Katakai Festival Fireworks 2026
The birthplace of the giant 'sanshakudama', this Niigata shrine festival fires the world's largest fireworks shell — a four-shaku, 800kg behemoth.
When · Where
- When
- 2026/09/11 10:30 – 2026/09/12
- Where
- Asahara Shrine, Katakai-machi（Katakai-machi, Ojiya City, Niigata）
- City
- Across Japan
- Getting there
- By shuttle bus or car from JR Ojiya Station (Joetsu Line); heavy traffic on festival nights.
- Price
- Free
- Organizer
- Katakai-machi Fireworks Association
Good to know for visitors
- Getting there
- By shuttle bus or car from JR Ojiya Station (Joetsu Line); heavy traffic on festival nights. Open directions in Google Maps ↗
- Booking & entry
- Free to attend — details on the official page (button above).
- Language
- Mostly in Japanese — a translation app on your phone helps.
- Good for
- culture seekers
Highlights
- The world's largest four-shaku (about 90cm-diameter, 800kg) shell
- A rare daytime three-shaku shell — the only one in Japan
- Around 15,000 shells over two nights as shrine offerings
Background & story
Held as an offering at Asahara Shrine's autumn festival, Katakai is the birthplace of the sanshakudama and famed as the home of the world's biggest fireworks shell.
Good to know
The four-shaku shells are launched late at night — plan to stay through the finale, and dress warm as September nights cool fast.