This experience is called hatsuhinode (the first sunrise of the year).
Japanese people believe that the god Toshigami appears along with the first dawn of the new year. Hatsuhinode began in the Meiji era when people prayed to the god Toshigami to bring wealth and prosperity to their home.
Shinto believers will gather with their families to watch the first sunrise of the year, to welcome the god Toshigami and pray for a prosperous new year.
In Japan - the Land of the Rising Sun, the sun and the symbol of the sun are very important. One reason for this is that in the Shinto, the highest god is the sun goddess Amaterasu.
Seeing the sunrise for the first time of the year is a symbolic occasion, so although you can experience hatsuhinode in your hometown, people often go to find the best place to watch the sunrise.
The best places to see hatsuhinode are high-lying locations with low visibility.
City residents who hope to experience hatsuhinode especially often go outside the city, to beaches, temples, high bridges and mountains.
People who cannot go to the suburbs can buy tickets to the tallest buildings - such as the Tokyo Sky Tree - to experience hatsuhinode.
