The 2026 Sendai Pageant of Starlight (SENDAI光のページェント) runs for 24 nights, from Friday, December 4 to Sunday, December 27. About 480,000 LEDs light up the 127 zelkova trees along Jozenji-dori (定禅寺通), an avenue in central Sendai.
The lights come on at 6:00 pm every night. They go off at 9:00 pm Sunday to Thursday, and at 10:00 pm on Fridays, Saturdays and December 24.
The best all-around nights are Friday, December 4 and Saturday, December 5. The lights stay on until 10:00 pm, and you don't need a ticket for the nearby Christmas market.
Friday has the lighting ceremony, and Saturday has an army band concert and the Find Santa event.
On the other late nights before the market closes (December 11, 12, 18, 19, 24 and 25), the lights also stay on until 10:00 pm, but you need a timed ticket for the market on every one of them.
The Starlight Wink, when every light on the avenue goes dark and comes back on, has tentative 2026 times, but the nights aren't specified yet. In 2025 it ran on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and December 24–25.
2026 at a Glance
Item | Details |
|---|---|
Dates | Friday, December 4 – Sunday, December 27, 2026 |
Where | Jozenji-dori, Aoba Ward, Sendai, from Sendai Mitsukoshi in the east to Jozenji Garden Hills Geihinkan in the west |
Scale | 127 zelkova trees, about 480,000 LEDs |
Nearest station | Kotodai-koen Station (勾当台公園駅), Namboku Subway Line, a 1-minute walk |
Organizer | SENDAI Pageant of Starlight Foundation / 2026 Executive Committee |
Jozenji-dori is a public street, so you watch the lights from its median walkway and sidewalks. For the 2025 edition (December 5–28), Miyagi Prefecture's official tourism site listed admission as free.
This year is the 41st edition of an event that began in 1986 to brighten Sendai's winter.
Check hotel availability and rates in Sendai
Which Night to Go
On the 2026 calendar, the lights stay on until 10:00 pm on these nine nights:
- Friday, Dec 4 and Saturday, Dec 5
- Friday, Dec 11 and Saturday, Dec 12
- Friday, Dec 18 and Saturday, Dec 19
- Thursday, Dec 24, Friday, Dec 25 and Saturday, Dec 26
The other 15 nights, including the final night on Sunday, December 27, end at 9:00 pm.
The schedule has changed since last year. According to a JR East feature, in December 2025 the lights ran from 7:00 to 10:00 pm Monday through Thursday.
This year, the lights on those nights come on and go off an hour earlier, at 6:00 and 9:00 pm (except December 24, when they stay on until 10:00 pm), so plan around the 2026 times on the official site rather than older listings.
Here's how the nights compare between December 4 and 27:
Night | Lights off | What's on |
|---|---|---|
Fri, Dec 4 (opening night) | 10:00 pm | Lighting ceremony from 5:40 pm; side attractions open |
Fri & Sat, Dec 5–25, plus Thu, Dec 24 | 10:00 pm | Side attractions open; Christmas market needs a timed ticket on Dec 11, 12, 18, 19, 24 and 25 |
Sun–Thu, Dec 6–23 | 9:00 pm | Side attractions open; Christmas market needs a timed ticket on Dec 13 and 20 |
Sat, Dec 26 | 10:00 pm | Most side attractions and the market have closed |
Sun, Dec 27 (final night) | 9:00 pm | Same as Dec 26 |
Starlight Wink Times and Nights
The Starlight Wink is the moment every light on the avenue goes dark for about a minute, then comes back on all at once.
For 2026, the official site lists the Wink at 6:30, 7:00 and 8:00 pm, with a note that the times are still being adjusted. It gives the period as December 4–27 but hasn't said which nights.
Last year it was more limited. According to the JR East feature, the 2025 Wink ran only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and December 24–25, and only twice a night, at 6:30 and 7:00 pm.
This year may be different, but if you're going Monday through Thursday (other than December 24), you might not see one.
If the Wink is your main reason to go, pick a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, or Thursday, December 24. Be on Jozenji-dori a little before 6:30 pm, the first scheduled time, and check the official event page on the day, since the times may still change.
The Lighting Ceremony on December 4
On opening night, Friday, December 4, the lighting ceremony runs from 5:40 to 6:00 pm on the Jozenji-dori median walkway in front of Sendai Mediatheque (せんだいメディアテーク).
After a countdown, every tree on the avenue lights up at once. The Winter Angels, a group of elementary school children from Sendai and nearby towns, are scheduled to play handbells.
Side Attractions and Their Dates
Most of the side attractions run through December 25. Christmas Post ends earlier, on December 22, and two events run on a single night only.
Attraction | Dates and times | Where |
|---|---|---|
Omotenashi Station (information booth) | Dec 4–25, during lighting hours | Kotodai Park |
Smile Deck viewing platform and Starlight Castle | Dec 4–25, during lighting hours | Jozenji-dori walkway / Kotodai Park |
Iris Heart sculpture and Instax photo spot | Dec 4–25, during lighting hours | Jozenji-dori walkway |
Christmas Post | Dec 4–22 | Big tent, Kotodai Park |
Machikuru Performers Sendai (street performers) | During the event, weather permitting | Kotodai Park |
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Northeastern Army Band concert | Sat, Dec 5, 6:00–6:40 pm | Big tent, Kotodai Park |
STARLIGHT☆ECHOES | Dec 12–13 (a cappella), Dec 19–20 (dance) | Big tent, Kotodai Park |
STARLIGHT☆WINK CONCERT | Sun, Dec 13, 6:00, 7:00 and 8:00 pm | In front of Sendai Jozenji Building |
Find Santa and win a present | Dec 5, 6, 19, 20, 24, 25, 6:00–8:00 pm (daily cap on participants) | Kotodai Park |
To get onto the Smile Deck or into the Starlight Castle, a large castle-shaped installation, you need a Hikaring (ひかリング), a keepsake you get for donating at least a set amount. Hikarings are handed out December 4–25 at Omotenashi Station and the Smile Deck.
Sendai Christmas Market at Nishikicho Park
Sendai Christmas Market 2026 at Nishikicho Park (錦町公園) overlaps almost exactly, running from Friday, December 4 to Friday, December 25. Hours are 4:00–10:00 pm on weekdays, noon–10:00 pm on Saturdays and noon–9:00 pm on Sundays.
On weekends it opens at midday, so you can look around the market first and walk over to Jozenji-dori once the lights come on.
Entry is generally free, but on eight days (December 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 24 and 25) you need a timed entry ticket. It costs ¥1,600 with a souvenir mug, or ¥1,900 with a Hikaring as well.
Each ticket is good for two hours from the start of your entry slot. Entry slots can sell out, so book ahead if you plan to go on one of these eight days.
Advance tickets went on sale November 4 at 10:00 am through Lawson Ticket (ローチケ); the Sendai Christmas Market official site has the purchase link.
Kids of elementary school age and younger get in free every day, including the ticketed days, when accompanied by a guardian.
Getting There and Visitor Notes
From JR Sendai Station, take the Namboku Subway Line toward Izumi-Chuo and get off at Kotodai-koen Station, two stops and about 3 minutes away. The lights are a minute's walk from the station.
From Sendai Airport, the Sendai Airport Access Line takes about 20 minutes to JR Sendai Station.
There's no parking for visitors, and the organizers ask people to use public transportation. According to the official site, there are no road closures during the event (December 4–27), so cars keep using the Jozenji-dori roadway. Stay on the walkway and sidewalks.
- From December 4 to 27, the lights go on in rain or snow, barring disasters or other unavoidable circumstances
- Individual events can be canceled because of weather; cancellations are posted on the official site
- Drones and other aerial cameras are banned
- Take your trash home, and don't smoke while walking
December 25 is the last night for most side attractions and the Christmas market. For lights until 10:00 pm while most of them are still running, go on a Friday or Saturday up to December 25, or on Thursday, December 24. Heading farther north? See Sapporo White Illumination.
This article was translated from the original Japanese with AI assistance and reviewed by our editorial team. The Japanese version is authoritative.