Moon Phase Hamamatsu

Moon Phase Hamamatsu: New Moon

On Sunday, October 11, 2026, the moon in Hamamatsu is a New Moon with 0% illumination. Moon age: 0.4 days.

Illumination
0%
Moon Age
0.4d
Next Full Moon
Oct 26
Distance
--
☽ Moonrise
6:19 AM
↑ Highest
—
☾ Moonset
5:26 PM

Hamamatsu, Japan-moon-phase-today-calculator

☽ Best Places to View the Moon in Hamamatsu, Japan

Hamamatsu sits at roughly 34.71°N on the Pacific coast of Shizuoka Prefecture, between Tokyo and Nagoya, with around 775,000 residents — the prefecture's largest city and the second-largest municipality in Japan by area, after Takayama. Known as the "City of Music" for the instrument makers, including Yamaha and Kawai, that originated here, Hamamatsu also has an unusually varied landscape for a city its size: a brackish lake, a stretch of coastal sand dunes, and a castle once held by a young Tokugawa Ieyasu. Between the water, the dunes, and a harmonica-shaped skyscraper, there's a genuine range of places to watch the moon.

1

Act Tower

A 213-metre skyscraper shaped like a harmonica, a nod to the city's musical identity, and Hamamatsu's tallest building by a good distance. Its height puts it well above the surrounding city, making it one of Hamamatsu's most prominent elevated options for an evening view.

2

Hamamatsu Castle & Park

A castle developed from the former Hikuma Castle after Tokugawa Ieyasu moved his base here in 1570, serving as his headquarters for 17 years before he went on to become shogun in 1603. The surrounding park has a koi pond and cherry trees alongside a bronze statue of Ieyasu, with a small museum in the castle itself.

3

Lake Hamana & Kanzanji Ropeway

One of Japan's larger lakes, which became connected to the sea after the 1498 earthquake, transforming it into the brackish lake seen today, with cycling routes tracing parts of its shore. The Kanzanji Ropeway carries visitors up Mount Okusa for sweeping views over the lake, ending at a music-box museum that ties back into the city's musical identity — check current seasonal hours before planning an evening visit.

4

Nakatajima Sand Dunes

One of Japan's three major sand-dune areas, stretching about 4 kilometres along the Enshu Sea coast and serving as a nesting site for loggerhead turtles. The open dunes give a much more open horizon than the city centre.

5

Bentenjima Seaside Park

A lakeside park on Lake Hamana known for its beach and a red torii gate standing in front of the long Hamana Bridge. It's a quieter, more low-key waterside option than the dunes or the central towers.

6

Hamamatsu Flower Park

A large botanical garden with around 3,000 plant species, including a small train that carries visitors past seasonal displays of cherry blossoms, roses, and wisteria. It's a scenic daytime destination best paired with an evening stop elsewhere for the moon itself.

◉ Best Times for Moon Photography

🌕 Full Moon ±1 day — Nakatajima Sand Dunes and Lake Hamana's shoreline both give broad, relatively open horizons
❄ Dec–Feb — cool, often sunny winter weather, with strong seasonal northwest winds typical of this stretch of coast
🌙 Mar–May & Oct–Nov — comfortable evenings for a walk around Hamamatsu Castle's park or the lakeshore
☀ Jun–Sep — warm, humid evenings, with a rainy season in June and typhoon risk from summer into early autumn
🥶 Winters are relatively mild, though strong winds can make exposed waterfront and dune locations feel considerably colder

📷 Quick Photography Tips

🎯A tripod helps at open spots like Nakatajima Sand Dunes and the Lake Hamana shoreline, both more exposed to wind than the streets of the centre, and to Hamamatsu's strong winter northwest winds especially
🎐Check current Kanzanji Ropeway hours before planning a visit around moonrise, since the ride and the museum at the top run on set, seasonal schedules
🏯Hamamatsu Castle's illuminated stonework, when evening lighting is operating, gives a historic foreground for a moonrise shot without leaving the centre
🔋Humidity can affect lenses in summer — carry a cloth and let gear acclimate before shooting if you've come from an air-conditioned space
🕐 Timezone

Hamamatsu runs on Japan Standard Time (UTC+9) year-round — Japan does not observe daylight saving time, so the offset from UTC stays the same in every season.

🌐 Other Locations

For the moon phase in any other city worldwide, visit our Dynamic Moon Phase Calculator for instant lunar data tailored to wherever you are.

Enjoy the moon over Hamamatsu — a city that turned its instrument-making legacy into a harmonica-shaped skyscraper, sitting between a brackish lake and a stretch of open dunes.

The moon phase today in Hamamatsu, Japan is shown in detail above — complete with exact illumination percentage, moonrise/set times, and the best viewpoints to see it. For the moon phase today in any other city or location worldwide, visit our Dynamic Moon Phase Calculator on the home page.

◐ While Actually There

Hamamatsu's "City of Music" identity shows up in small, specific ways rather than one obvious landmark. Act Tower's harmonica shape is the most visible example, but the connection runs deeper — this is the city where Yamaha and Kawai got their start, and the music-box museum at the Kanzanji Ropeway's summit gives that history a strangely delicate, wind-up counterpart to the modern skyline below.

The rest of the city's character comes from its geography. Lake Hamana's connection to the sea was dramatically altered by the 1498 earthquake, and it has been an important part of the local economy for centuries since, including its famous eel aquaculture. Nakatajima's dunes, a short distance south, give the starkest possible contrast: open sand, nesting sea turtles, and a much more open horizon than the city centre offers.

None of it requires much beyond checking the ropeway's operating hours and the castle museum's schedule. The dunes, the lakeshore, and Bentenjima Park are all straightforward for an ordinary evening without much planning.

"Hamamatsu built a harmonica-shaped skyscraper and a music-box museum on a mountaintop — and somehow still has room for open dunes and a brackish lake on the same coastline."

✓ Your Hamamatsu Moon Chase Checklist

Before You Go

  • Check the moonrise time and phase on this page for each night of your stay
  • Check current Kanzanji Ropeway hours before planning an evening around it — the ride and summit museum run on set, seasonal schedules
  • Check current opening hours for Hamamatsu Castle's museum if you want to go inside rather than just view the grounds
  • Check current opening hours for Hamamatsu Flower Park if you want to combine it with your visit — it's a daytime destination
  • Check the forecast for typhoon activity if visiting in late summer or early autumn

What to Bring

  • A warm layer for winter evenings — temperatures are relatively mild, but Hamamatsu's strong winter winds can make exposed waterfront and dune locations feel much colder
  • A tripod, useful at open spots like Nakatajima Sand Dunes and the Lake Hamana shoreline
  • Comfortable, sand-appropriate footwear for a walk through Nakatajima's dunes
  • A light rain layer, especially during the June rainy season
  • Spare camera batteries and a lens cloth for humid summer evenings

On the Night

  • Arrive 20–30 minutes before moonrise at open spots like Nakatajima Sand Dunes or Bentenjima Seaside Park
  • Shoot RAW and bracket exposures, especially where floodlit landmarks like the castle mix with moonlight
  • Mind wind and shifting sand at Nakatajima, particularly after dark
  • Confirm your return transport if visiting the dunes or Lake Hamana's far shore in the evening
  • Watch for typhoon-related weather changes if visiting between summer and early autumn
Nakatajima Sand Dunes are an important nesting area for loggerhead turtles; check current seasonal access guidance before visiting during the nesting season.
The moon over Hamamatsu shares the sky with a harmonica-shaped tower, a castle that once housed a future shogun, and a lake whose connection to the sea was dramatically altered by a 15th-century earthquake. Use the phase calendar on this page, check ropeway and museum hours before you go, and take the walk out to the dunes if you have the time. Few cities on this site combine music, water, and open sand quite like this one.

? Hamamatsu Moon Phase — Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is the moon phase today in Hamamatsu?

The moon phase today in Hamamatsu is a New Moon with 0% illumination. The next full moon is in 16 days, on Oct 26. Moonrise is at 6:19 AM and moonset at 5:26 PM.

Q. Where is the best place to view the moon in Hamamatsu?

The Nakatajima Sand Dunes, about 4 kilometres along the Enshu Sea coast, give a much more open horizon than the city centre. Lake Hamana's shoreline, including Bentenjima Seaside Park with its red torii gate, is a quieter waterside option, and the Kanzanji Ropeway carries visitors up Mount Okusa for sweeping views over the lake, within its seasonal hours. Hamamatsu Castle and its park make an easy central stop, and Act Tower, at 213 metres the city's tallest building, is the most prominent elevated option, though its public viewing access and hours should be checked. Hamamatsu Flower Park is a daytime destination.

Q. Where does the moon rise and set in Hamamatsu, and how high does it climb?

At about 34.7°N, Hamamatsu's moonrise and moonset points swing across the horizon each month, from roughly east-northeast to east-southeast for rising and west-northwest to west-southwest for setting. A winter full moon culminates high in the south, at roughly 79° above the horizon, while a summer full moon stays lower, peaking near 32°. The Pacific coast lies to the south, so from the Nakatajima dunes the moon's whole southern path crosses the ocean side of the sky, and a low moon in the south or southeast can appear over open water. Lake Hamana lies west of the city, so check the azimuth for your date and exact spot to see which shore faces the rising or setting moon.

Q. Is light pollution a problem for moon observing in Hamamatsu?

The moon is bright enough to observe and photograph from almost anywhere in Hamamatsu, so light pollution rarely limits the lunar disc itself. It does wash out earthshine on a thin crescent and any faint sky detail. The city centre and Act Tower area carry substantial artificial lighting, so central Hamamatsu is a light-polluted site rather than a dark-sky one. The open dunes and lakeshore give a broader, less obstructed horizon, though the lit city still washes out faint detail, and artificial light near Nakatajima's turtle nesting beaches should be kept to a minimum.

Q. What camera settings and phases work best for moon photography in Hamamatsu?

For a full moon, start with Looney 11 (f/11, ISO 100, 1/100 s) and refine using your histogram, since it is a baseline rather than a guarantee. The moon is much brighter than the floodlit castle and city, so shoot RAW and bracket or blend exposures to keep both crater detail and the foreground. A waxing gibbous is useful for blue hour at the castle while the foreground is still lit, and a full moon rises around sunset. A 200–400 mm lens helps isolate the moon against the castle, Act Tower or the dune ridgeline, with a tripod for bracketing and manual focus on the moon using magnified live view.

Q. How do strong winter winds, the rainy season and typhoons affect moon viewing in Hamamatsu?

Hamamatsu has cool, often sunny winters, but strong seasonal northwest winds are typical of this stretch of coast and can make exposed waterfront and dune locations feel considerably colder than the temperature suggests. They can also shake a tripod and blow sand at Nakatajima, so protect your gear and use a sturdy tripod. Summers are warm and humid, with a rainy season in June and typhoon risk from summer into early autumn, and humidity can leave condensation on lenses. Check local forecasts for cloud, wind, rain and typhoon activity before heading out.

Q. What time zone are Hamamatsu's moonrise and moonset times shown in?

Hamamatsu runs on Japan Standard Time, UTC+9, year-round. Japan does not observe daylight saving time, so moonrise and moonset times stay on the same local clock in every season and the offset from UTC never changes.

Q. Can I shoot the moon at Hamamatsu's viewpoints after dark?

Access varies by site. The Kanzanji Ropeway and the music-box museum at its summit run on set seasonal schedules, so check current hours before planning an evening around them. Hamamatsu Castle's museum keeps its own hours, and Hamamatsu Flower Park is a daytime destination. Nakatajima Sand Dunes are an important loggerhead turtle nesting area, so check current seasonal access guidance before visiting during the nesting season, mind wind and shifting sand after dark, and confirm your return transport. Bentenjima Seaside Park and the Lake Hamana shoreline are open waterside spaces.

Q. Does this page work for cities besides Hamamatsu?

This page is set up specifically for Hamamatsu, Japan. For the moon phase in any other city or location worldwide, use the Dynamic Moon Phase Calculator on the moonphase.today home page.