Things to Know Before Booking Shibuya Sky

[UPDATED NOVEMBER 2025]

If you’re in the middle of planning your trip to Tokyo, you’ve probably come across Shibuya Sky, the best place for panoramic views of Tokyo right above Shibuya Crossing! But before you snag those coveted tickets, there are a few things to know to ensure a smooth and successful visit.

Here are some tips we wish we knew before visiting Shibuya Sky for the first time:

1. Tickets are released 2 weeks in advance

If you’re anything like us, then you probably are thinking about booking tickets way in advance for Shibuya Sky. To make sure everyone has a fair chance of snagging tickets (because they sell out pretty quickly) tickets are released 2 weeks in advance at 0:00 Japan time. Because of this, you need to make sure you’re planning your time in Tokyo properly, especially if you’re only visiting for a few days.

• As of a revision on 27 Feb 2025, tickets for Shibuya Sky are sold as “date & time-slot specified”.
• You should plan to book about ~14 days ahead (or as soon as your date opens).
• Tip: Set a calendar reminder for two weeks before your desired visit date (Japan time 0:00) so you don’t miss the release.

2. Book 30-60 minutes before sunset

This isn’t required, but Shibuya Sky is definitely most popular for seeing the sunset from the top of the building because the view is so great. If you want to make sure you’re there to see sunset (to get those golden hour photos) make sure you book your time slot 30-60 minutes in advance. If you book right when sun is setting, ex. 6:30p, by the time you get there the sun will likely be down.

If you need to find out what time sunset is, just search “time of sunset in Japan on X date” and, it should be pretty accurate!

3. Use the official website [Updated November 2025]

The official website for tickets is still the best source: you’ll find the most up-to-date time-slots and pricing.

There are other third party sites you can purchase Shibuya Sky tickets from, and we highly recommend purchasing from the sites that the official website recommends to prevent anything wrong from happening.

The official website also has other options to choose from, and they list out all the rules/precautions you need to know of ahead of time.

However, if you have a credit card issued in Japan or a card issued by the JCB brand, Webket (the official site) can process it and you can purchase your ticket on the website.

4. Practice purchasing on the website before your desired date

This seems silly, but practicing how to actually purchase the tickets with a random date will be super helpful if you’re looking to book a specific time. We didn’t do this, and it felt so stressful because we weren’t sure if we were doing it correctly or if we missed something along the way. The example below is us trying to purchase on the official website, but we recommend doing the same if purchasing on Klook or any of the other providers.

You also have to create an account in order to book (which we didn’t know) and had to make one while we had our tickets in the cart.

Here’s what it looks like on Klook:

5. If purchasing in the US, kkday and Trip.com update before Klook 12:05am Japan Time

For our most recent upcoming trip to Japan, we decided to go back to Shibuya Sky but this was our first time purchasing with the new update. There are three sites you can buy from if you’re using a credit card outside of Japan — kkday.com, Trip.com, & Klook.

We’re familiar with Klook because we’ve used the website before for other countries in Asia (Singapore, Thailand) and decided to purchase from Klook for our day/time. However, by 10:05 CST (12:05 AM Japan time) kkday and Trip.com opened with the day we needed and Klook did not.

In other words, if you’re looking to visit Shibuya Sky during sunset, make sure you purchase from kkday or Trip.com!

6. Tickets are held in your cart for 15 minutes

This is actually so nice for 2 specific reasons: you don’t have to worry about trying to hit ‘purchase’ super fast if the tickets are already held in your cart, and sometimes tickets will open up if there are people who wait too long to buy them.

7. Tickets open at 12am Japan time (0:00)

If you’re familiar with sneaker drops. then you know it’s important to make sure you’re on the website right on time of the release. This same concept applies for Shibuya Sky tickets! Right at 12am (midnight, 0:00) the tickets for the next day open and they go quick. You’ll be placed in a queue once you enter the website when it opens:

Because we’re in the midwest, we made sure we knew what time it was here (10 AM CST) when it was also 12 AM in Japan. If you’re unsure, just do a quick Google search and make sure you practice at that time if you’re looking to snag tickets on a specific day. Here are some examples:

8. Weather can potentially affect your experience

This goes without saying, but weather is a big factor of whether or not you’re actually ale to go to the top. During our last trip to Japan, we were unable to go to the top due to weather (it was windy), and we ere only allowed to walk around inside. While the view was still nice, we had high expectations so were a little disappointed to leave without being able to go to the top.

9. How much does Shibuya Sky cost?

There are a few different options you can purchase when booking Shibuya Sky. According to the official website, the current ticket prices for normal entry are as follows:

Normal entry grants you access to the famous escalator (where I’m sure you’ve seen a ton of TikTok’s on) AKA the rooftop, and access to the 45th and 46th floors which contain an art gallery, little gift shop, and the Paradise Lounge to eat/drink.

If you’re looking at booking the Roof Shibuya Sky, a bar opening on April 28th, the prices are slightly more expensive:

This rooftop is brand new and will be open until December 25th, 2024. These tickets are slightly more expensive, but that’s because you get access to couches that overlook the amazing views along with drinks or champagne:

Tickets for sofa seats are sold from 2 people or more, and customers under the age of 20 are not allowed.

So there you have it! With these tips, we hope you get to visit Shibuya Sky at the exact time you’re planning to and get to see the amazing sunset. Remember, tickets sell out quickly, so plan ahead and, make sure you book your time slot in advance.

If you’re looking for more Japan planning inspiration check out our other blog posts:

• The Best Vintage Stores to Visit in Tokyo
• What to Pack for your First Trip to Japan

Happy travels!!