To coincide with the upcoming Detective Conan movie, Fallen Angel of the Highway, Universal Studios Japan (USJ) is hosting a Conan-themed event. This year, visitors can enter Conan’s world by taking part in an exclusive, high-stakes escape room game.

The game, titled “Detective Conan: The Escape - Prologue to the Highway” is joined by a special restaurant experience, where guests must solve a mystery while dining. The Detective Conan event is part of USJ Cool Japan 2026 line-up, which highlights popular Japanese franchises. This year includes special themed events from the likes of Jujutsu Kaisen and Monster Hunter.

Get out and active in 2026, thanks to Nijigen no Mori’s Crayon Shin-Chan adventure park. Visitors can enjoy thrilling new elements to its adventure courses.

Following a renewal that was completed in January, both kids and grown-ups alike may wobble across new paths on its line bridge, and venture through a brand-new attraction “Wave.” During the event period, the park will debut the “Athletic Challenge,” inviting adventurers to step in Shiro’s footsteps and complete the special course.

Crayon Shin-Chan Adventure Park caters to questors of a variety of ages, from toddlers through adults. Courses include options at 3.5 meters, 4.5m or 8m, and there’s even an onsite kindergarten.

Toei Kyoto Studio Park is the only theme park in Japan where you can explore a functioning period-drama movie set. And this February, visitors can even enjoy performers who’ll be there to entertain and delight with a series of themed street dramas and acts.

Wander the streets as impromptu dances and street magic abounds, elevating your experience to a whole new level. Don a kimono while you play to really get in the spirit!

Sumiyoshi Taishi, established 1,800 years ago, is the head shrine of shrines bearing the Sumiyoshi name across the country, and is affectionately known as Sumiyossan by locals.

Each year, the shrine invites visitors to celebrate the changing of seasons from winter to spring with horses and demons. Rather than the widely-preferred dry beans, the ceremony includes a part called “Hosha no Gi.” During Hosha no Gi, local horseback archers fire their arrows at a demon target, to represent beans and luck. Onlookers cheer on the archers and pray for good luck for the year ahead.

Heian Jingu, one of Kyoto’s most famous shrines, celebrates the purification at the heart of setsubun (bean-throwing day) with a day-long event. During the shrine’s setsubun festival, visitors can watch traditional Japanese performing theater, kyogen, by Shigeyama Kyogen Troupe; experience a dramatic purification ritual, “Daina no Gi,” and have fun at the bean throwing, before fire purification to close off the day.

During the bean throwing, the Shigeyama Kyogen Troupe perform a special demon dance, before selected watchers throw beans to chase away the bad luck.

The annual Shigisan Tiger Festival in Nara is one of the most hotly-anticipated events of the February shrine calendar. A celebration of the temple’s symbol, the tiger, the festival is a celebration of all things to do with the big orange cat.

Starting in the morning, there’s a procession of tigers, featuring people born solely in the year of the tiger. Special tiger treats will be distributed to eager spectators. There will be over 5,000 tiny tiger effigies piled up in a special memorial service, tiger painting time and, of course, lots and lots of food.

Osaka Marathon is one of the biggest charity marathon events of the year, serving as the selection race for mens’ long-distance running on the global stage. With opportunities including the 2028 Olympics, there’s all to run for. There are plenty of charity entries too, and many people line the route to cheer on the country’s best runners.

The course takes in the sights of Osaka, from Dotonbori through Osaka Castle and Shitenno-ji Temple. The course’s inner-city location means that spectators can sample the best of Osakan food while watching the runners do their thing.

Enter the world of Viennese painter, Gustav Klimt. Step into his paintings, move through the phases of his works as though you’re inside his mind. Best known for his painting, The Kiss, this hugely influential artist is someone that we’ve all learned about in school — but predominantly as a historical figure from times gone past.

This exhibition brings Klimt to life, through immersive, moving projections, haptic flooring that changes the way we sense our surroundings, and sound. A worldwide hit show, run by Grande Experiences, seeing “Klimt Alive” in Japan enables you to feel how the Japanese appreciate art — you’ll be in one of the calmest exhibition halls ever.

Immutable city-wide illumination event, Kobe Luminarie, reaches its 31st edition in 2026. The event commemorates the victims of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (Kobe Earthquake) of 1995, when 80% of buildings in its worst-hit area were fully or partially destroyed, and 5,000 people died.

The event — which finishes a little before Valentines, but makes for a great romantic trip — has also evolved into a celebration of Kobe and its city, with many local businesses and shops offering discounts, and teaming up to hold stamp rallies. This year sees light installations and mapping across three main areas in the park, under the theme of “Kobe’s Heartbeat, Its Tale of Light.”

Osaka Castle’s famed plum blossom grove shines during February, with its plum blossoms a fair rival to popular cherry blossoms, in a sea of pinks and white.

The grove is home to 1,245 plum blossom trees in 105 varieties, across an expansive 1.7 hectares. The wide range of the blooms means that the plum blossom season is long, and rich with different colors and shades. Nearly 1000 trees are expected to bloom around Valentines Day on 14 February, followed by later-blooming varieties toward the end of the month. You won’t go wrong getting your Japan flower fix with these plum blossoms!

Enjoy art installations and performances in the majestic setting of Kyoto’s legendary Kitano Tanmangu Shrine. Kyoto Nippon Festival reaches its tenth year of action, and to celebrate, the festival is pulling out all the stops.

It’s invited EiM (Eternity in Moment) creative team, whose previous show at Tokyo Node drew rave reviews and comparisons to teamLab. The team joins Mika Ninagawa, whose brightly colored flower studies will light up the temple spaces, including its three gardens, which will dazzle with 1000 crystals.

The biggest custom car event of the year takes place in February: Osaka Auto Messe. The weekend event boasts over 300 different booths and attracts around 200,000 people across its duration, who come for thrilling car displays and customizations from some of the hottest names in the business.

Japanese manufacturers are also a big presence, with names such as Toyota, Hyundai and Honda showing off their best custom cars and parts. There will be food stalls, a kids mobility park and even an after market, to ensure that custom car enthusiasts get their custom fix.