Tableware Festival 2027 | January 15-23 at Prism Hall, Tokyo Dome City: Nine Days of Pottery for the Table

The Tableware Festival 2027 runs for nine days, from Friday, January 15 to Saturday, January 23, 2027, at Prism Hall in Tokyo Dome City. Hours are 10am to 6pm every day. The festival has usually been held from autumn into winter, but in 2027 it moves to January.

About 100 shops from Japan and abroad gather to show and sell pottery and everything else for the table, in one large indoor market. Alongside Japanese ceramics you will find woodwork, lacquerware, glass, silverware and antiques. The event has been held since 1993, and this year's Tableware Grand Prize, a competition for tableware and table settings, is the 33rd.

Unlike an outdoor pottery fair, you hardly need to think about the weather or parking, but you do need a ticket to get in. This article covers the types of ticket and their prices, the busiest days and times, how to approach the five regional booths, and how to buy pottery at the venue.

Tableware Festival 2027 dates and venue

The festival starts on a Friday and ends on the Saturday of the following week. It includes two weekends (the 16th and 17th, and the final day, the 23rd) and five weekdays from Monday to Friday. If you can take a weekday off, you have plenty of days to choose from.

The venue is Prism Hall, not the Tokyo Dome itself

Many people search for "Tableware Festival Tokyo Dome," but in 2027 the venue is not inside the Tokyo Dome baseball stadium. It is Prism Hall, an exhibition hall on the same Tokyo Dome City grounds.

Prism Hall is next to the Tokyo Dome Hotel. If you are meeting someone, agree to meet "in front of Prism Hall" rather than "in front of the Tokyo Dome," and you will not miss each other. Search for "Prism Hall" in your map app, too.

Tableware Festival 2027 tickets and admission

There are three types of ticket. Advance tickets went on sale on October 20, 2026, and can be bought until Thursday, January 14, 2027.

• Free for elementary school children and younger　Each adult can bring up to four children of elementary school age or younger for free.
• Discount with a disability certificate　Show your certificate at the same-day ticket counter and same-day tickets for you and one companion are half price. After 3 tickets are not eligible.
• Re-entry is allowed　Ask the staff at the exit to process your ticket and you can go in and out as many times as you like that day.
• No refunds　Tickets cannot be changed, refunded or reissued after purchase.

Besides the official ticket site, advance tickets are sold through Asoview, TOKYO DOME CITY e-Ticket Store, KKday, Rakuten Travel Experiences and Mitsui Shopping Park Ticket (all e-tickets), and through Seven Ticket, Lawson Ticket, e+ and Ticket Pia (all paper tickets). Buying an advance ticket through the official ticket site automatically enters you into a prize draw for pottery from the regional booths (until December 31, 2026; 30 winners). Tickets bought through other sites are not eligible.

With an e-ticket, there is no risk of forgetting your ticket on the day. Some ticket sites charge a fee for payment or collection.

What time does it open? Same-day tickets and getting in

Doors open at 10am. Same-day tickets go on sale near the entrance from 9:30am, 30 minutes before opening, and are sold until 5:10pm.

The official website says that visitors may be asked to wait before entering to ease crowding. With an advance ticket or an e-ticket, you skip the line for same-day tickets.

There is no cloakroom at the venue. Put large bags and coats in a coin locker in Tokyo Dome City before you go in, and moving between booths will be much easier.

Busy days and how to avoid the crowds

The official website does not publish daily visitor numbers or crowd forecasts. What follows is our estimate, based on the dates and the program.

• The first day and the weekends are busiest　The first day, the 15th, when the shelves are fullest, and the Saturdays and Sundays of the 16th, 17th and 23rd are the days people tend to come.
• Weekdays for a slower look　The weekdays from Monday the 18th to Friday the 22nd should be calmer than the weekends.
• First thing in the morning, or after 3pm　Just after opening is when the selection is widest. After 3pm you can get in with the cheaper After 3 ticket, and even after work you still have three hours until 6pm.
• Stock may run low on the last day　The later it gets in the nine days, the fewer popular pieces remain. If you have a particular artisan or region in mind, going in the first half is safer.

The Concept Gallery, a curated sales corner, changes exhibitors between the first period (January 15 to 18) and the second period (January 19 to 23). If you want to see both, plan one visit in each period.

The table setting exhibition and the Tableware Grand Prize

This is not only a market for buying pottery. Exhibits that suggest how to set tableware on the table take up the other half of the venue.

The 33rd Tableware Grand Prize

A competition on the theme of tableware and the table, with two categories, "Original Design" and "Table Coordination." Works selected for the exhibition and above are on display. This year's theme for the coordination category is "A luxurious morning": ideas for making a weekend breakfast special through the choice of tableware and the way the table is set.

There is also a joint exhibition by the two grand prize winners of both categories at the previous (32nd) competition.

Special exhibitions and hands-on programs

• Special Exhibition I: "My Valentine"　The theme is Valentine's Day as a treat for yourself. Table settings that pair chocolate with Western tableware, shown with the cooperation of Herend, Christofle, Lobmeyr and others.
• Special Exhibition II: "Tableware, Tea and Sweets"　An exhibition of tableware for tea and sweets through the seasons. Ceramics, glass, woodwork and lacquer present a bowl of matcha or a cup of sencha.
• Shokusai Kenbi　Using tableware from the five regions introduced below, cooks suggest how to pair food and tableware. Recipes are also shared at the venue.
• Utsuwa Tasting　Taste gelato from Noto in a cup and saucer from the French porcelain brand Raynaud, with a Wajima lacquer spoon (paid). Part of the proceeds goes to recovery support for the Noto Peninsula.
• Concept Gallery "Slow Morning"　A curated sales corner of things that make the morning more comfortable. The lineup changes between the first and second periods.

Look at the table setting exhibits first, then go to the sales booths, and you will see what your own table is missing. Rather than looking for "a lovely piece," look for "the one plate for this spot at this breakfast," and you will come home with pottery you actually use.

"Visiting Japanese Tableware": how to approach the five regional booths

The venue has a corner called "Visiting Japanese Tableware," where leading Japanese pottery regions set up booths through their cooperatives and associations. In 2027 the five regions are Mino ware (Tajimi), Tokoname ware, Arita ware, Hasami ware and Mikawachi ware.

Mino ware (Tajimi)

Run by the Tajimi City Mino Ware Promotion Association of Tajimi, Gifu Prefecture. Mino ware comes from the region that makes the most pottery in Japan, from traditional styles such as Oribe and Shino to the work of contemporary artisans. The theme is "Tableware for enjoying daily life." In Mino it is normal for pieces of every color and shape to share one shelf. The region as it is today is covered in our article on Tajimi.

Tokoname ware

Run by the Tokoname Ceramic Wholesalers Cooperative of Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture. The theme is "The warmth of clay, a colorful life." The booth suggests tea time with Tokoname teapots, a tradition that began in the Edo period. When you choose a teapot, pick it up and check how well the lid fits and how cleanly the spout stops pouring. The link between red shudei clay and the taste of tea is in our article on the Tokoname kyusu, and the different shapes are in our article on kyusu and houhin.

Arita ware

Run by the Saga Prefecture Ceramics Industry Cooperative. Arita ware comes from the region where Japanese porcelain began, 400 years ago. Take your time to look at its whiteness, its thinness and the fineness of the painting under the light. If you cannot make it to the Arita Pottery Fair in spring, this is a rare chance to see a wide range of Arita ware in Tokyo.

Hasami ware

Run by the Hasami Ware Promotion Association of Nagasaki Prefecture. Hasami ware is porcelain for the everyday table, which spread in the Edo period through the "kurawanka" bowl. Choose by how well pieces stack, how easy they are to wash and how the colors combine, and it is easy to put together a set for the whole family. How it differs from neighboring Arita is explained in Arita vs Hasami porcelain.

Mikawachi ware

Run by the Mikawachi Ceramics Industry Cooperative of Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture. It is known for white porcelain painted in gosu blue, called sometsuke, and for delicate detail and modeling refined at the official kiln of the Hirado domain. Openwork carving and thin walls cannot be seen from a distance. Look closely at the rim and the foot ring.

During the festival, interior coordinator Sobue Kayoko gives seminars at the five regional booths on how to set a table with tableware. Check each region's details on the official website for dates and times.

How to buy pottery at the venue

About 100 shops and five regional booths share a single hall. Decide how you will shop, and even one of the nine days is enough to get around.

• Tell pottery from porcelain　Earthy pottery feels warm and does not pass heat easily. Stone-based porcelain is hard and absorbs almost no water. The differences are explained in our article on pottery and porcelain.
• The regional booths are where you can ask the people who make it　At the cooperative booths, people from the region explain the background of each piece. Ask on the spot whether it can go in the microwave or the dishwasher, and you can buy with confidence.
• Pick it up and feel the weight　For pottery you use every day, what matters is whether you can hold it in one hand. If you like a piece, try holding it with both hands and with one.
• Decide whether to buy a set or a single piece　Whether you are matching pieces for the whole family or choosing one standout piece changes which shelves you look at.
• Ship heavy pieces by courier　There is a courier service near the exit of the venue. If you buy a lot, you can send it home instead of carrying it.

Getting to Prism Hall and parking

From JR or Toei Suidobashi Station, walk straight along the brick-style sidewalk, enter the area with the blue floor and pass the shops, and Prism Hall is on your left. Public transport is the most reliable way to get there. Tokyo Dome City's parking gets very busy on weekends, holidays and event days, and the Tableware Festival does not offer a parking discount.

On days when another event is held at the Tokyo Dome during the festival, the area around Suidobashi Station gets crowded. Check the Tokyo Dome schedule before you set out, too.

How to get around the Tableware Festival 2027

• (1) Get an advance ticket or an e-ticket　You skip the line for same-day tickets. Advance tickets are available until January 14.
• (2) Put your bags in a coin locker　There is no cloakroom at the venue. With both hands free, it is easier to pick up pottery.
• (3) See the Tableware Grand Prize and the special exhibitions first　Use the table setting exhibits to picture the pottery you want for your own table.
• (4) Walk around all the sales booths before you buy　There are about 100 shops. Seeing everything first means fewer regrets.
• (5) Ask questions at the regional booths　For care and use, asking on the spot is the quickest and surest way to find out.
• (6) If you buy a lot, ship it by courier　Use the courier service near the exit and travel home light.

What to bring and wear

• More than one way to pay　Payment methods can differ from shop to shop. There are also ATMs in Tokyo Dome City.
• A sturdy bag　As you go around the booths, your bags slowly fill up.
• A layer that is easy to take off　In January, the difference between the cold outside and the crowded hall is large. It is easiest to leave your coat in a locker.
• Comfortable shoes　Even indoors, you walk a lot inside the hall.

Eating and drinking are allowed only in designated areas. The whole venue is non-smoking, and photography may not be allowed in some corners. "Live commerce," selling products while streaming on social media or apps, is prohibited.

Related reading

The five regions at the festival

• Mino Ware Guide: Oribe, Shino and Japan's Biggest Kiln
• Tajimi: Where Contemporary Mino Ceramics Are Made
• Tokoname Kyusu: Why Red Clay Makes Tea Taste Better
• Arita Ware: Japan's First Porcelain, 400 Years On
• Hasami Ware: Everyday Japanese Porcelain from Nagasaki
• Arita vs Hasami Porcelain: Why the Same White Porcelain Took Two Paths

Go to a regional pottery fair

• Japan Pottery Fair Calendar 2026-2027: 90 Dates and Venues
• How to Visit a Japanese Pottery Fair: 9 Regions Compared
• Arita Pottery Fair: The Usual Dates, and How to Miss the Million-Person Crowd
• Tokoname Pottery Festival 2026: Three Venues, One Weekend

Before you choose

• Earthenware, Stoneware, Porcelain: The Real Differences
• Japanese Teapots: Kyusu, Houhin and Dobin Compared
• Japanese Pottery: The Complete Guide