Security was extremely tight with police setting up 40 checkpoints leading to the area. Selfie sticks, bottles and banners - and even shouting - were not allowed inside the restricted zone. Residents in high-rise apartments along the road were advised not to look down from their windows or balconies.

Naruhito succeeded his father Akihito on May 1 following his abdication, and formally ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne in a palace ceremony last month.

The parade started from the Imperial Palace with the Kimigayo national anthem played by the marching band.

Naruhito, wearing a tail coat decorated with medals and carrying a brimmed hat, and Masako, in an off-white long dress and a tiara, kept waving from a Toyota Century convertible. The car was decorated with the chrysanthemum emblems and the emperor's flag during the half-hour motorcade on the 4.6-kilometre route from the palace to the Akasaka imperial residence in the soft afternoon sun.

Naruhito, sitting on the right side on the slightly raised back seat, constantly turned his head to the right and left, responding to the people cheering from the opposite side of the street as the motorcade slowly moved at a jogger's speed, led by a fleet of police motorbikes.

The parade was postponed from the original October date due to the recent typhoon that left more than 90 dead and tens of thousands of homes flooded or damaged.

Thousands of people had lined up at checkpoints hours before the parade, trying to secure their place to get the best possible view of the royal couple.

The parade was the first since Naruhito and Masako's marriage in June 1993, just three years after their parents celebrated their enthronement in a Rolls Royce.

Naruhito and Masako have been warmly welcomed by the public. Many Japanese were especially impressed by the couple freely conversing with President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump during their visit weeks after Naruhito's succession in May, according to palace watchers.

Australian Associated Press