With winter already upon us and the holiday season fast approaching, there’s nothing more relaxing than ignoring all of your responsibilities and choosing to stay inside and watch anime instead. Get ready to cozy up with a cup of hot cocoa and dive into a winter wonderland of anime magic!
From heartwarming tales to adrenaline-pumping adventures, these anime gems are the perfect companions for chilly nights and festive cheer. Just keep on reading for an enchantingly festive list of the best winter-themed anime to watch this holiday season!
Laid-Back Camp
Laid-Back Camp is the perfect anime to relax to this holiday season! This charming anime follows the story of Nadeshiko, a high school student who decides to brave the cold weather to bike to the famous 1,000 yen-bill-featured Mount Fuji. Her plans take a turn for the worse, however, when she is forced to turn back due to the exponentially worsening weather.
Even though she decides to head back, it’s already too late; the stress of the journey combined with the terrible weather conditions causes her to faint! When she wakes up, however, it’s totally dark out and she’s in a strange place that she’s never seen before. She soon comes across another girl, Rin, who is camping comfortably out in the wilderness. This encounter kickstarts the enchanting and chilly story of Laid-Back Camp!
Yuri on Ice
Okay, let’s be honest here, you all saw this one coming. You can’t have a winter-themed anime list without including the king of all winter-themed anime: Yuri on Ice. I mean, there’s literally “ice” in the name! It’s just the perfect wholesome anime to cozy up to on a cold winter day. Yuri on Ice is about the trials and triumphs of Yuri Katsuki, a once-talented figure skater who resigned after a crushing defeat in a high-stakes skating competition.
After returning home with his tail between his legs, Yuri tries to stay optimistic about his life while continuing to skate non-competitively. That’s when Viktor Nikiforov, an Olympic pro-skater and Yuri’s celebrity crush, shows up at Yuri’s house demanding he let him coach him! This begins the beautiful tale of how Yuri Katsuki came to be one of the best figure skaters in the world and happened to fall in love along the way.
Erased
Unlike the previous entries on this list, this anime is dark. Erased is definitely not a feel-good anime and you probably shouldn’t watch it if you’re looking to relax; nevertheless, the majority of this anime takes place during the winter and holiday season. Erased follows the incredibly bizarre life of Satoru Fujinuma, a young man with an insane ability that only he possesses, but cannot control: Revival. Revival is a supernatural skill that, at random, will force Satoru back in time to prevent tragedies from occurring.
Usually, it only sends him back a couple of minutes or hours, but one day, after he finds the freshly murdered corpse of his mother, it sends him back 18 years. Though he still has the mind of an adult, Satoru is back in his childhood body in elementary school, back to a specific time when one of his classmates had been found murdered. Satoru has to prevent the brutal murder of his childhood peer and find the link between her and his mother’s death before it’s too late!
5 Centimeters Per Second
This one’s not quite as intense as Erased, but it still might bring a tear to your eye! 5 Centimeters Per Second is a beautifully-told romantic classic that focuses on the depressingly harsh reality of long-distance relationships. There’s admittedly not much holiday cheer in this one, but what it lacks in festivity it makes up for in snowy climates and seasonal depression!
This anime follows the lives of Takaki Toono and Akari Shinohara, two childhood friends who are deeply in love with each other. But when circumstances beyond their control rip them apart, their relationship is put to the test. They promise to stay in touch and talk to each other every day, but eventually, the inevitable progression of time continues to widen the distance between them, causing them to live their lives half-heartedly through a daze of depression and half-forgotten memories. Will their relationship ever manage to come back from this?
Buddy Daddies
Unlike the last couple of entries, this anime is sure to put a smile on your face! Although Buddy Daddies isn’t necessarily a “winter-themed anime”, its first few episodes actually take place on Christmas day, with one of the main characters even dressing up as Santa Claus and everything.
Buddy Daddies is about two extremely skilled assassins, Kurusu Kazuki and Suwa Rei, who have never failed a single job and are widely considered to be the deadliest killers in their field. Their lives end up completely turned around, however, when a little girl is suddenly thrown into their lives with little to no explanation! Suddenly, they have to learn how to juggle their unconventional careers while also caring for a 4-year-old. From keeping her entertained to taking her to school, Rei and Kazuki realize that they’re up against their toughest job yet: parenthood.
(that awkward moment when Santa gets you a daughter for Christmas)
The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague
The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague may have a mouthful of a name, but it’s one of the best winter-themed anime to watch this holiday season! This anime is delightfully absurd and it’s sure to warm even the coldest of hearts.
The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague is about the mildly outrageous life of Himuro, a businessman who just so happens to be a descendant of a powerful snow spirit. Any emotionally charged incident can lead to a spontaneous snow blast from Himuro, so controlling his emotions at work is of the utmost priority; however, this is extremely difficult to do around his pretty and level-headed new coworker, Fuyutsuki. He begins to, quite literally, “freeze up” when around her, leading to many hilarious misunderstandings and chilly conversations.
Winter Sonata
Listen, I don’t know why it seems like the vast majority of winter-themed anime are so depressing, but trust me when I say I’m really trying to find the happiest ones as possible here. Unfortunately, Winter Sonata is not one of those. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s not nearly as bleak as 5 Centimeters Per Second, but it’s not necessarily a bundle of joy, either. Winter Sonata is a romantic drama that focuses on the life of Yoo Jin, a beautiful young woman with a massive heart.
In her youth, Yoo Jin fell deeply in love with a kind young man named Joon Sang, and planned on marrying him as they got older. Before their relationship could truly blossom, however, tragedy struck when Joon Sang was killed in a terrible accident. In her insurmountable grief, she turned to her childhood friend for comfort, which eventually led to them becoming engaged later in life. Though she isn’t necessarily excited about her new life, Yoo Jin decides to persevere, count her blessings, and be thankful for what she has. That is until she meets a man who looks, acts, and even sounds exactly like her lost love, Joon Sang.
Tokyo Godfathers
Finally, a winter-themed anime that isn’t altogether depressing! Despite coming out all the way back in 2003, Tokyo Godfathers remains many fans’ favorite holiday movie, and it’s easy to understand why. This anime is downright delightful; it would make even the Grinchiest of hearts grow a size or two!
Tokyo Godfathers is an animated film about three vagrants, Hana, Gin, and Miyuki, who happen to come across an abandoned baby while rummaging through garbage on Christmas Eve. Appalled at the terrible sight, Hana, a trans woman and former drag queen, rescued her and vowed to find the girl’s mother to demand an explanation. With her two companions by her side, a teenage runaway and a drunk, Hana sets out to find the child a true home. Along the way, however, the trio gets caught up in a series of unprecedented events, leading to a whole slew of entertaining Christmas adventures!
Kaina of the Great Snow Sea
Anything that has the word “snow” in its name deserves to be watched during the holidays, and Kaina of the Great Snow Sea is no exception! If you’re currently disappointed at the lack of snow where you live, you definitely need to check this one out because it literally features a sea of snow.
In this anime, the world has been completely taken over by an ocean of frigid, borderline supernatural snow, rendering the ground beneath it completely unliveable. What little remains of humanity struggle to survive on the tops of gigantic “orbital spire trees” that manage to reach above the snow ocean (snowcean), but their numbers dwindle further and further with each passing day. While hunting one day, Kaina stumbles upon an unconscious girl who’s somehow risen from the frigid depths of the snow! Her presence brings both unimaginable hope and danger for the remnants of mankind.
Diamond Daydreams
We’re ending this list off with an oldie but goodie! Diamond Daydreams was released all the way back in 2004, meaning this anime is just about two decades old now. Despite this, the animation and storytelling have withstood the test of time and it remains many people’s favorite winter-themed anime!
Diamond Daydreams is a beautifully woven story about six different women living wildly different lives in Hokkaido, one of Japan’s Northern islands. All of the girls have vastly differing lifestyles, but they all believe in the mythical and supernatural properties of “diamond dust”, which is a magical phenomenon that occurs when floating ice crystals form in freezing air. Diamond Daydreams follows the lives of each woman, her story, and her experience with the “diamond dust” phenomenon, causing each of them to grow stronger, become more independent, and find happiness!
And that’s it for our list of winter-themed anime to watch this holiday season! As we bid farewell to this anime-filled winter journey, we hope our curated list has brought warmth, joy, and an escape from all of your responsibilities to your holiday season. From enchanting snowscapes to heartwarming tales, these anime gems have painted a canvas of unforgettable moments; check out Twinfinite’s other featured lists for more great anime recommendations, like our list of the “Best Isekai Anime of All Time“!
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