Smoking Areas in Odaiba & Tokyo Big Sight: 2026 Guide (different rules in Minato City Daiba and Koto City Ariake / Aomi)

About this guide and disclaimer

This is a third-party guide reflecting the situation as of July 2026, compiled from Minato City's official site (https://www.city.minato.tokyo.jp/) — its designated smoking spot list and Minato Tobacco Rules guidance — Koto City's official site (https://www.city.koto.lg.jp/) guidance on preventing smoking while walking, and Tokyo Big Sight's official FAQ (https://www.bigsight.jp/). Locations and operating hours may change without notice. This article does not encourage smoking. Smoking by people under 20 is prohibited by law in Japan. When you actually go, always confirm the latest information on each ward's and each facility's official guidance.

Odaiba spans Minato City and Koto City (mind the ward boundary)

Although people say "Odaiba" as if it were one place, administratively it spans several wards and neighbourhoods. The area around Daiba Station on the Yurikamome line — DECKS Tokyo Beach, AQUA CiTY ODAIBA, Fuji TV, Odaiba Kaihin Park and so on — is Daiba in Minato City. By contrast, Tokyo Big Sight with Kokusai-Tenjijo Station (Rinkai Line) and Tokyo Big Sight Station (Yurikamome) is in Ariake, Koto City, and the area with the former Palette Town and Tokyo Teleport Station is Aomi, Koto City. Minato and Koto structure their smoking ordinances differently, so within the same "Odaiba" the applicable rules change depending on where you walk.

• Daiba, Minato City: Minato Tobacco Rules (no smoking in outdoor public places except designated spots; no penalty)
• Ariake / Aomi, Koto City: Ordinance on the Prevention of Smoking While Walking (no smoking while walking, no littering, ward-wide)
• Even within walking distance, you can cross the ward boundary while strolling through Symbol Promenade Park

What both wards have in common is that smoking while walking and littering butts are not permitted. If keeping track of the boundary is hard, deciding simply "outdoors, I only smoke at a designated smoking place" will keep you compliant with both wards' rules.

The Minato City / Daiba side: Minato Tobacco Rules and designated spots

Under its "Ordinance on the Promotion of Environmental Beautification and the Prevention of Nuisance from Smoking" (commonly the "Minato Tobacco Rules," in force since 1 July 2014), Minato City bans smoking and littering butts in all outdoor public places across the ward except at the "designated smoking spots" set by the city. Heated tobacco is covered the same as cigarettes. The Minato Tobacco Rules are a manners-based ordinance with no penalty (no administrative fine), unlike wards such as Chiyoda and Shinjuku that impose fines — but the prohibition itself still stands.

Minato City published 116 designated smoking spots as of 1 June 2026. The main ones listed for the Daiba area are as follows.

• Designated smoking spot No. 1 on the deck in Symbol Promenade Park (near Daiba 1-8)
• Designated smoking spot No. 2 on the deck in Symbol Promenade Park (near Daiba 2-5)
• Designated smoking spot beside the Fuji TV site (Daiba 2-4-8)
• Designated smoking spots No. 1–5 in Odaiba Kaihin Park (Daiba 1-4)

These are examples from Minato City's published list. Availability and hours may change, so always check the latest on Minato City's official designated smoking spot list and smoking place map before you go. Whether commercial facilities have indoor smoking rooms — and where — varies by facility, and this article does not assert locations we could not confirm from official primary sources. Check in-building signage or each facility's official site.

The Koto City side (Aomi / Ariake): ordinance on preventing smoking while walking

Ariake, home to Tokyo Big Sight and Kokusai-Tenjijo Station, and Aomi, home to Tokyo Teleport Station, are in Koto City. Under the "Koto City Ordinance on the Prevention of Smoking While Walking" (in force since 1 July 2009), Koto City bans smoking while walking (including while moving by bicycle) and littering across the whole ward. It also designates the areas around ten stations as "priority no-smoking districts," where smoking on the street even while standing still is banned. As of 1 October 2025 the time restriction was removed and the ban applies all day.

The priority no-smoking districts published by Koto City are the areas around ten stations: Kameido, Sumiyoshi, Morishita, Kiyosumi-shirakawa, Minami-sunamachi, Toyocho, Kiba, Monzen-nakacho, Shin-kiba and Toyosu. Ariake, Aomi and the area around Kokusai-Tenjijo Station are not on that list. That does not mean you may smoke freely in Ariake or Aomi: smoking while walking and littering are banned across the entire ward, and if you smoke outdoors you should use a designated smoking place and be considerate about second-hand smoke. Koto City states that it gives cautions and guidance for violations and may publish the names of those who do not comply (no administrative fine is stated on the ward's page).

Tokyo Big Sight: entirely non-smoking, and how to find the smoking areas

Tokyo Big Sight (Tokyo International Exhibition Center, Ariake, Koto City) states in its official FAQ: "So that everyone who visits can spend their time comfortably, Tokyo Big Sight is entirely non-smoking. Please use the smoking areas provided inside and outside the building." In other words, the venue is fully non-smoking and smoking is limited to the designated smoking areas.

For the specific locations of those smoking areas, the official floor map provides a "smoking place" icon in its legend and locations are meant to be checked on the map. Because we could not confirm official text specifying the building or floor, this article does not assert where the smoking areas are. When you visit, check the floor map on the Tokyo Big Sight official site, or the in-building signage and information desk on the day. Routes differ considerably between the exhibition halls and the conference tower, and you may need to go outside and come back, so knowing the location before doors open makes it easier to estimate how long the trip takes.

• The whole venue is non-smoking (Tokyo Big Sight official)
• Guidance is to use the smoking areas provided inside and outside the building
• Check locations via the "smoking place" icon on the official floor map
• This article does not assert the building or floor; check the official map and on-site guidance

Points to note during large events

At Tokyo Big Sight, large events such as Comic Market draw concentrated crowds and the corridors, escalators and outdoor plazas become extremely busy. For such events organisers may set their own rules and control routes, and smoking area operation (open, closed, relocated, queue-controlled) can differ from normal days. We could not confirm official primary information on individual event rules, so this article does not assert them. Before attending, always check the organiser's official site, the guidance handed out on the day and the notices posted at the venue.

The practical points to keep in mind when it is crowded are: do not act on the assumption that you will definitely be able to smoke, and allow extra time for moving around. Long queues can form at outdoor smoking areas, and there are situations where you cannot leave a waiting or entry line partway through.

• Smoking areas may be closed or moved during events, so always check the official guidance on the day
• Do not smoke in or near waiting lines and entry queues
• Even outdoors, do not smoke outside designated smoking places (smoking while walking is banned on both the Minato and Koto sides)
• Carry a portable ashtray and always take butts with you or use an ashtray

You may also want to read the guide to smoking areas at event venues and stadiums, which covers the approach at other large venues such as Makuhari Messe and Tokyo Dome. Operation differs by venue, so the habit of checking the official guidance on the day is useful.

Indoors is in principle non-smoking (revised Health Promotion Act), and heated tobacco

Under the revised Health Promotion Act, fully in force since April 2020, indoor areas of facilities used by many people are in principle non-smoking. Exhibition halls, commercial facilities and restaurants are also in principle indoor non-smoking, and smoking is possible only inside a dedicated smoking room where one has been provided. Places where smoking is allowed must display signage, and people under 20 may not enter smoking areas, whether as customers or staff. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare states that even where smoking is not prohibited, such as outdoors or at home, smokers have a duty to consider their surroundings so as not to cause unwanted passive smoking.

Heated tobacco is covered the same as cigarettes under Minato City's Minato Tobacco Rules and cannot be used in outdoor public places except at designated smoking spots. In Koto City, smoking while walking is banned across the whole ward. Treatment of e-cigarettes (including nicotine-free products) varies by product and facility, so follow the signage at each facility. The safe basic rule is: a smoking room indoors, a designated smoking place outdoors.

Find nearby smoking areas with MottoSuitai

If you want to find smoking areas around Odaiba, Ariake or Aomi, you can list nearby smoking areas from MottoSuitai's map. By area, see smoking areas in the Odaiba area. The same Minato City rules apply in the Akasaka smoking guide, and for other venues see the guide to smoking areas at event venues and stadiums.

Before you go: always check official information

This third-party guide was compiled from Minato City's official designated smoking spot list (https://www.city.minato.tokyo.jp/kankyouseisaku/shiteikitsuenbasyo.html), Koto City's guidance on preventing smoking while walking (https://www.city.koto.lg.jp/380301/machizukuri/sekatsu/undo/45122.html) and Tokyo Big Sight's official FAQ (https://www.bigsight.jp/organizer/faq/) as published in July 2026. Smoking place locations, counts, operating hours and event-time operation may change. When you actually go, always confirm the latest information on each official site and the venue guidance on the day.