Oji Inari Shrine

Oji Inari Shrine tickets and tours: which one to book

Oji Inari Shrine is a neighbourhood shrine in Kita ward, in the north of Tokyo, and there is nothing to book for it. No ticket for the shrine alone is sold online, entry to the grounds is free, and there is no booth or timed slot; you simply walk in from the street. Almost everyone arrives independently by public transport. Oji station is served by the JR Keihin-Tohoku line, the Tokyo Metro Namboku line and the old Toden Arakawa tram, and the shrine is about five to ten minutes on foot uphill from the station.

That makes it easy to slot into a half day in northern Tokyo, together with Asukayama Park next to the station and a ride on the tram towards Sugamo or Minowa. Large city tours rarely come this far, so do not expect a coach-tour stop; Oji is more often included in self-guided walks or private tours built around old Edo and its fox legends, or in the special guided programmes some operators run around the New Year fox parade. If you join one, check whether transport within the city is included. Bring a few coins for the offering box and a little cash for a charm or a fortune slip from the shrine office. The page lists any GetYourGuide tours whose route passes the shrine.

Visiting Oji Inari Shrine: what to see and how to behave

Oji Inari has long been regarded as the head of the Inari shrines of the Kanto region. Inari is the kami of rice, harvests and commercial success, and his messengers are foxes, so stone foxes with scrolls, keys or jewels in their mouths guard the steps and the halls. According to Edo-period lore, foxes from all over eastern Japan gathered on New Year's Eve under a great nettle tree near the shrine, changed into formal dress and walked to Oji Inari, their fox fires visible across the rice fields. Hiroshige turned the scene into one of the best-known prints of his views of Edo. The compact grounds sit on a slope.

Climb past the torii to the main worship hall, then follow the path up behind it to a small hillside shrine and the fox hole, a cave said to have been the home of the shrine's foxes, now guarded by statues and draped in offerings. Nearby is a stone used for divination: make a wish, lift it, and if it feels lighter than you expected, the wish is said to be granted. Follow the usual shrine etiquette: bow at the torii, rinse your hands at the basin, and at the hall toss a coin, bow twice, clap twice and bow once more. Keep your voice down near the fox hole, which local people still visit to pray. From Oji station take the north exit and walk west along the road towards the hillside; the shrine is signposted.

Oji Inari Shrine: opening hours, ceremonies and the best time to go

The grounds are open during daylight hours every day, and the shrine office for charms keeps normal working hours, roughly from morning to late afternoon. On an ordinary weekday morning you may have the place almost to yourself, which suits its quiet, slightly mysterious atmosphere. Late afternoon light on the fox statues is also atmospheric. Two dates stand out. In February, on the days of the horse in the old calendar, the shrine holds its kite fair, when stalls sell paper kites as charms against fire.

On New Year's Eve, local people in fox make-up and costumes walk in a lantern-lit procession from the site of the old tree to the shrine, recreating the legend; it is crowded, cold and memorable, and the first shrine visits of the New Year follow straight after. Late March and early April bring cherry blossom to neighbouring Asukayama Park, one of the oldest blossom-viewing spots in Tokyo. Allow 30 minutes for the shrine. Combine it with Asukayama Park, the Oji Shrine nearby and a tram ride along the Arakawa line.