Japanese Anime to Watch on a Rainy Day: Top 5 Films and Real Places

Rain is drumming on the window, your umbrella is dripping by the door, and the walk you planned is not happening. If you are looking for Japanese anime to watch on a rainy day, this is the best excuse there is to press play on a film that actually loves the rain.

This list includes only five films where rain or a storm matters to the mood, each with an official trailer you can watch right here. The order runs from quiet and grown-up to warm and family-sized, with no spoilers.

Why rain, from a Japan angle: in Japan, the rainy season is called tsuyu, and The Garden of Words is set as tsuyu is about to end. Weather often becomes the story itself: in Weathering With You a girl can clear the sky just by praying, and in Wolf Children the son is named Ame, "rain", because he was born on a rainy day.

1. The Garden of Words (2013): The Shinjuku Gyoen Location in the Rainy Season

One line: a 46-minute film made almost entirely of rain.

Here is the official trailer from CoMix Wave Films. Watch for the rain on the pond in the first seconds:

A high school boy who dreams of making shoes skips class on rainy mornings to sketch in a Japanese garden, where he keeps meeting a mysterious older woman, only on days when it rains. The story takes place as the rainy season is about to end, and it opens with a poem from the Man'yoshu, an ancient Japanese poetry collection. It is short enough for one cup of tea, and it makes a grey day feel beautiful instead of gloomy.

Info: original story, screenplay and direction by Makoto Shinkai, released in 2013, about 46 minutes.

Real place: Japan's official tourism site says the film is set in Shinjuku Gyoen, and the garden's pergola appears in it. From Shinjuku Station, the Southeast Exit is the closest, about 10 minutes on foot.

Crowd checkShinjuku Gyoen crowd level before you go

2. Weathering With You (2019): Tokyo Under Endless Rain

One line: what if one girl could make the rain stop?

The official subtitled trailer from GKIDS, the film's North American distributor:

In the summer of his first year of high school, a boy runs away from his island home to Tokyo, where rain keeps falling day after day, and meets a girl who can clear the sky just by praying. On a wet afternoon this one hits differently: you watch the city get soaked while you stay dry on the sofa.

Info: original story, screenplay and direction by Makoto Shinkai, released in 2019, about 113 minutes, set in Tokyo. The official page does not name one real spot, so there is no single place to visit for this film.

3. My Neighbor Totoro (1988): The Rainy Bus Stop Scene and Sayama Hills

One line: the most famous bus stop in anime, in the pouring rain.

The official English trailer from GKIDS:

Two sisters wait at a country bus stop in the rain, and a giant forest spirit quietly stands next to them. Nothing bad happens, nobody rushes, and the sound of rain on the umbrella does half the work. It is the safest pick if you are watching with kids.

Info: original story, screenplay and direction by Hayao Miyazaki, released April 16, 1988, about 86 minutes.

Real place: Tokorozawa City says the Sayama Hills are said to be one of the settings for the film. The Totoro Foundation has been buying small woods there with donations since 1990 and protects them as Totoro's Forest; please stay on the walking paths and do not enter the woods.

• Where: Totoro's Forest is not one park but many small woods scattered around the Sayama Hills, which spread across Tokyo and Saitama.
• Getting there: the foundation's walking maps start from Kotesashi Station or Seibu-Kyujo-mae Station. There is no parking, so use public transport.
• Open to visit? You can walk the paths and view the woods from outside. Many trees have died from oak wilt, so watch for falling trees and branches.
• Official info: Totoro Foundation: Totoro's Forest

4. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989): Studio Ghibli Rain and a Witch Who Keeps Going

One line: a young witch, a broom and a delivery that will not wait for good weather.

The official English trailer from GKIDS:

A young witch leaves home and starts a delivery service on her broom. One of Studio Ghibli's official stills shows her flying through heavy rain, and that is the feeling of the film: soggy days happen, and you keep going. If the weather has ruined your plans, this one is a gentle push to try again tomorrow.

Info: based on the book by Eiko Kadono; produced, written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki; released July 29, 1989; about 102 minutes.

5. Wolf Children (2012): A Son Named After the Rain

One line: a mother, two children, and a son named after the rain.

The official trailer from Studio Chizu:

The Japanese title means "the wolf children Ame and Yuki": the daughter Yuki was born on a snowy day, and the son Ame on a rainy day. After a loss, their mother moves them to an old house in the countryside surrounded by nature. Later in the story a great storm sweeps over the village and the mountains. Bring tissues, and save it for a slow rainy evening.

Info: original story, screenplay and direction by Mamoru Hosoda, Studio Chizu, 2012. Studio Chizu's official page does not list a runtime.

Real place: Kamiichi Town in Toyama says the Yamazaki family house in its Aso district is known as the model for Hana's house. It is now a registered tangible cultural property of Japan and is opened to visitors by a local nonprofit. The main house is a large farmhouse built in 1887 in the Maenagare style common in eastern Toyama.

• Where: Aso district, Kamiichi Town, Toyama (Aso 18).
• Open to visit? Yes, it is managed and opened to the public by the nonprofit Ookami Kodomo no Hana no Ie. The town page does not list opening days or hours, so check before you travel.
• Official info: Kamiichi Town: Yamazaki family house

Which Rainy Day Anime Should You Watch First?

Plan a Rainy Day in Japan With IKOKA

Before you choose between a museum and a garden, check whether it is actually raining where you are going:

Live camsLive cams of Japan: see the weather right now

On wet days the indoor spots fill up fast. This free guide shows the quieter hours at popular places:

Free guideThe quietest times at 95 popular spots in Japan

Information rechecked on November 2, 2026.

Next time the forecast shows a week of rain in Tokyo, you will have five films and three real places waiting.

Next read: if The Garden of Words made you want to see Shinjuku Gyoen in person, start with the garden's chrysanthemum festival guide:

Next readChrysanthemum festival in Japan: Shinjuku Gyoen and Yushima

Which film will you press play on first?