【🌃Outing Log】Tokyo Mega Illumi: Best Value! A Hidden Winter Gem I Highly Recommend to Everyone

【#334, approx. 3,300 characters, approx. 55 photos】
Ohi Racecourse held the "Tokyo Mega Illumi", which I visited for the first time (January 2026). Here are my thoughts and review.

※ The event is held annually from November to January.

▶︎ Conclusion

A winter outing spot I can highly recommend to everyone! Here are the highlights:

• Cheap! Adults: 1,300 yen, Children: 700 yen (advance purchase price)

• Spend a long time! About 3 hours at a normal pace

• Everyone is satisfied! Adults, children, families, students, and couples too

• Illumination beginners can also enjoy it easily!

• Stress-free! Not too crowded, and the venue is spacious

• Great food options! Over 10 restaurants inside the venue

• Lots of fun spots! Shows, street performances, etc.

• See horses up close! Touch a pony!

• Safe and clean venue!

However, here are some points to note:

・Closed during the year-end and New Year holidays. Closed from 2025/12/24 to 2026/1/1
・Opens at 16:30. Entry is not allowed before that time
・Location is hard to reach. Nearest station: Tokyo Monorail Ohi Keibajo-mae Station

▶︎ Reason for visiting

Having memories of being fed up with crowds when visiting Kobe Luminarie and Nabana no Sato (Mie Prefecture) in the past, I had avoided illuminations.

Suddenly, I happened to learn about "Tokyo Mega Illumi" through a post on X. I became interested, thinking, "They do it at a racecourse? I never go there, so it sounds kind of interesting. Maybe my kids, who don't know about illuminations, would be happy too?"

Actually, without doing much research, I had tried to go to "Tokyo Mega Illumi" at the end of the year in 2024. After traveling to Hamamatsucho that day, I checked the website and realized it was closed that day! Learning from that mistake, this time I checked the business calendar in advance and purchased tickets in advance before heading out.

▶︎ Access

Tokyo Mega Illumi (hereinafter referred to as Mega Illumi) is held annually from early November to mid-January inside the Oi Racecourse. To get to Oi Racecourse, it is about a 2-minute walk from Oi Keibajo-mae Station on the Tokyo Monorail. Note that the entrance for Mega Illumi is only the North Gate (you cannot enter through the Main Gate).

▶︎ What is Tokyo Mega Illumi?

"Tokyo Mega Illumi" is an illumination event that has been held inside Oi Racecourse since 2018. In addition to LED illuminations, special effects using fountains and lasers are also used in the production.

It seems to be popular among many illumination events. In fact, I was extremely satisfied, and I also wanted to recommend it to someone!

Admission is 1,000 to 1,600 yen for adults. The price changes between weekdays and weekends. Purchasing in advance is cheaper. Students can enjoy it for under 1,000 yen, so I thought it was the perfect photogenic event for groups and couples (preschoolers are free).

On the day, I stayed from 4:30 PM to 7:30 PM, about 3 hours. For that price, I think it was well worth the money. The event hours are generally from 4:30 PM to 9:00 PM. Since sunset was just before 5:00 PM in January when I visited, I was able to enjoy the illuminations as soon as I entered at 4:30 PM✨

▶︎ Daily Schedule

Below, I will introduce the main flow of the day.

✔️ Before Opening

I visited with almost no prior research. Therefore, I assumed the venue was open from the morning and that the illumination lights would turn on at 4:30 PM. I also thought I would enjoy a late lunch inside the racecourse, which I don't usually visit, so I arrived at Oi Racecourse at 1:30 PM.

However! Every entrance to the racecourse was closed. I learned for the first time on-site that the illuminations light up at the same time as the 4:30 PM opening. While slightly disappointed, I killed time at "Willa Oi Store."

I had lunch at "Hama Sushi Willa Oi Store" on the second floor. There was a seating area nearby, so the adults took a short break there. The children enjoyed themselves for about an hour and a half in a space where they could scribble (coloring is king).

▼ Arts Maebashi, which had a coloring corner

Near Oi Racecourse, there is also a large park with plenty of playground equipment, such as "Shinagawa Kumin Park." If you are going with children, I thought arriving early and playing at the park is also an option.

✔️ Opening!

I entered at the same time as the 4:30 PM opening. Without making any particular plans, I first wandered around and enjoyed the atmosphere of the racecourse I don't usually visit.

✔️ TWINKLE Area

Inside the racecourse, there are two main areas. First, I wandered around the "TWINKLE Area." Although the grounds were bustling with many visitors, it didn't feel stressful at all.

▼ An exhibition where I could play with something similar (The Museum of Modern Art, Ibaraki)

In addition to these, we enjoyed petting miniature horses and ponies in front of "G-FRONT" and taking commemorative photos with them.

✔️ Japanese Splendor Area

After that, we went to the main "Japanese Splendor Area." Every exhibit was spectacular and it was fun. Also, I thought the atmosphere in both the "TWINKLE" and "Japanese Splendor" areas would be even more exciting if they played upbeat music or similar as background music.

✔️ Plenty of food!

Since Mega Illumi is at a racetrack, there were plenty of options ranging from hearty meals to sweets, and the number and variety of places to eat were abundant!

On our way out, we ate things like the beef tendon tofu bowl at the Ohi Racecourse Cafeteria. Before going, I had the impression that the inside of the racetrack would be dirty, but basically everywhere was clean and comfortable.

✔️ Heading home

After having a simple dinner, we headed home. From entering at 4:30 PM, we stayed for about 3 hours. For adults, it costs just over 1,000 yen (and under 1,000 for high school students and younger) to fully enjoy, so I thought it was great value for money!

▶︎ Summary

Did I convey the charm of "Tokyo Mega Illumi"? In addition to being easy to enjoy at a low cost, there are also things to enjoy other than the illuminations! The food is also plentiful! I thought it was a recommended winter outing spot that both adults and children can enjoy!

▶︎ Next Preview

Next time, I plan to post my thoughts on the "Eric Carle Exhibition" currently being held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

▶︎ Recommended posts for you

▼ "Sagamiko MORI MORI," where illuminations are also very popular in winter

▼ An exhibition themed around light (neon)