Aoi Matsuri 2027: May 15 (Sat), Usual 10:30 Start - Procession Route, Times & Paid Seats

Aoi Matsuri 2027 takes place on Saturday, May 15, 2027. The Aoi Matsuri (Kamo Festival) is the annual festival of Kyoto's Shimogamo Shrine and Kamigamo Shrine, and it is always held on May 15. Its highlight, the Roto-no-gi procession, usually leaves the Kyoto Imperial Palace at 10:30, reaches Shimogamo Shrine around 11:40 and arrives at Kamigamo Shrine around 15:30. If it rains on the 15th, the procession is postponed to Sunday, May 16; the call is made around 18:00 the evening before.

When we checked the two shrines and Kyoto City's official tourism site (Kyoto Travel / Kyoto City Tourism Association) on 2026-10-13, nothing specific to 2027 had been posted yet. The times and prices below are the official figures for the previous edition (2026); we will replace them once the 2027 details are out.

Aoi Matsuri 2027 at a glance

Procession route and times (2026 schedule)

These are the scheduled times at which the front of the procession passes each point, from Kyoto Travel's route page. The procession itself is about 1 km long (Shimogamo Shrine), so the Saio-dai's section at the rear passes later. The 10:30 departure and the roughly 15:30 arrival at Kamigamo match Kamigamo Shrine's own description.

For a morning view, stand at the start in Kyoto Gyoen or along the Shimogamo Shrine approach; in the afternoon the route follows Shimogamo-hondori, Kitaoji Bridge and the Kamo River embankment.

Paid seats (2026 prices; 2027 not yet announced)

• All seats are reserved and include the official guidebook, an audio guide and a commemorative card (per seat, tax included; Kyoto Travel). Commentary for Royal and Manabi seats plays on your own smartphone with your own earphones.
• For 2026, individual sales opened at 10:00 on Wednesday, April 1, 2026 through Ticket Pia (online and at Seven-Eleven stores). Group sales (10 or more) are also offered. The 2027 sale date has not been announced.
• If the procession moves to the 16th because of rain, tickets are valid that day and there is no refund. Refunds are given only if the procession is held on neither day, and only where you bought the ticket (Kyoto Travel, Ticket Pia).
• In the seating areas, tripods and parasols are not allowed (bring a hat), and flash photography and pets are banned because they can startle the oxen and horses.
• To watch the procession inside Shimogamo Shrine's grounds you must apply through the Kyoto City Tourism Association; watching the shrine rite (Shato-no-gi) requires special membership of the shrine's supporters' association (Shimogamo Shrine).

Preliminary rites before May 15 (2027 weekdays)

These are the usual dates given by Kyoto Travel and both shrines. Because the Saio-dai purification rite alternates between the two shrines every year, 2027 would be Kamigamo's turn, but confirm this once the shrines announce it.

Getting there

• Kyoto Gyoen (start and seats): Karasuma subway line to Imadegawa (about 10 minutes from Kyoto Station) or Marutamachi. From Imadegawa, the nearest entrance is Inui Gomon Gate, a short walk south along Karasuma-dori (Kyoto Travel).
• Shimogamo Shrine: about 12 minutes on foot from Keihan Demachiyanagi Station across Kawai Bridge; or city bus 4 or 205 from Kyoto Station, or 1 or 205 from Kitaoji subway station, to Shimogamo-jinja-mae (Shimogamo Shrine, Kyoto Travel).
• Kamigamo Shrine: city bus 4 from Kyoto Station, Kitayama subway station or Demachiyanagi to Kamigamo-jinja-mae, right at the shrine (Kamigamo Shrine, Kyoto City Transportation Bureau).
• Shimogamo Shrine has no parking on the day because of the rites (Shimogamo Shrine). Use trains and buses, and check Kyoto Prefectural Police and Kyoto City Transportation Bureau notices for road and bus information on the day.

Not yet announced for 2027 (as of 2026-10-13)

• The official 2027 notice and procession times (10:30 departure in 2026)
• Paid-seat prices and sale date (in 2026: on sale April 1, ¥5,000–¥20,000)
• The 2027 Saio-dai and the venue of her purification rite

For an overview of the festival, see our Aoi Matsuri guide. Of Kyoto's three great festivals, the autumn one is the Jidai Matsuri, and the rest of the year is in our Kyoto culture calendar.

Sources (checked 2026-10-13)

• Shimogamo Shrine, Aoi Matsuri guide: https://www.shimogamo-jinja.or.jp/saiji/aoimatsuri-2026
• Kamigamo Shrine, Kamo Festival: https://www.kamigamojinja.jp/kamosai/
• Kyoto Travel (Kyoto City Tourism Association), procession route and times: https://ja.kyoto.travel/event/major/aoi/letsgo.php
• Kyoto Travel, 2026 paid seating: https://ja.kyoto.travel/event/major/aoi/seat.php
• Ticket Pia, 2026 Aoi Matsuri seats: https://w.pia.jp/p/aoi26sr/
• Kyoto Travel, access: https://ja.kyoto.travel/feature/traffic/access.php?id=13

Update log: published 2026-10-13. Built from the shrines' and the Kyoto City Tourism Association's official 2026 information, as 2027 details have not been released yet.