Halloween Party? Not in Shibuya! Booze Ban and Police Ready to Shut It Down

Japan44 Views

But if you were thinking of heading to Shibuya, Tokyo’s famous party district, to celebrate, think again. They’re not having it.

According to Soranews24 on Wednesday (9/10/2024), Shibuya Ward’s head honcho, Ken Hasebe, made it crystal clear during a press conference:

“Shibuya is off-limits for Halloween,” he said. Yep, that’s right—no spooky street parties here.

Usually, on the night of October 31st (or whatever weekend is closest), the streets of Shibuya fill up with costume-clad revelers. It’s become kind of a thing across Japan. But over the years, Shibuya has seen its fair share of chaos—think drunken antics, rowdy behavior, vandalism, littering, and even a spike in violence.

In fact, this isn’t the first time Shibuya’s said “no thanks” to Halloween. They did it last year too, and it seems the message is the same for 2024.

Signs in English popped up last year reading: “There is no Halloween event in Shibuya,” while in Japanese, the warning was even more direct: “Shibuya is not a place for Halloween parties.” Ouch.

So, what are they doing to make sure things stay chill this year? Well, for starters, as of October 1st, they’ve put the kibosh on public drinking around Shibuya Station between 6:00 PM and 5:00 AM—not just for Halloween, but all year long. No sneaky street sips allowed!

On top of that, they’re asking convenience stores, liquor shops, and even big-name retailers to stop selling alcohol from 6:00 PM to 5:00 AM between October 26th and November 1st. So, no last-minute beer runs either.

And that’s not all—Shibuya’s stepping up security. On October 25th, 26th, 30th, and 31st, a small army of 130 district employees will be patrolling the streets, and they’ll be joined by 185 police officers on October 30th and 31st to keep things under control. To make sure nobody gets too wild, they’re also setting up 10 crowd control towers (yep, 10) around popular spots, including right by the famous Hachiko statue.

Plus, they’re putting up fences around the main square and creating one-way paths in and out of the station on Halloween night, just in case you thought you could sneak in for some late-night fun.

All these measures show that while Shibuya Ward can’t technically ban Halloween outright, they’re doing everything in their power to make sure it’s a pretty lousy spot for a party.

So, if you’re hoping for a spooky celebration in the heart of Tokyo this year, you might want to think again—or at least find somewhere else to party. Shibuya’s not feeling the Halloween spirit.

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