse on top of Enoshima, and the garden, free by day, charges ¥500 (child ¥250) after 17:00 for the whole season. The operator, which runs the garden and the lighthouse, posted the 2026–27 dates on its event page in October and shows last winter's timetable and venue list under them; every hour and price here is from that page, its tickets page and its opening-hours page, checked on 2026-10-21. The event page also says the illumination was certified as one of Japan's three major illuminations in 2025.

Board of Shonan no Hoseki lighting hours, 1 December 2026 to 28 February 2027: weekdays 17:00 to 20:00 with last entry 19:30; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays 17:00 to 21:00 with last entry 20:30; 20 to 30 December every night until 21:00; 31 December to 3 January until 20:00; from 10 January the lights start at 17:30. Iwaya Caves lights 9:00 to 17:00. Garden after 17:00 500 yen, child 250 yen; Sea Candle 800 yen, child 400 yen on top.
Two kinds of night: 20:00 close on weekdays, 21:00 on weekends and on every night from 20 to 30 December.

Dates and lighting hours

Nights Lights on Lights off Last entry
Weekdays 17:00 20:00 19:30
Saturdays, Sundays, holidays 17:00 21:00 20:30
20–30 December, every night 17:00 21:00 20:30
31 December – 3 January 17:00 20:00 19:30
From 10 January 17:30 as above 30 minutes before closing

The venue list and the nightly hours are the operator's 2025–26 timetable, shown on its 2026–27 page under the new dates. Last season ran 22 November to 28 February with the same hour rules, so the one real change announced so far is the later start, 1 December.

What is lit, and where

The paying part is small and at the top; the free part is the whole walk from the bridge to the shrine. Someone who only wants a look at the lights can do the shrine, the plaza and the bell for ¥0 and never enter the garden.

Tickets: ¥500 for the garden, ¥1,100 for garden and lighthouse

Ticket Adult Child What it covers Where
Samuel Cocking Garden after 17:00 ¥500 ¥250 the lit garden garden entrance
Enoshima Sea Candle ¥800 ¥400 the lighthouse decks garden entrance, escar section 1
Sea Candle & Garden set + Night ¥1,100 ¥550 garden after 17:00 + lighthouse, no escar garden entrance
Sea Candle set + Night ¥1,550 ¥750 escar + garden after 17:00 + lighthouse escar section 1
Cocking Garden set + Night ¥850 ¥400 escar + garden after 17:00, no lighthouse online (Asoview)
Enoshima 1day + Night ¥1,950 ¥900 escar + lighthouse + Iwaya Caves + garden after 17:00 escar section 1
Iwaya + Sea Candle set + Night ¥1,540 ¥710 lighthouse + caves + garden after 17:00, no escar escar section 1

A family of two adults and two elementary school children pays ¥3,300 for the garden and the lighthouse on the stairs route (2 × ¥1,100 + 2 × ¥550) and ¥4,600 with the escar up (2 × ¥1,550 + 2 × ¥750). For the caves as well, or a daytime visit before the lights, run the combination through the Enoshima island tickets calculator; every daytime price and the escar's sections are in Enoshima Sea Candle tickets.

The evening, hour by hour

Timeline of an illumination evening on Enoshima: 16:30 arrive at Katase-Enoshima, 20 minutes to the garden; 17:00 lights on and the garden starts charging 500 yen; 19:05 last listed escar run, after that stairs of about 20 minutes; 19:30 last entry on weekdays with the gates closing at 20:00; 20:30 last entry on weekends and 20 to 30 December with the gates closing at 21:00; 21:00 walk back, 20 to 26 minutes to the three stations. Tickets: garden only 500 yen, garden plus Sea Candle set 1,100 yen, escar plus garden plus Sea Candle 1,550 yen; one by one 1,300 or 1,800 yen. Odakyu from Shinjuku 650 yen each way, 2,400 yen for the evening per adult.
The escar's listed last run is 19:05. After that the only way up is the stairs.
  1. 16:30, Katase-Enoshima Station. The Odakyu station is the closest of the three: about 20 minutes on foot to the garden gate over Benten Bridge, up Benzaiten Nakamise street and the escar. From Enoshima Station on the Enoden it is 25 minutes, from Shonan-Enoshima on the monorail 26. Arriving at half past four puts you at the gate as the lights come on, with the sunset over Sagami Bay on the way up.
  2. 17:00, lights on. The garden starts charging. With the set ticket bought at the bottom of the escar, you pass the gate without a second queue.
  3. Up the Sea Candle first. The decks look down on the whole lit garden and across to the mainland lights, and the Fuji silhouette the operator promises is a dusk sight, so the lighthouse comes before the walk round the garden, not after.
  4. 19:05, last escar. The escar's listed hours are 8:50–19:05 and the operator says hours can be extended during events without printing winter hours, so anyone arriving after 19:00 should plan on the stairs, about 20 minutes up.
  5. 19:30 or 20:30, last entry; 20:00 or 21:00, gates close. The walk down past the shrine and over the bridge is lit the whole way. Shonan Monorail's last train from Shonan-Enoshima is 23:26, so a 21:00 close leaves plenty of margin on that line.

What the evening costs from Tokyo

Odakyu from Shinjuku to Katase-Enoshima is ¥650 each way (child ¥330), about an hour from central Tokyo by Odakyu's own figure, with a change at Fujisawa on most trains. Round trip ¥1,300, plus the ¥1,100 set: ¥2,400 per adult for the evening, door to door, or ¥2,850 riding the escar up. The Odakyu Enoshima-Kamakura Freepass costs ¥1,640, more than the ¥1,300 round trip, so for an evening-only visit it loses money; it only wins if you ride the Enoden to Kamakura the same day, which Kamakura and Enoshima day trip cost works out. Coming from Kamakura after the temples, the Enoden to Enoshima Station is ¥260 (see Kamakura to Enoshima); from Ofuna, the monorail is ¥340 (see Shonan Monorail). The daytime version of the trip, with the caves and the aquarium, is in Enoshima day trip from Tokyo.

The island's car parks are about 10 minutes' walk from the bridge and fill up on weekend evenings, which is why the operator asks weekend visitors to come by train.

Tickets and tours

PR Affiliate links (disclosure): booking through them supports this site at no extra cost. Prices on partner sites may differ from the official prices on this page. The +Night tickets themselves are sold at the garden entrance and the first escar station.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Enoshima illumination in 2026?

Shonan no Hoseki 2026–27 runs from 1 December 2026 to 28 February 2027, every night, weather permitting. The lights are on from 17:00 (17:30 from 10 January) until 20:00 on weekdays and 21:00 on weekends, holidays and 20–30 December.

How much does the Enoshima illumination cost?

The lit streets, bridges and shrine are free. Samuel Cocking Garden, the main venue, charges ¥500 for adults and ¥250 for children after 17:00. The Sea Candle lighthouse is ¥800 more, or ¥1,100 for both as the Sea Candle & Garden set + Night sold at the gate.

What time should I arrive?

By 16:30 at Katase-Enoshima Station for a weekday, which puts you at the gate for the 17:00 lighting; by 19:00 at the latest if you want to ride the escar up, whose listed last run is 19:05. Last entry to the garden is 19:30 on weekdays and 20:30 on weekends.

Is the Odakyu Enoshima-Kamakura Freepass worth it for the illumination?

Not for the lights alone. The pass is ¥1,640 and the Shinjuku to Katase-Enoshima round trip is ¥1,300. It pays only if you also ride the Enoden between Kamakura and Enoshima that day.

Official sources (checked 2026-10-21)

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