Mie · Nagashima · Illumination 2026–27
The Nabana no Sato illumination runs from Saturday 17 October 2026 to Monday 31 May 2027, closed 6–7 January. On regular dates, admission is ¥2,500 or ¥3,000 at a convenience store, with a ¥1,000 voucher to spend inside; 23–25 December uses a separate ticket. From Nagoya, a direct bus from Meitetsu Bus Center takes about 35 minutes and costs ¥1,200; the last bus back leaves at 21:05.
Nabana no Sato illumination 2026–27: dates and hours
Nabana no Sato is a flower park in Nagashima, part of Kuwana in Mie Prefecture, and one of the Nagashima Resort sites along with Nagashima Spa Land. Its illumination began in 2004; 2026–27 is the 23rd season. 2026–27 announced below means posted for this season on an official page; 2025–26 example means last season’s detail.
| What | 2026–27 detail and label |
|---|---|
| Season | Sat 17 Oct 2026 – Mon 31 May 2027. 2026–27 announced (joint release, 11 Sep 2026; park’s illumination page). |
| Closed | Wed 6 and Thu 7 Jan 2027. 2026–27 announced. Open in rain: the park says it lights up as normal on rainy days. |
| Hours | 10:00–21:00, to 22:00 on set days. 2026–27 announced. The park’s calendar shows 22:00 on October and November 2026 weekends and on the 3 and 23 November holidays; December onwards was blank when checked on 16 October 2026. |
| Last entry | 30 minutes before closing. Park’s calendar and fee page. |
| Christmas special | Wed 23 Dec 15:00–22:00; Thu 24 and Fri 25 Dec 15:00–23:00. No daytime opening on those days. Buy the date-specific ticket in advance; the two official sources differ on gate sales (see tickets). 2026–27 announced. |
| Main theme area | “Wild Paradise” (野生の楽園), subtitled “Land of Life” (生命の大地). 2026–27 announced (park’s main-theme page, checked 16 October 2026). Last season (2025–26): “ZIPANGU”, built around a Mt Fuji about 35 m high and 155 m wide. |
The main theme area (26,400 m², says the park) changes every season. For 2026–27 it is “Wild Paradise”, a story the park tells in scenes, from dinosaurs and a volcano through the savanna and the sea to a huge waterfall modelled on Victoria Falls, ending with jacaranda trees under the moon. Other displays return: the water illumination on the central pond, the 200-metre tunnel of light (first lit in 2006; LEDs since 2017 that copy the old bulbs’ warm colour) and the twin Himalayan cedars, more than 20 metres tall, in front of the chapel.
The park is an evening trip from Nagoya, and the direct bus back ends there. If you are building a trip around it, compare hotels in Nagoya on Booking.com.
Nabana no Sato tickets and prices, 2026–27
The price depends on the date. The park asks visitors to buy tickets in advance at a FamilyMart or 7-Eleven in Japan; buying on the day of the visit is allowed. Without one, it warns, getting a ticket at the gate can take more than 30 minutes.
| Dates (2026–27 announced) | Convenience store / gate |
|---|---|
| Sat 17 Oct – Fri 20 Nov 2026 | ¥2,500 / ¥2,700 |
| Sat 21 Nov – Tue 22 Dec 2026 | ¥3,000 / ¥3,200 |
| Wed 23 – Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Separate date-specific ticket, ¥2,000 voucher; buy in advance (see below) |
| Sat 26 Dec 2026 – Sun 28 Feb 2027 | ¥3,000 / ¥3,200 (closed 6–7 Jan) |
| Mon 1 Mar – Mon 31 May 2027 | ¥2,500 / ¥2,500 |
Source: the park’s fee page and the joint release of 11 September 2026. Free for children below elementary-school age.
23–25 December. The date-specific ticket is sold in advance at FamilyMart, 7-Eleven and Asoview. The two official sources differ: the joint release (11 Sep 2026) gives ¥5,000 and says there are no gate sales; the park’s fee page, checked on 16 October 2026, still listed the advance price as “under consideration” and a ¥5,500 gate ticket if any are left. Buy in advance.
Regular tickets include a ¥1,000 voucher, and the separate 23–25 December ticket a ¥2,000 voucher, for shopping and meals inside (not valid at some ticket machines; it has an expiry date). Both tickets also include entry to the Begonia Garden, a 9,000 m² greenhouse. Advance tickets cannot be changed or refunded. On the park’s pages checked on 14 October 2026, I found no combined admission with Nagashima Spa Land, the Jazz Dream outlet or Yuami no Shima for the illumination period; guests at the resort’s own hotels get a discount through the hotel.
The Kintetsu train and bus set ticket, sold at major Kintetsu station counters, covers the return train to Kintetsu-Nagashima, the return shuttle bus, admission and the ¥1,000 voucher. From Kintetsu-Nagoya it is ¥3,670 for ¥2,500-period visits and ¥4,170 for ¥3,000-period visits, which the operators say saves ¥310. It is also sold from Osaka-Namba (¥7,430 / ¥7,930) and Kyoto (¥7,690 / ¥8,190). It is valid for two consecutive days, but the bus and admission parts are valid only on the first day if it starts on 20 November, 22 December, 5 January, 28 February or 31 May; tickets for the ¥3,000 period are on sale from 21 October 2026. It is not sold for use starting 23–25 December and does not replace the date-specific ticket for those days.
How to get to Nabana no Sato from Nagoya
There is no rail station at the park, and no bus from Kuwana Station during the illumination: Mie Kotsu suspends its Kuwana–Nabana no Sato buses from 17 October 2026 to 31 May 2027. From Osaka, one option is the Kintetsu set ticket from Osaka-Namba described above; the other is to travel via Nagoya. From Tokyo, or from Osaka via Nagoya, the shinkansen to Nagoya is the usual first leg; you can book shinkansen tickets online before you travel.
| Route | Time, fare and what to know |
|---|---|
| Direct bus from Meitetsu Bus Center (Nagoya) | About 35 minutes out, 40 back. ¥1,200 one way, ¥2,400 return (valid two days). Buy a ticket at the 3rd-floor office, or pay by IC card on board (extra buses at busy times may not take IC cards). Buses leave from stop 22 on the 4th floor. No reservations and no standing passengers: if a bus is full, you wait for the next one. |
| Kintetsu train + shuttle bus | Kintetsu-Nagoya to Kintetsu-Nagashima: about 25 minutes by semi-express, which stops there every day; some express trains stop there on weekend timetable days from 31 Oct 2026 to 11 Jan 2027 and on 23–25 Dec (about 17 minutes). Then the Mie Kotsu shuttle: about 10 minutes, ¥250, IC cards accepted, one to three buses an hour. |
| On foot from Nagashima | About 2 km from Kintetsu or JR Nagashima Station; the park gives 25–30 minutes and calls walking the fastest option at peak times. |
| By car | About 30 minutes from Nagoya by expressway, says the park. Free parking for about 5,700 cars (¥2,000 for buses). |
Sources: Meitetsu Bus timetable revised 11 July 2026; joint release of 11 September 2026; Kintetsu’s 2026–27 page.
Trap 1: the last direct bus to Nagoya leaves at 21:05. Meitetsu Bus’s last bus from Nabana no Sato, weekdays and weekends, reaches Meitetsu Bus Center at 21:45, yet on 22:00 nights the park stays open almost an hour longer. On those nights the Mie Kotsu shuttle to Kintetsu-Nagashima runs until closing, with a last departure at 22:00 (about 10 minutes, traffic permitting). Kintetsu’s current station timetable, checked on 16 October 2026, lists local and semi-express trains to Kintetsu-Nagoya after that: 22:17 and 22:42 on weekends and holidays, 22:17 and 22:45 on weekdays, with more until about 23:45. The connection is not guaranteed: leave margin (on weekends the shuttle also leaves at 21:25 and 21:45 on those nights) and check the timetable for your date. Meitetsu Bus may also stop selling return tickets when it expects the buses back to be too full.
Trap 2: weekend traffic and the car park. The park expects jams on Route 1 and the Higashi-Meihan Expressway and suggests Route 23 or the Isewangan Expressway. On its busiest days it advises arriving by 15:00, because cars that came early leave only after the light-up, so a full car park is slow to clear. It asks visitors to use public transport at busy times, warns that the direct bus can be held up in traffic, and calls the Kintetsu route the most convenient when the roads are busy.
Both ways back end at the Nagoya Station area: Meitetsu Bus Center or Kintetsu-Nagoya. If you want to stay in Nagoya, compare hotels in Nagoya for your dates.
When to go: crowds, indoor areas and weather
The park’s guidance: on normal days, crowds build towards the 17:00 light-up, so arrive by 16:00 or after 19:00 (after 19:00 on 22:00 nights). It expects the biggest crowds on the weekends around Christmas, Golden Week, Valentine’s Day and White Day, and when the flowers peak. Its tip for the best evening: a rainy one, when the wet ground reflects the lights.
Begonia Garden
Warm, under glass and included in the ticket since June 2025, with a light-and-sound show after the light-up. With a pushchair or wheelchair, the park suggests waiting here until about 30 minutes after the light-up, when the paths clear.
Island Fuji
An observation cabin that rises 45 metres for about seven minutes, from light-up until 30 minutes before closing. Paid separately, in cash at a ticket machine; stops in bad weather.
Apart from the Begonia Garden, the illumination is outdoors and at night. Kuwana’s weather station gives these normals:
| Month | Average daily high / low, Kuwana |
|---|---|
| November | 17.3°C / 8.6°C |
| December | 11.6°C / 3.5°C |
| January | 9.2°C / 1.2°C |
| February | 10.2°C / 1.5°C |
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency, Kuwana (AMeDAS) monthly normals 1991–2020. Averages, not a forecast for 2026–27.
From December to February the average low is between 1°C and 4°C. Wear a warm coat, a hat and gloves, and shoes you can stand in for a long time; for photos in the cold, touchscreen gloves help.
A simple evening plan
The park’s light-up time follows sunset. Set against the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan’s sunset times for Kuwana, the lights come on between 4 and 25 minutes after the sun goes down on these dates:
| Date | Sunset (NAOJ) / lights on (park) |
|---|---|
| Sat 17 Oct 2026 | 17:16 / 17:20 |
| Sun 15 Nov 2026 | 16:48 / 17:00 |
| Tue 15 Dec 2026 | 16:43 / 17:00 |
| Fri 15 Jan 2027 | 17:04 / 17:20 |
| Mon 15 Feb 2027 | 17:35 / 18:00 |
The park’s times are the usual start for the main displays; it says some lights along the paths may come on earlier.
Example: Saturday 21 November 2026 (open to 22:00)
15:20 Direct bus from Meitetsu Bus Center, due at 15:55, inside the park’s “arrive by 16:00” window. The park warns the bus can run late in traffic; the 14:40 bus (due 15:15) leaves more margin.
16:00 Gardens in daylight, then the Begonia Garden; sunset 16:45.
17:00 Lights on. The park suggests watching from around the pond or the garden in front of the beer restaurant.
17:30–19:30 Water illumination, the tunnel of light, the theme area, dinner with the voucher, and Island Fuji if it is running.
Back to Nagoya The last five weekend direct buses leave at 19:45, 20:05, 20:25, 20:45 and 21:05. To stay later, take a shuttle to Kintetsu-Nagashima (21:25, 21:45 or the last at 22:00 on 22:00 nights), leave yourself margin, and check the next train to Kintetsu-Nagoya for your date.
To check bus and train times on the day without hunting for Wi-Fi, get a Japan eSIM before you land.
How many people visit Nagashima Resort
13.2 million visits to Nagashima Resort in 2025
What it is. Mie Prefecture’s count for 2025, published on 13 June 2026, puts Nagashima Resort first in Mie with 13,200,000 visits, ahead of Ise Grand Shrine (7,725,000), and 1.5% down on 2024. The prefecture counts the resort as one place; its summary does not say how much of that is Nabana no Sato.
Combining it with Nagashima Spa Land and Nagoya
The direct bus continues to Nagashima Onsen, the stop for Nagashima Spa Land, the Jazz Dream Nagashima outlet and Yuami no Shima: ¥550; Meitetsu Bus’s timetable gives 20 minutes from Nabana no Sato to Nagashima Onsen and 15 minutes the other way. Extra buses between Nagoya and Nagashima Onsen skip Nabana no Sato, so check the sign. Meitetsu Bus’s Yuttari Pack (¥3,000, adults) bundles the three legs, Nagoya to Nagashima Onsen to Nabana no Sato to Nagoya, with an outlet coupon; admission is not included.
For daytime trips from Nagoya, our Nagoya day trips guide covers Inuyama, Tokoname and the Kiso Valley. For Tokyo’s light-ups, see Tokyo’s winter illuminations. Also near Nagoya in November: Korankei’s maple gorge and light-up. For the wider season, see Japan in November 2026 and Japan in December 2026.
Nabana no Sato illumination: FAQ
When is the Nabana no Sato illumination 2026–27?
Saturday 17 October 2026 to Monday 31 May 2027, closed 6–7 January 2027. Open 10:00–21:00 (22:00 on set days); lights on at 17:00–17:20 until mid-January. On 23 December it opens 15:00–22:00 and on 24–25 December 15:00–23:00, with a separate date-specific ticket.
How much is the Nabana no Sato illumination?
At a convenience store, ¥2,500 (17 October – 20 November 2026 and from 1 March 2027) or ¥3,000 (21 November – 22 December 2026 and 26 December – 28 February 2027); ¥200 more at the gate on these regular dates from October to February. Regular tickets include a ¥1,000 voucher and the Begonia Garden. 23–25 December uses a separate date-specific ticket with a ¥2,000 voucher. Free below elementary-school age.
How do I get to Nabana no Sato from Nagoya?
Take the direct bus from Meitetsu Bus Center (about 35 minutes, ¥1,200, no reservation; last bus back 21:05). Or take the Kintetsu line to Kintetsu-Nagashima, then the ¥250 shuttle bus (about 10 minutes). There is no bus from Kuwana Station during the illumination.
How long do I need at Nabana no Sato?
The park gives no set visit time. Arriving by 16:00 and leaving on a bus between about 19:00 and 21:05 gives three to five hours, with daylight, the light-up and the main displays.
Is Nabana no Sato worth it, and how crowded is it?
If you want one large illumination within an hour of Nagoya, yes: the season is long, and the indoor Begonia Garden is included. Crowds build towards the light-up; the park suggests arriving by 16:00 or after 19:00, and by 15:00 on its busiest days, such as the weekends around Christmas.
Can I combine Nabana no Sato with Nagashima Spa Land?
Yes, by bus: Nagashima Onsen (for Spa Land and the outlet) to Nabana no Sato is ¥550, 15 minutes (20 minutes the other way). I found no combined admission ticket for the illumination period; Meitetsu Bus’s ¥3,000 Yuttari Pack covers the three bus legs from and back to Nagoya.
Sources (checked 14–16 October 2026)
- Nabana no Sato (Nagashima Resort): illumination 2026–27, hours and fees, opening calendar, 2026–27 light-up times, access, crowd guidance, highlights, convenience-store tickets, press page, 2025–26 theme, 2026–27 theme, Begonia Garden note (Japanese)
- Kintetsu, Mie Kotsu and Nagashima Kanko Kaihatsu, joint release, 11 September 2026 (PDF); Mie Kotsu, Kintetsu-Nagashima shuttle timetable 2026–27; Kintetsu, express stops at Kintetsu-Nagashima, 2026–27 and Kintetsu-Nagashima station timetable (Japanese; station timetable in English)
- Meitetsu Bus, Nagashima Onsen bus: fares and set tickets and timetable revised 11 July 2026 (PDF) (Japanese)
- Japan Meteorological Agency, Kuwana monthly normals, 1991–2020; National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, sunrise and sunset calculator (35.05°N, 136.69°E) (Japanese)
- Mie Prefecture, 2025 tourism visitor estimates, 13 June 2026 (Japanese)
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