[2026] Free Museums on Culture Day: 10 Venues Including the National Museum of Western Art and Tokyo National Museum on November 3

On Culture Day, Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday), collection and permanent exhibitions were free at many national museums. In Tokyo, these included The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo National Museum and the National Museum of Nature and Science; outside Tokyo, the National Crafts Museum in Kanazawa, The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto and The National Museum of Art, Osaka. However, what became free was mainly the display of each museum’s collection, and most special exhibitions remained charged. This article summarizes, for 10 facilities confirmed on their official websites, what was free, opening hours on the day and the exhibitions on view (as of October 31).

10 facilities free on November 3 and the eligible exhibitions

Culture Day is defined in the Act on National Holidays as a day to “love freedom and peace, and promote culture.” The Constitution of Japan was promulgated on this day in 1946. Many of the museums featured here designate November 3, together with International Museum Day in May, as a free admission day for their collection displays. November 3, 2026, falls on a Tuesday, so museums that close on Mondays are also open.

What becomes free differs by museum. The exhibitions that can be seen free of charge on November 3 are as follows.

• The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (Takebashi, Tokyo): Collection exhibition “MOMAT Collection” (including small exhibitions drawn from the collection)

• National Archives of Japan, Tokyo main building (Takebashi, Tokyo): Special display of the original Constitution of Japan and the exhibition “Playful Spirits: Yokai and Fantastic Beasts in the Edo Period” (both always free)

• National Film Archive of Japan (Kyobashi, Tokyo): The exhibition “Kenji Mizoguchi, Film Director: 70 Years After His Death” and the permanent exhibition “The History of Japanese Film Through the NFAJ Collection”

• National Museum of Western Art (Ueno, Tokyo): Permanent collection and the small exhibition “Images of the Theater” in the permanent collection galleries

• Tokyo National Museum (Ueno, Tokyo): Tohaku Collection exhibition (regular exhibition)

• National Museum of Nature and Science (Ueno, Tokyo): Permanent exhibition

• Institute for Nature Study, National Museum of Nature and Science (Shirokanedai, Tokyo): Admission to the grounds

• National Crafts Museum (Kanazawa, Ishikawa): The exhibition “Design Chronicle: What Was Born, and What Changed?”

• The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto (Okazaki, Kyoto): Collection exhibition (4th-floor Collection Gallery)

• The National Museum of Art, Osaka (Nakanoshima, Osaka): Collection exhibition “50th Anniversary Pre-Project, Collection 1: I / Act”

Ueno, Tokyo: National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo National Museum and National Museum of Nature and Science

National Museum of Western Art: Permanent collection and the small exhibition “Images of the Theater” are free

On International Museum Day (May 18) and Culture Day (November 3), the permanent collection is free. The small exhibition “Images of the Theater: From Delacroix and Daumier to Toulouse-Lautrec and Klinger” (until January 11, 2027), held in the prints and drawings gallery within the permanent collection galleries (New Wing, 2nd floor), is also free on November 3 together with the permanent collection. With about 50 works—prints and drawings by Western, mainly French, artists plus three paintings—it traces imagery surrounding the theater, centered on 19th-century Paris. The exhibition content is introduced in our article on the small exhibition.

The special exhibition “Turner from Tate: Painting the Sublime, in Dialogue with Contemporary Art” (until February 21, 2027) is not free (¥2,400 for adults). Highlights are introduced in our article on the Turner exhibition.

On November 3 the museum is open 9:30–17:30 (last entry 30 minutes before closing). Regular admission to the permanent collection is ¥500 for adults and ¥250 for university students, and free for high school students and younger, those under 18 and those aged 65 and over. The permanent collection galleries are scheduled to close long-term for facility improvements from January 12, 2027. 1-minute walk from the Park Exit of JR Ueno Station.

Tokyo National Museum: Tohaku Collection exhibition (regular exhibition) is free

The museum lists November 3, along with May 19 (marking International Museum Day) and September 21 (Respect for the Aged Day), as free days for the 2026 Tohaku Collection exhibition (regular exhibition), and says that only “the Tohaku Collection exhibition (regular exhibition)” is free.

The two special exhibitions currently on view are charged: “Utagawa Hiroshige: Edo’s Best Angles,” commemorating the donation of the Susumu Uchiyama Collection (until December 20; ¥1,500 for adults), and the special exhibition marking the 700th anniversary of its founding, “Daitoku-ji: The Unrivaled Zen Temple of Japan” (Heiseikan, until December 6; ¥2,300 for adults). Neither requires advance reservations. A special exhibition ticket also gives same-day access to the Tohaku Collection exhibition. The exhibitions are introduced in our article on the Hiroshige exhibition and our article on the Daitoku-ji exhibition.

On November 3 the museum is open 9:30–17:00 (last entry 30 minutes before closing). Regular admission to the Tohaku Collection exhibition is ¥1,000 for adults and ¥500 for university students, and free for high school students and younger, those under 18 and those aged 70 and over. 10-minute walk from the Park Exit of JR Ueno Station or the South Exit of Uguisudani Station.

National Museum of Nature and Science: Permanent exhibition is free

Admission is free on May 18 (International Museum Day) and November 3 (Culture Day). The museum says that “only the permanent exhibition is eligible,” and special exhibitions are charged separately.

Open 9:00–17:00 (last entry 30 minutes before closing). Regular admission to the permanent exhibition is ¥630 for adults and university students, and free for high school students and younger, those under 18 and those aged 65 and over.

Takebashi, Kyobashi and Shirokanedai, Tokyo: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, National Archives of Japan, National Film Archive of Japan and Institute for Nature Study

The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo: Collection exhibition “MOMAT Collection” is free

On International Museum Day (May 18) and Culture Day (November 3), the collection exhibition is free unless the day falls on a closing day. Eligible are the “MOMAT Collection” and small exhibitions drawn from the collection (Gallery 4).

The current “MOMAT Collection” (until January 11, 2027) selects about 200 works from a collection of more than 14,000 and traces modern and contemporary Japanese art from the late 19th century to the present across all 12 rooms of the collection galleries on the 4th to 2nd floors. Room 1 on the 4th floor displays Kaburaki Kiyokata’s Important Cultural Properties “Tsukiji Akashi-cho,” “Shintomi-cho” and “Hamacho-gashi” until November 15. Room 2 features Naojiro Harada’s “Kannon Riding a Dragon” and Tetsugoro Yorozu’s “Nude Beauty” (both Important Cultural Properties).

The special exhibition “Takehisa Yumeji—An Artist Who Defined His Era” (until January 11, 2027) is not free (¥2,100 for adults; our article on the Takehisa Yumeji exhibition).

On November 3 the museum is open 10:00–17:00 (last entry 30 minutes before closing). Regular admission to the collection exhibition is ¥500 for adults and ¥250 for university students, and free for high school students and younger, those under 18 and those aged 65 and over. From February 9, 2027, prices will be revised to ¥1,000 for adults and ¥500 for university students. 3-minute walk from Exit 1b of Takebashi Station on the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line.

National Archives of Japan, Tokyo main building: Special display of the original Constitution of Japan until November 3

The permanent exhibition hall of the Tokyo main building is hosting a special display of the original Constitution of Japan from Saturday, October 31 to Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday) (closed Monday, November 2). The exhibition “Playful Spirits: Yokai and Fantastic Beasts in the Edo Period” (until December 6) is also on view, and both are free. The exhibition content is introduced in our article on the “Playful Spirits” exhibition.

Open 9:15–17:00. Located in Kitanomaru Park, Chiyoda City, a 5-minute walk from Exit 1b of Takebashi Station on the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line.

National Film Archive of Japan: The exhibition “Kenji Mizoguchi, Film Director: 70 Years After His Death” is also free

The exhibition “Kenji Mizoguchi, Film Director: 70 Years After His Death” (until December 13), in the 7th-floor gallery, can be seen free of charge on November 3. Regular admission (¥600 for adults) also includes the permanent exhibition “The History of Japanese Film Through the NFAJ Collection.” The archive designates International Museum Day (May 18) and Culture Day as free days (closed if they fall on a Monday).

Open 11:00–18:30 (last entry 18:00), the latest opening of the Tokyo venues featured in this article. Located at 3-7-6 Kyobashi, Chuo City.

Institute for Nature Study, National Museum of Nature and Science: Free admission to the grounds

The Institute for Nature Study, an affiliated facility of the National Museum of Nature and Science, offers free admission on Greenery Day (May 4), International Museum Day (May 18) and Culture Day (November 3). Regular admission is ¥320 for adults and university students (cash only), and free for high school students and younger and those aged 65 and over.

Open 9:00–16:30 (last entry 16:00). It is closed on the day after a national holiday (open on Saturdays and Sundays), so Wednesday, November 4 is a closing day. 7-minute walk from Exit 1 of Shirokanedai Station on the Tokyo Metro Namboku Line and Toei Mita Line; 9-minute walk from the east exit of JR Meguro Station.

Kanazawa, Kyoto and Osaka: National Crafts Museum, The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto and The National Museum of Art, Osaka

National Crafts Museum: The exhibition “Design Chronicle” is free

The National Crafts Museum in Kanazawa makes its current exhibition, “Design Chronicle: What Was Born, and What Changed?” (until January 11, 2027), free on Culture Day. Centered on the museum’s design collection, it traces more than 100 years of design in four chapters, from the Arts and Crafts movement of the late 19th century to the post–World War II era. Works on view include Mucha’s “Sarah Bernhardt,” Mies van der Rohe’s “MR10 Chair” and the Eameses’ “Wire Mesh Chair.” According to the museum, it is the first exhibition since its relocation to Kanazawa to present “the history of design” comprehensively. For details, see our article on the Design Chronicle exhibition.

Open 9:30–17:30 (last entry 30 minutes before closing). Regular admission is ¥1,200 for adults and ¥800 for university students, and advance online reservations are also available. Located at 3-2 Dewamachi, Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture.

The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto: 4th-floor Collection Gallery is free

On Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday) and on Kansai Culture Day, Sunday, November 15, the 4th-floor Collection Gallery is free. The special exhibition “Whom Does Jewelry Dream Of?” (until January 17, 2027) is charged (our article on the jewelry exhibition).

The current “Third Collection Exhibition of Fiscal 2026” (until January 17, 2027; first period until November 29) consists of 199 works. In addition to “MoMAK Masters,” a selection of masterpieces from the collection, it includes features on Bakusen Tsuchida, 90 years after his death (with “Punishment” shown in the first period), Yuji Kojima, 10 years after his death, and Gentaro Komaki, 120 years after his birth, as well as “The Diversity of Metalwork Expression,” linked to the jewelry exhibition, and a corner of works by Kanjiro Kawai selected from the Kawakatsu Collection.

Open 10:00–18:00 (last entry 17:30). Admission to the collection exhibition was revised from October 24 to ¥1,000 for adults and ¥500 for university students. Free for high school students and younger, those under 18 and those aged 65 and over. The museum will close from January 18 to March 2027. About a 10-minute walk from Exit 1 of Higashiyama Station on the Tozai subway line.

The National Museum of Art, Osaka: November 3 is the last day of the collection exhibition “Collection 1: I / Act”

The National Museum of Art, Osaka, in Nakanoshima makes its collection exhibition “50th Anniversary Pre-Project, Collection 1: I / Act” free on November 3, which is also the last day of the exhibition. Ahead of the museum’s 50th anniversary in 2027, it looks back at art trends leading up to its opening in 1977, focusing on the “I” as the subject of creation and the “act” of creating. In the B2 galleries you can see Paul Cézanne’s “Preparation for the Banquet,” Alberto Giacometti’s “Man,” Kazuo Shiraga’s “Tenyusei Hyoshito” and other works.

The special exhibition “Aki Sasamoto: Laboratory,” which also runs until November 3, is not free (¥1,800 for adults, including the collection exhibition; our article on the Aki Sasamoto exhibition). The next special exhibition, “Where Words Overlap,” and the collection exhibition “50th Anniversary Pre-Project, Collection 2: The Contemporary Becoming History” open on December 1.

Open 10:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30). Regular admission to the collection exhibition is ¥430 for adults and ¥130 for university students, rising to ¥1,000 and ¥500 from December 1. About a 5-minute walk from Exit 2 of Watanabebashi Station on the Keihan Nakanoshima Line.

Getting around and access: Three museums in Ueno and two facilities in Takebashi within walking distance

Ueno: Check opening and closing times to decide your order

The National Museum of Nature and Science opens at 9:00, and the National Museum of Western Art and Tokyo National Museum at 9:30. The National Museum of Nature and Science and Tokyo National Museum close at 17:00 and the National Museum of Western Art at 17:30, with last entry 30 minutes before closing at all of them. From the Park Exit of JR Ueno Station, the National Museum of Western Art is a 1-minute walk and Tokyo National Museum a 10-minute walk. Exhibitions at the museums in Ueno Park are also summarized in our guide to museums in Ueno.

Head to Asakusa in the evening: November 3 is the last day of the light event at Senso-ji

Asakusa is three stops from Ueno on the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line. November 3 is the last day of “ASAKUSA CULTURE & LIGHTS 2026,” projection mapping on Senso-ji’s Main Hall and Hozomon Gate, which can be seen from 18:00 to 21:30 free of charge with no advance registration. On the same day, the “White Heron Dance” is also performed on the temple grounds (11:30 and 14:40). For details, see our roundup of November events and festivals in Asakusa and our article on the Senso-ji projection mapping.

Takebashi and Kyobashi: From the two facilities in Kitanomaru Park to the National Film Archive of Japan

The National Archives of Japan (opens 9:15) and The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (opens 10:00) are both within walking distance of Exit 1b of Takebashi Station on the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line. The National Film Archive of Japan opens at 11:00 and stays open until 18:30 (last entry 18:00), so you can make it after the two Takebashi facilities. November 3 is the last day of the special display of the original Constitution of Japan. Other museums around Tokyo Station are introduced in our Marunouchi, Kyobashi and Nihonbashi art guide.

Shirokanedai: Last entry to the Institute for Nature Study is 16:00

The Institute for Nature Study has an early last entry time of 16:00. If you visit in the afternoon, allow plenty of time.

Kanazawa, Kyoto and Osaka: Watch for exhibition breaks

At The National Museum of Art, Osaka, the collection exhibition and special exhibition end on November 3, and the next exhibitions open on December 1. The first period of The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto’s collection exhibition runs until November 29, and the museum closes from January 18, 2027. The National Crafts Museum is closed on Tuesday, November 24. Museums around Okazaki in Kyoto and Nakanoshima in Osaka are summarized in our guide to museums in Okazaki, Kyoto and our guide to museums in Nakanoshima.

Editor’s perspective

Looking at what becomes free at each museum, eligibility is almost entirely limited to collection displays. The national art museums say that admission to special exhibitions is set for each exhibition based on discussions with co-organizers and other factors. Against this backdrop, the National Crafts Museum and the National Film Archive of Japan make the special exhibitions themselves free on November 3. Small exhibitions built from the collection, such as the small exhibition in the National Museum of Western Art’s prints and drawings gallery and the small exhibition in Gallery 4 of The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, are also included.

Behind the free days is also a revision of collection exhibition prices. The Independent Administrative Institution National Museum of Art has set the adult price for collection exhibitions at ¥1,000 at The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto from October 24, and will raise it to ¥1,000 in turn at The National Museum of Art, Osaka (December 1), The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (February 9, 2027), the National Museum of Western Art (March 20) and the National Crafts Museum (June 22) (the National Film Archive of Japan will charge ¥500 from January 5). Free admission for high school students and younger, those under 18, those aged 65 and over and others will continue. The ticket information of The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo still notes free admission on International Museum Day and Culture Day in its revised price table. Details of the revision are introduced in our article on the admission price revision.

Collection displays are also where each museum experiments with how to present works. Room 10 of The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo hosts the special feature “‘Seeing’ Stories,” which offers clues for interpreting the works, and The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto shows 199 works divided into nine themes. On November 3, the day the Constitution of Japan was promulgated, you can also make a combination unique to Culture Day, such as seeing the original at the National Archives of Japan in Kitanomaru Park and then touring the collection exhibition of The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, also in Kitanomaru Park.

Frequently asked questions

Are special exhibitions also free?

At most museums, no. Tokyo National Museum says “only the Tohaku Collection exhibition (regular exhibition),” the National Museum of Nature and Science “only the permanent exhibition,” and the National Museum of Western Art says the permanent collection (including the small exhibition in the permanent collection galleries) is free. The special exhibitions that are themselves free on November 3 are the National Crafts Museum’s “Design Chronicle” and the National Film Archive of Japan’s “Kenji Mizoguchi, Film Director: 70 Years After His Death.”

Do I need a reservation?

As far as we could confirm on each museum’s official website, no advance reservation is required for free admission on November 3 (the National Crafts Museum also accepts advance online reservations). Tokyo National Museum’s two special exhibitions also require no advance reservations.

Is The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan, which opens on November 3, free?

No, general admission is charged. The special exhibition marking its grand opening, “Treasures of the Imperial Household: Where Beauty Springs,” which begins on November 3 (until January 24, 2027), costs ¥2,500 for adults with timed-entry reservations, and no same-day tickets are sold at the venue. Elementary, junior high, high school and university students and those under 23 are free, but with some exceptions advance reservations are required. For details, see our article on the grand opening.

Are Kyoto National Museum and Kyushu National Museum also free?

Kyoto National Museum is holding the special exhibition “The Tale of Genji: The Radiance of the Court” (until November 29; our article on the Tale of Genji exhibition), and its Masterpiece Gallery (regular exhibition) is suspended. The calendar on its official website makes no mention of free admission on November 3. Kyushu National Museum’s visitor information also lists no free admission days (as of October 31).

Are there free days other than November 3?

The National Museum of Western Art generally designates the second Sunday of each month as “Kawasaki Free Sunday,” a free day for the permanent collection, and on Sunday, November 8, Sunday, December 13 and Sunday, January 10, 2027, the small exhibition “Images of the Theater” is also free. The museum’s Turner exhibition offers free admission for university and high school students from Wednesday, November 4 to Thursday, November 19. The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto also makes its Collection Gallery free on Kansai Culture Day, Sunday, November 15. Other November events are summarized in our November exhibition and art event calendar.

*Information as of October 31, 2026. Please check each museum’s official website for the latest information.

*Top image: The Honkan of Tokyo National Museum, 2010 (Photo: Wiiii, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

*This article was compiled by the TOKYO ART SPHERE editorial team based on each museum’s official website, a press release from the Independent Administrative Institution National Museum of Art (September 18, 2026), the Cabinet Office’s “About National Holidays” and the National Archives of Japan’s “Nihon no Ayumi.”

Text: TOKYO ART SPHERE Editorial Team

A note from the publisher

*Disclosure: “ASAKUSA CULTURE & LIGHTS 2026” (projection mapping on the Main Hall and Hozomon Gate of Senso-ji and the special viewing of the Denboin Garden and Emado), featured in this article, is planned and produced by HITOHATA, INC., an affiliate of HITOHATA ASSOCIATION, the general incorporated association that operates TOKYO ART SPHERE (About us).