Tokyo Skytree Winter Illumination & Events

Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Solamachi are illuminated beautifully in the winter. Tall Skytree itself shines every evening of the year in changing colors and now the big Solamachi shopping mall at its base is also sparkling with lights and decorations.

I took a walk around Solamachi to see the Tokyo Skytree Town Illumination. The Skytree mascots formed from cold lighting welcomed me at the station. On the station’s sign you can see them in their usual outfits: Sorakara-chan with the star hair and her friends the dog Sukoburuburu and the penguin girl Teppenpen.

All the trees along the sides of Solamachi and on the terraces are covered in lights. They turn walking around the mall into a fun winter walk. Do not take the escalators now. Walk up and down the stairs and check the different snowflakes on the side of each step. I found at least three different snowflake designs, one with the snowflakes dancing around. Icy fun without feeling too cold!

There are also Christmas decorations up everywhere. An especially cute one is waiting for you at the entrance to the Moomin House Cafe. Here and at many other shops you can now eat special winter and Christmas sweets. A new winter limited edition Tokyo Skytree sweet is the oimotree waffle made with sweet potato. The waffle or any of the other Skytree sweets will make a special souvenir.

If you feel like some Christmas foods and drinks, go to the German style Solamachi Christmas market for hot Glühwein, sausages, and cold beers. It is open until December 25, 2014 and located on the 4F terrace called Sky Arena. Here you can also enjoy the Christmas projection mapping starting from Friday, December 12 at 17:30, 18:00, 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, and 20:00. The Sumida Aquarium inside Solamachi also has a special projection mapping of whales until January 12, 2015. A visit to the aquarium would make a fun christmas gift.

During the Christmas time, Sorakara-chan, Sukoburuburu, and Teppenpen are scheduled for some special wintertime performances, but unfortunately I did not meet the mascots in person during my visit. Maybe you will have better luck.

See the detailed Tokyo Solamachi information here and pick up a floor guide when you visit.
http://www.tokyo-solamachi.jp/english/

Here you can see more Skytree sweets and pictures of Skytree illuminated in different colors. Green and red are special illuminations for Christmas, blue and purple are regular colors you can see throughout the year.
http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3661
http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3564

This Japanese page shows the color scheduled for the Skytree illumination for every day.
http://www.tokyo-skytree.jp/news/lighting/

UPDATE - This is the Christmas projection mapping. Santa's helpers bake a cake.
http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3814