Tradition, lanterns and a whole town moving as one.

Festivals

Fukuoka & Hakata festival calendar 2026–2027 — Hakata Okunchi, Hojoya, Dontaku, Yamakasa and the Kyushu sumo tournament, in date order

Every major festival and big-ticket event in Fukuoka, Kitakyushu and Munakata from October 2026 to November 2027 in one date-ordered table — Miare Festival, Hakata Okunchi, the Fukuoka Marathon, the November sumo tournament, Toka Ebisu, Hakata Dontaku, Hakata Gion Yamakasa, Hojoya and the 2027 Kyushu Basho — verified against each organiser's official announcement on 2026-09-13.

Festivals

伊东 祭典・活动日历 2026-2027｜尻相扑祭・冬季烟花・大室山烧山・枕头大战・按针祭的日程一览（静冈县伊东市）

静冈县伊东市的祭典・烟花・市集，2026年11月〜2027年8月按日期排列。尻相扑祭（11/10）・冬季烟花（12/19）・橘子海滩马拉松（1/17）・乱七八糟市（1/23-24）・大室山烧山（2/14预定）・全日本枕头大战（2/20・21预定）・按针祭（8月・未公布）。伊东观光协会官方信息，2026-09-12核对。

Festivals

What Is a Mikoshi? Why Festivals Carry (and Shake) a Portable Shrine

A mikoshi is a portable Shinto shrine believed to carry a deity through the streets. Here's what it means, why bearers shake it, and how it differs from a danjiri.

Festivals

Setsubun Explained: Why Japan Throws Beans at Demons

Setsubun is Japan's bean-throwing festival, held around Feb 3. Here's what "Oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi" means, where mamemaki comes from, and where to see it.

Festivals

Things to Do in Kyoto This Weekend: July 4–6, 2026

Kyoto's verified picks for the weekend of July 4–6, 2026: a Korean-chat café, the now-cashless Gekkeikan sake museum — plus Gion Matsuri 2026's confirmed dates.

Festivals

What to Wear to a Japanese Summer Festival: The Yukata Guide (Rent, Wear, Bring)

A yukata is an unlined cotton summer kimono — light, casual and made for festivals and fireworks. What to wear, the one rule you must not get wrong (left over right), how to put it on, what to bring, and where to rent one.

Festivals

How to Attend a Japanese Festival (Matsuri): A First-Timer's Guide

The streets at a Japanese festival are free — no ticket needed. The real skill is where to stand, when to arrive, and how not to get in the way. A first-timer's guide to getting there, crowds, rain, cash, toilets, food stalls and etiquette.

Festivals

Gujo Odori Origin: Why a 400-Year Dance Still Continues (Dancing Beyond Class)

Gujo Odori traces to the early Edo period, when the lord of Gujo-Hachiman gathered the villages' Bon dances into the castle town to foster harmony across the rigid class system. A clear explainer of why 'dancing beyond rank' has endured for 400 years.

Festivals

Why Gion Matsuri Exists: Its 869 Origin, Explained (Gozu Tenno & Warding Off Plague)

Gion Matsuri began in 869 as the Gion Goryo-e, a rite to drive out plague. Held by Yasaka Shrine (the former Gion shrine of Gozu Tenno), it has run for over 1,150 years. A short, clear explainer of why it endures.

Festivals

Tanabata 2026: Japan's Star Festival, Where & When to See the Streamers

Tanabata — the wish-on-a-star festival — fills July and early August with paper streamers and bamboo. Here's the verified 2026 calendar: Hiratsuka's two-million-visitor weekend (Jul 3–5), Sendai's giant August display, and Tokyo's own celebrations.

Festivals

Summer 2026 Festival Highlights: The Matsuri Worth Planning a Trip Around

From Aomori's glowing Nebuta floats to Tokushima's all-night Awa Odori, here are the verified, dated summer 2026 festivals to build your July–August trip around — with exactly when and where each one happens.

Festivals

Samurai on Horseback: Tohoku & Beyond's Great History Festivals

From thundering armoured horse races in Fukushima to lord's processions and onsen fire, here's how to build a trip around Japan's most stirring historical festivals — most of them far north of the usual tourist trail.

Festivals

Japan's 'Three Great' Festival Trios: Fire, Floats & Where to See Them

Japan loves ranking its festivals in threes — the three great fire festivals, the three great float festivals, and more. Here's what each trio means and how to plan a trip around the very best.

Festivals

First-Timer's Guide to Japanese Matsuri: What to Expect & the Best Ones

What a matsuri actually is, the main types (floats, dance, fire, lantern), how to read one — and a starter set of the very best to build a trip around.

Festivals

Sapporo & Hokkaido: Snow, Beer & Summer Festivals

Hokkaido is a year-round festival island — ice sculptures in February, dancing in June, and beer gardens all summer.

Festivals

Japan's Best Summer Matsuri

Time your trip around the giants — Gion in Kyoto, Tenjin in Osaka, Nebuta in Aomori, and Awa Odori in Tokushima.

Festivals

Nagara River Cormorant Fishing (Ukai) 2026

A 1,300-year-old torchlit tradition: Gifu's Imperial cormorant masters work leashed birds on the Nagara River nightly, May 11-October 15, 2026.

至 2026年10月15日周四 20:30 JST Across JapanShared sightseeing boat (2026 rates): ¥4,200 adults / ¥2,100 children on regular days; ¥5,100 adults / ¥2,600 children on peak dates. Watching for free from the riverbank is also possible.

Festivals

Matsue Suitoro 2026

Matsue's castle and canals glow with lanterns every weekend from Sept 26-Oct 18, 2026, 18:00-21:00 -- a quiet, romantic alternative to Japan's big-city illuminations.

至 2026年10月18日周日 21:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Munakata Taisha Autumn Festival — Miare-sai 2026

Around 100 fishing boats escort three deities' mikoshi across the sea at this World Heritage shrine's grand autumn festival.

2026年10月1日周四 09:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Nihonmatsu Lantern Festival

Seven towering floats, each carrying 300+ glowing red lanterns, parade through Fukushima nights to the beat of taiko in one of Japan's three great lantern festivals.

2026年10月3日周六 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Nagasaki Kunchi Festival

A 380-year-old shrine festival blending Japanese, Chinese and Dutch flair — spinning dragon dances, whirling umbrella floats and roaring 'Motte-koi' chants.

2026年10月7日周三 07:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Marimo Festival 2026

Marimo Festival 2026 runs 8–10 October at Lake Akan, Hokkaido. Every ceremony is free to watch: Ainu elders open with kamuinomi prayers, a torchlit parade winds along the lake on the second night, and on the final morning the marimo are carried by dugout canoe back into the water — a rite held every year since 1950 to protect a Special Natural Monument.

2026年10月8日周四 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Takayama Autumn Festival (Hachiman Matsuri)

Eleven gilded Edo-era floats parade through old Takayama by day, then glow with 100+ lanterns at dusk in one of Japan's three most beautiful festivals.

2026年10月9日周五 09:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Sawara Grand Festival: Autumn 2026

Fourteen giant wooden floats, each topped by a towering doll of a legendary hero, are hauled through the canal-side 'Little Edo' streets of Sawara to lilting Sawara-bayashi music every autumn - October 9-11 in 2026 - in one of the Kanto region's three great float festivals, just a day-trip from Tokyo.

2026年10月9日周五 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Kotohira-gu Reitaisai 2026

Konpira-san's biggest festival (Oct 9-11, 2026): once a year the mountain deity 'comes down' -- a ~600-strong procession carries the mikoshi 2km through Kotohira by torchlight.

2026年10月9日周五 16:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Nagoya Festival (Three Heroes Parade)

Nagoya's biggest autumn party crowns Oda Nobunaga, Hideyoshi and Ieyasu in armor, leading a 600-strong procession from the station to Nagoya Castle.

2026年10月10日周六 10:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Naha Great Tug-of-War Festival

Join thousands pulling the world's largest straw rope through Naha in this Guinness-record Okinawan autumn festival.

2026年10月11日周日 11:00 JST Okinawa免费

Festivals

Naha Great Tug-of-War Festival

Tens of thousands grab a Guinness-record 200m rope and heave for 30 minutes in the middle of Naha's main road — Okinawa's most thunderous autumn spectacle.

2026年10月11日周日 14:30 JST Okinawa免费

Festivals

Nada no Kenka Matsuri 2026 (Fighting Festival)

Three portable shrines are violently crashed together as seven ornate floats clash in Japan's most famous 'fighting festival.'

2026年10月14日周三 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Niihama Taiko Festival 2026

Fifty-four golden, 5.5-metre taiko-dai floats are hoisted by 150-strong crews in one of Shikoku's three great festivals.

2026年10月16日周五 08:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Kawagoe Matsuri

In Tokyo's 'Little Edo', towering tiered floats with revolving dolls roll past kurazukuri warehouses and clash in 'Hikkawase' flute-and-drum face-offs.

2026年10月17日周六 10:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Miyako Island Rock Festival 2026

ELLEGARDEN, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, and Sambomaster headline a headland-side music festival on Miyako Island, Okinawa on October 17, 2026.

2026年10月17日周六 11:00 JST OkinawaAdvance ¥9,000 / Door ¥10,000 (day-of sales only if not sold out) / Miyako Island resident student ticket ¥4,000 / children under elementary-school age free (up to 3 per guardian)

Festivals

Jidai Matsuri (Festival of the Ages)

A 2-km parade of 2,000 people in meticulously accurate costumes marches through 1,000 years of Kyoto history, from Heian nobles to Meiji revolutionaries.

2026年10月22日周四 12:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Kurama Fire Festival (Kurama no Hi Matsuri)

Men in loincloths haul flaming 80-kg torches through a mountain village after dark in one of Kyoto's wildest, most primal night festivals.

2026年10月22日周四 18:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

博多おくんち 2026｜日期、牛车巡游与交通指南

博多おくんち 2026（10月23日–24日）是福冈栉田神社的免费秋季例大祭，历史长达1200年 — 以10月24日的牛车巡游最为著名。日期、行程与交通指南如下。

2026年10月23日周五 10:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Imari Tonten-ton Festival 2026

One of Japan's three great 'fighting' festivals, where teams ram a giant drum-float and mikoshi together to a thundering 'ton-ten-ton' beat.

2026年10月24日周六 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Onomichi Betcha Festival 2026

Three costumed demons roam the streets of hillside Onomichi, tapping children with sticks to bring them good health.

2026年11月1日周日 09:00 JST Hiroshima免费

Festivals

Kagoshima Ohara Matsuri 2026 | Dates, Tenmonkan & How It Differs from the Shibuya Version

The original Kagoshima Ohara Matsuri (Nov 2–3, 2026) fills Tenmonkan with 16,500+ dancers — not to be confused with Tokyo's May Shibuya version.

2026年11月2日周一 18:50 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Karatsu Kunchi Festival

Fourteen colossal lacquered floats — golden lions, samurai helmets and dragons up to 7 m tall — are dragged through town and onto a beach where they sink in sand.

2026年11月2日周一 19:30 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Ishigaki Island Festival 2026

The Yaeyama Islands' biggest festival fills central Ishigaki with a citizens' parade, island music and a closing fireworks display over the harbour town.

2026年11月7日周六 Okinawa免费

Festivals

Tori-no-Ichi (Rooster Market)

On November's rooster days, Asakusa's Otori Shrine fills with stalls selling glittering 'kumade' rakes meant to scoop up luck and fortune for the year ahead.

2026年11月7日周六 10:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Shiritsumi Matsuri 2026 — Ito's 'bottom-bumping' festival at Otonashi Shrine (Nov 10)

Every 10 November, Otonashi Shrine in Ito (Shizuoka) hosts a famously odd festival: a 'bottom sumo' contest where contestants bump hips to festival music. 2026: Tue 10 Nov, 18:30–21:00.

2026年11月10日周二 18:30 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Izumo Taisha Kamiari-sai 2026: Dates, Rites and Times

Izumo Taisha's Kamiari-sai 2026 runs from the Kamimukae welcoming rite at 19:00 on Wednesday, November 18 to the Karasade send-off rite at 16:00 on Wednesday, November 25.

2026年11月18日周三 19:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Takachiho Yokagura 2026: Japan's All-Night Sacred Kagura Season

From nightly hour-long showings at Takachiho Shrine to the free two-day, all-33-dance Yokagura Matsuri and month-long hamlet sessions each winter, Takachiho Yokagura is one of Kyushu's most accessible sacred night rituals -- a national Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property since 1978.

2026年11月22日周日 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

秩父夜祭 2026｜12月2日–3日日程、冬季烟花与交通

秩父夜祭（Chichibu Yomatsuri）2026 于12月2日（周三）–3日（周四）举行，主会夜为12月3日：挂满灯笼的联合国教科文组织非遗花车被拉上团子坂，冬季烟花持续约2小时。免费观看，从东京池袋乘西武特急约80分钟。以下为日程、会场与交通。

2026年12月2日周三 14:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Chichibu Night Festival (Chichibu Yomatsuri)

Six lantern-lit floats are hauled up steep Dango-zaka as winter fireworks burst overhead — one of Japan's three great float festivals and a UNESCO heritage event.

2026年12月3日周四 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Kasuga Wakamiya On-Matsuri 2026

A 890-year-old festival whose daytime parade marches costumes from the Heian through Edo eras through central Nara.

2026年12月15日周二 09:00 JST Nara免费

Festivals

Sumiyoshi Taisha Hatsumode — 'Sumiyossan' New Year

Some two million Osakans cross the arched Sorihashi bridge to greet the year at 'Sumiyossan,' head shrine of Japan's 2,300 Sumiyoshi shrines.

2026年12月31日周四 22:00 JST Osaka免费

Festivals

Fushimi Inari Taisha Hatsumode — Thousand Vermilion Torii

Kyoto's head Inari shrine welcomes some 2.5 million New Year worshippers who pray for prosperity beneath endless tunnels of vermilion torii.

2026年12月31日周四 23:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Meiji Jingu Hatsumode — Japan's Most-Visited New Year Shrine

Roughly three million people stream through the towering torii to pray at Tokyo's grandest shrine in the first three days of the year.

2026年12月31日周四 23:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Imamiya Ebisu Toka Ebisu 2027

Around a million people pack Osaka's Imamiya Ebisu Shrine over January 9-11 to pray to 'Ebessan', the god of business prosperity - collecting a lucky fukuzasa bamboo branch from kimono-clad 'fuku-musume' maidens to the chant 'come with your bamboo for a thriving business'.

2027年1月9日周六 09:00 JST Osaka免费

Festivals

Nozawa Onsen Fire Festival 2027

One of Japan's three great fire festivals: villagers defend a giant wooden shrine with blazing torches as attackers try to set it alight in a wild snowbound battle.

2027年1月15日周五 19:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Sounkyo Ice Waterfall Festival 2027: 23 Jan–7 Mar (52nd)

The 52nd Sounkyo Onsen Ice Waterfall Festival runs 23 January to 7 March 2027 (official). In a Daisetsuzan gorge, ice domes and towers fill a riverside field, lit nightly in shifting colors with weekend fireworks over the snow.

2027年1月23日周六 Across JapanThe cooperation fee for 2027 (52nd edition) has not been announced as of 2026-09-18. For the 51st edition in 2026 it was ¥1,000, with the site open 17:00–21:30 on weekdays and 11:00–21:30 at weekends and on holidays (last entry 21:15).

Festivals

Lake Shikotsu Ice Festival 2027: 30 Jan–23 Feb, Fees

The 2027 Lake Shikotsu Ice Festival runs 30 January to 23 February, open 10:00–20:00 (official). Sculptors spray the clear blue waters of Lake Shikotsu onto frames to build towering turquoise ice domes and tunnels, glowing in jewel tones after dark.

2027年1月30日周六 10:00 JST SapporoAdmission (cooperation fee): ¥1,000 for junior-high age and over on weekdays, ¥3,000 at weekends and on public holidays; free for elementary-school children and younger (official, as of 2026-09-18)

Festivals

Yoshida Shrine Setsubun Festival 2027

Kyoto's most famous Setsubun rite, where a masked exorcist drives off blue, red and yellow demons in an ancient court ceremony, ringed by 800 food stalls.

2027年2月2日周二 18:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Naritasan Setsubun-e 2027

Sumo wrestlers and celebrity 'lucky men' hurl tonnes of beans from Naritasan's great hall, where the chant is only 'fortune in' — no demons to expel.

2027年2月3日周三 11:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Asahikawa Winter Festival 2027: 6–11 February (68th)

The 68th Asahikawa Winter Festival runs 6–11 February 2027 (official). Hokkaido's second-biggest snow fest pairs colossal stage-sized snow sculptures by the Ishikari River with an international ice-carving championship.

2027年2月6日周六 Sapporo免费

Festivals

Yokote Kamakura Festival 2027: 12–13 February

Hundreds of candlelit snow igloos glow across Yokote while children inside invite passersby in for sweet sake — plus 4,000 mini-kamakura lighting the riverbed.

2027年2月12日周五 Across Japan免费

Festivals

Namahage Sedo Festival 2027: 12–14 Feb, Shinzan Shrine

Demon-masked 'namahage' brandishing torches stampede down a snowy mountainside at Shinzan Shrine in a fierce, firelit Oga winter spectacle.

2027年2月12日周五 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

大室山烧山 2027｜2月14日（周日）预定・正午点火・伊豆高原延续700年的野烧

把静冈县伊东市・伊豆高原的大室山（海拔580m）整座烧掉的早春活动。2027年预定2月14日（周日），正午烟花为号，约40分钟全山燃起。雨天或强风则顺延至下周。繁體：大室山燒山。

2027年2月14日周日 12:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hachinohe Enburi 2027: 17–20 February Schedule

Every February 17-20, dozens of Enburi troupes dance through Hachinohe in tall black eboshi hats to summon an early spring and good harvest - a roughly 800-year-old rite tracing to the Kamakura era, now a national Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property.

2027年2月17日周三 07:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

All-Japan Pillow Fight Championship in Ito Onsen 2027 — 20–21 Feb (planned), official rules, team format and entry fee

Ito's annual All-Japan Pillow Fight Championship at the Ito Municipal Gymnasium. The tourist association's calendar lists Sat 20 – Sun 21 Feb 2027, but the 15th edition's official guidelines are not yet published (as of 2026-09-13). From the 14th edition's official rulebook: eight per team (general, libero, three attackers, three support), three 2-minute sets, yukata compulsory, entry fee 5,000 yen per team.

2027年2月20日周六 09:00 JST Across JapanEntry for the open division was 5,000 yen per team including accident insurance (14th edition guidelines). The fee for the 15th edition has not been announced. The defending champions enter free.

Festivals

Saidaiji Eyo (Naked Festival)

Thousands of loincloth-clad men pack a freezing temple hall at midnight, surging to seize two sacred shingi sticks flung into the throng — one of Japan's wildest rites.

2027年2月20日周六 22:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Beppu Hatto Onsen Festival 2027

Japan's hot-spring capital throws its biggest party of the year — a fire festival on Mount Ogi, free baths across the city and a mikoshi parade thanking the springs.

2027年4月1日周四 11:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Shingen-ko Festival 2027: April 2027, Dates Still To Be Announced

The 53rd Shingen-ko Festival is expected in Kofu in April 2027, but the exact dates are still unannounced as of September 2026. Casting is set: actor Maki Miya as Takeda Shingen — only the third woman in the role — and opera singer Kohei Yamamoto as Yamamoto Kansuke.

2027年4月2日周五 12:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Inuyama Festival 2027 (Inuyama Castle Town, Aichi)

Dates for Inuyama Festival 2027 had not been announced as of September 18, 2026. The festival falls on the first Saturday and Sunday of April, which points to April 3-4, 2027.

2027年4月3日周六 08:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Takayama Spring Festival (Sanno Matsuri)

Twelve ornate Edo-era yatai floats with karakuri puppets parade through old Takayama, glowing with around 100 lanterns each at the night festival.

2027年4月14日周三 09:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Hida Furukawa Festival 2027

On the night of April 19, hundreds of near-naked men carry a giant drum on a tall wooden tower through Hida-Furukawa while rival neighborhood teams charge in to plant their small drums against it - the wild Okoshi-daiko, heart of a UNESCO-listed festival that also parades nine ornate floats on the 20th.

2027年4月19日周一 09:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Seihakusai Dekayama Festival 2027 (Nanao)

Three 12-metre, 20-ton wooden floats — among Japan's largest — are hauled through Nanao's narrow streets.

2027年5月3日周一 09:00 JST Kanazawa免费

Festivals

Hamamatsu Matsuri 2027 (Kite Festival)

Giant kites duel over the Nakatajima dunes by day; by night, illuminated palace-style floats and brass bands fill downtown Hamamatsu.

2027年5月3日周一 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hakata Dontaku Port Festival

One of Japan's biggest festivals: around 2 million people watch 750-plus troupes parade with shamoji clappers, flower floats and stage shows over May 3–4.

2027年5月3日周一 10:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Sanja Matsuri 2027

Sanja Matsuri 2027 had no announced dates as of September 18, 2026. Asakusa Shrine runs it on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday anchored on the third Saturday of May, which points to May 14-16, 2027.

2027年5月14日周五 13:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Kanda Matsuri 2027

One of Japan's three great festivals returns in full force: mikoshi processions fill Kanda, Nihonbashi and Akihabara in this 2027 honmatsuri year.

2027年5月15日周六 08:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Aoi Matsuri (Hollyhock Festival)

A 1,400-year-old imperial procession of 500 people in Heian-era robes winds 8km through Kyoto, oxen and ox-carts adorned with hollyhock leaves.

2027年5月15日周六 10:30 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Nikko Toshogu Spring Grand Festival 2027 (Thousand-Samurai Procession)

Nikko Toshogu's Spring Grand Festival returns May 17-18, 2027: yabusame archery and a 1,200-person samurai procession reenacting Ieyasu's journey to Nikko.

2027年5月17日周一 09:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Mikuni Matsuri

One of Hokuriku's three great festivals: six towering 6-metre warrior floats crowned with giant musha-ningyo figures are hauled through old port-town streets.

2027年5月19日周三 08:00 JST Kanazawa免费

Festivals

Soma Nomaoi 2027

Hundreds of riders in full samurai armour thunder across Fukushima's coast for armoured horse races and a wild scramble to catch sacred flags shot into the sky.

2027年5月29日周六 09:00 JST Across JapanThe main-day grounds (Hibarigahara) are ticketed for grandstand seating; street processions are free to watch. Exact 2027 dates (last weekend of May) confirmed in advance.

Festivals

Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Matsuri 2027

Kanazawa's grandest festival reenacts feudal lord Maeda Toshiie's triumphant entry into the castle, with a costumed warrior procession, tea ceremonies and lantern-lit dances.

2027年6月4日周五 09:00 JST Kanazawa免费

Festivals

Aizen Matsuri 2026 | Dates, the Hoekago Palanquin Parade & the 2027 Outlook

Osaka's Aizen Matsuri (fixed every Jun 30–Jul 2) just wrapped its 2026 run — here's what happened, and the reliable placeholder for 2027.

2027年6月30日周三 10:00 JST Osaka免费

Festivals

Matsukawa Tub Race 2027 — Ito Onsen's summer washtub race, the 400 m course and how to enter (2027 date not yet announced)

Held on the Matsukawa in Ito, Shizuoka since 1956: competitors sit in a one-metre washtub and paddle 400 m from Ideyu Bridge to Fuji-no-Hiroba with a paddle shaped like a rice scoop. The 2026 race was on Sunday 5 July; the 2027 date is not yet announced (as of 2026-09-13).

2027年7月4日周日 09:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hachinohe Sansha Taisai 2027

For five days every July 31-August 4, 27 towering, gold-leafed floats and three shrines' mikoshi processions fill Hachinohe's streets - a 300-year-old harvest-thanksgiving festival and UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage that draws over a million visitors.

2027年7月31日周六 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

按针祭 2027｜伊东最大的夏日祭典・海上烟花大会（惯例8月8–10日・2027年日程未公布）

静冈县伊东市最大的祭典。纪念三浦按针（威廉・亚当斯），惯例8月8日松川放河灯、9日太鼓合战、10日以海上烟花大会收尾。2027年（第81届）日程未公布，公布后即更新。繁體：按針祭。

2027年8月8日周日 19:30 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Sanno Matsuri (Hie Shrine) 2028

Held in full only in even-numbered years, Hie Shrine's grand procession sends a 500-strong parade of courtly costumes and portable shrines on a ten-hour route past the Imperial Palace and Ginza.

2028年6月8日周四 07:30 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Sapporo Snow Festival

Hokkaido's winter wonderland: giant snow and ice sculptures fill Odori Park, drawing over two million visitors each February.

2026年2月4日周三 10:00 JST Sapporo免费

Festivals

Omizutori (Todaiji Nigatsudo Fire Ritual)

Monks brandish giant flaming torches along Todaiji's Nigatsudo balcony each March, showering sparks over the crowd in a 1,200-year-old rite.

2026年3月12日周四 19:00 JST Nara免费

Festivals

Naha Hari Dragon Boat Festival

Okinawa's Golden Week dragon-boat festival packs Naha's port with thundering paddle races, music stages and fireworks over the harbor.

2026年5月3日周日 09:00 JST Okinawa免费

Festivals

Hiroshima Flower Festival

A vibrant Golden Week celebration along Peace Boulevard, with flower parades, yosakoi dancing, music stages and a giant flower tower.

2026年5月3日周日 09:30 JST Hiroshima免费

Festivals

Kanda Matsuri

One of Tokyo's three great festivals: hundreds of portable shrines parade through Akihabara and the old Edo districts.

2026年5月9日周六 08:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Sanja Matsuri

Asakusa's wildest weekend: nearly 100 portable shrines and two million people flood the streets around Senso-ji Temple.

2026年5月15日周五 11:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival

A grand samurai procession reenacts a feudal lord's entry into Kanazawa, complete with armor, geisha and lantern-lit floats.

2026年6月5日周五 14:00 JST Kanazawa免费

Festivals

Tokasan Yukata Festival

Hiroshima's beloved summer kickoff: locals don yukata and fill the downtown streets for three festive nights.

2026年6月5日周五 16:00 JST Hiroshima免费

Festivals

Yosakoi Soran Festival

Sapporo erupts in color as thousands of dancers perform high-energy yosakoi routines through the streets each June.

2026年6月10日周三 10:00 JST Sapporo免费

Festivals

Shonan Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival 2026

One of the Kanto region's largest Tanabata festivals, where central Hiratsuka disappears beneath giant, gaudy bamboo streamers up to ten metres tall.

2026年7月3日周五 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Mitama Matsuri (Yasukuni Shrine Lantern Festival)

Over 30,000 golden lanterns light the approach to Yasukuni Shrine across four summer nights, with Aomori nebuta floats and bon-odori dancing.

2026年7月13日周一 18:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Nachi Fire Festival (Nachi no Ogi Matsuri) 2026

Twelve fan-shaped portable shrines representing the gods meet a procession of giant 50-kilogram flaming torches before Japan's tallest waterfall — one of the country's three great fire festivals.

2026年7月14日周二 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hakata Gion Yamakasa

Fukuoka's adrenaline-fueled finale: teams race one-ton festival floats through the dawn streets of Hakata.

2026年7月15日周三 04:59 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Gion Matsuri 2026: Dates, Yoiyama & Float Parade Times (Complete Guide)

Gion Matsuri 2026 runs all July at Kyoto's Yasaka Shrine. Saki Matsuri yoiyama is July 14-16 and the float parade is July 17 at 9:00; Ato Matsuri yoiyama is July 21-23 and the parade is July 24 at 9:30. Verified dates, times and access.

2026年7月17日周五 09:00 JST免费

Festivals

Gion Matsuri (Yamaboko Junko Float Procession)

Kyoto's grandest festival fills July with towering wooden floats, lantern-lit evening parties, and 1,100 years of tradition.

2026年7月17日周五 09:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Kokura Gion Daiko 2026: Kitakyushu's 400-Year Drum Festival — Dates, Access & Where to Watch

Kokura Gion Daiko 2026 was held July 17-19 around Kokura Castle, Kitakyushu -- free entry, an estimated 300,000 visitors over the three days, 400 years of two-sided drumming. The 2027 dates are not yet announced.

2026年7月17日周五 18:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Yokohama Sparkling Twilight

A summer seaside festival at Yamashita Park with parades, a lit-up boat procession and fireworks over Yokohama Bay.

2026年7月18日周六 16:00 JST Yokohama免费

Festivals

Otaru Ushio Festival 2026

Otaru's biggest summer festival fills the port with the mass 'Shio Nerikomi' dance and a closing fireworks display.

2026年7月24日周五 11:00 JST Sapporo免费

Festivals

Sado Okesa Festival (Kozan Matsuri) 2026

Sado Island's 140th Kozan Matsuri (Jul 25-26) pairs a gold-mine shrine ritual with a town-wide Okesa dance through Aikawa and fireworks over the harbor.

2026年7月25日周六 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Tenjin Matsuri

Osaka's thousand-year river festival ends with a flotilla of lantern-lit boats and fireworks reflected on the Okawa River.

2026年7月25日周六 15:00 JST Osaka免费

Festivals

Owari Tsushima Tenno Festival 2026

One of Japan's three great river festivals — lantern-laden 'makiwara' boats glide across the Tenno River by night.

2026年7月25日周六 18:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Tobata Gion Oyamagasa

By night, daytime banner floats transform into 'lantern pyramids' — 12 tiers of 309 glowing lanterns swaying as bearers race them through Kitakyushu.

2026年7月25日周六 18:30 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Osu Summer Festival

Nagoya's quirky downtown district throws a lively summer festival with cosplay, world dance and a wet 'kara-okuri' parade.

2026年8月1日周六 10:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Morioka Sansa Odori 2026

A Guinness-record wall of taiko drums thunders through Morioka as thousands of dancers chant 'Sakkora choiwayasse!'

2026年8月1日周六 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hirosaki Neputa Matsuri 2026 | Dates, Grandstand Seats & Access

Hirosaki's own summer lantern parade (Aug 1–7, 2026) — fan-shaped floats and a calmer chant that set it apart from nearby Aomori Nebuta.

2026年8月1日周六 19:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hakodate Port Festival 2026: Fireworks, Squid Dance & Dates

The Hakodate Port Festival 2026 is over - it ran 1-5 August 2026. The festival is held on the same calendar dates every year, so the 2027 edition falls on Sunday 1 - Thursday 5 August 2027. Free to attend, 5 minutes' walk from JR Hakodate Station.

2026年8月1日周六 19:45 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Matsue Suigosai Fireworks 2026

21,000 fireworks over Lake Shinji across two nights (Aug 1-2, 2026) -- one of western Japan's biggest lake firework shows, with a drone show opening night one.

2026年8月1日周六 20:00 JST Across JapanPaid reserved seating in 3 lakeside areas (Kohoku, Shirakata, Konan) went on sale June 6, 2026; free public viewing spots are also available around the lake.

Festivals

Kuwana Ishidori Matsuri

Billed as Japan's noisiest festival: dozens of lantern-lit festival cars thunder through Kuwana to a relentless din of drums and gongs deep into the night.

2026年8月2日周日 18:30 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Aomori Nebuta 2026 Reserved Seats: Prices, Sale Dates & Access

Aomori Nebuta 2026 reserved viewing seats: ¥4,000 prices, the 2026 sale dates (lottery + Jun 27 first-come), how to buy, and access from Tokyo.

2026年8月2日周日 19:00 JST Across JapanReserved viewing seat ¥4,000 (Aug 7 daytime + fireworks set ¥9,500); handling fee added

Festivals

Summer Matsuri Grandstand Tickets 2026: How to Buy Paid Seats

How to buy paid grandstand seats at Japan's summer matsuri in 2026: lottery vs first-come, prices, the on-sale calendar and the official links.

2026年8月2日周日 19:00 JSTPaid grandstand seats from ¥1,000 (varies by festival and tier)

Festivals

Aomori Nebuta Matsuri

Giant illuminated warrior floats are paraded through Aomori nightly as chanting dancers leap alongside in a blaze of color.

2026年8月2日周日 19:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Akita Kanto Matsuri 2026 | Dates, Times & the Balanced-Pole Night Parade

Akita's Kanto Matsuri lights up Kanto Odori with about 280 bamboo poles and 10,000 lanterns, balanced on foreheads, hips and palms like glowing rice sheaves.

2026年8月3日周一 18:45 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Akita Kanto Festival 2026

Performers balance towering bamboo poles strung with dozens of glowing lanterns on their palms, foreheads and shoulders.

2026年8月3日周一 18:50 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Yamagata Hanagasa Festival 2026

Some 10,000 dancers twirl flower-adorned straw hats to the rhythmic cry of 'Yassho, makasho!' in one of Tohoku's biggest parades.

2026年8月5日周三 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Sendai Tanabata Festival 2026: Dates, Access & Highlights

Sendai Tanabata Festival 2026 (Aug 6–8): the fixed dates, the giant paper streamers, the Aug 5 fireworks, 5-min access from Sendai Station, and what to see.

2026年8月6日周四 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Sendai Tanabata Festival

Japan's grandest star festival drapes Sendai's arcades in thousands of giant, handmade paper streamers.

2026年8月6日周四 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Asagaya Tanabata Festival 2026: Aug 7-11 Dates & Access

Asagaya Tanabata Festival 2026 runs Aug 7–11, free, rain or shine. Tokyo's arcade tanabata is famous for giant handmade papier-mâché figures of the year's characters, right by JR Asagaya Station.

2026年8月7日周五 10:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Fukushima Waraji Matsuri 2026 | Dates, Access & Highlights

Fukushima Waraji Matsuri 2026 (Aug 7–9) parades a 12m, 2-ton straw sandal past the station before offering it to Haguro Shrine.

2026年8月7日周五 18:30 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Niigata Matsuri 2026 | Dates, Fireworks & the Folk Dance Parade

Niigata Matsuri 2026 runs Aug 7–9: a 15,000-dancer folk parade on the 7th, then a Shinano River fireworks finale on the 9th.

2026年8月7日周五 19:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Yosakoi Festival 2026 Tickets: Otesuji Grandstand Seats & How to Buy

Yosakoi Festival 2026 (Aug 9–12, Kochi): Otesuji grandstand seat prices, the 2026 sale dates (general sale opens Jun 29), how to buy, and how to get there.

2026年8月9日周日 13:15 JST Across JapanPaid grandstand seats ¥1,000–¥3,000 per session (group/parasol tables ¥15,000–¥50,000)

Festivals

Yosakoi Matsuri 2026 (Kochi)

The original yosakoi: 200+ teams and ~18,000 dancers with naruko clappers thunder through Kochi's streets across four August days.

2026年8月9日周日 17:00 JST Across JapanFree to watch on the streets; paid reserved (shaded) seats sold for the main venues.

Festivals

Awa Odori 2026 Tickets: Dates, Grandstand Seats & How to Get There

Awa Odori 2026 (Aug 12–15, Tokushima): grandstand seat prices, the 2026 on-sale dates, how to buy via Ticket Pia, and how to get there.

2026年8月12日周三 18:00 JST Across JapanReserved grandstand ¥1,000 (C) – ¥3,000 (S); Minami-uchimachi SS ¥6,000 / Special ¥15,000

Festivals

Awa Odori Dance Festival

Japan's most famous dance festival: 100,000 dancers and a million spectators fill Tokushima with rhythm every August.

2026年8月12日周三 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Tottori Shan-Shan Matsuri 2026 | Dates, the Umbrella Dance & Venue (62nd Edition)

Tottori's Guinness-record umbrella dance returns Aug 13–14, 2026 for its 62nd edition — free to watch along the city-center parade route.

2026年8月13日周四 18:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Gujo Odori 2026 All-Night Dance: How to Get There (First-Timer's Guide)

Gujo Odori 2026's all-night Tetsuya Odori runs over Obon, Aug 13-16, from 8 pm to 4-5 am. The stage is the old castle town of Gujo-Hachiman in Gifu, about a 20-min walk from Gujo-Hachiman Station. Verified dates, venue and access for first-timers.

2026年8月13日周四 20:00 JST免费

Festivals

Fukagawa Hachiman Matsuri (Tomioka Hachimangu Grand Festival)

One of Edo's three great festivals returns to its full triennial form in 2026, with 50+ mikoshi paraded as spectators drench bearers in purifying water.

2026年8月16日周日 07:30 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Arashiyama Toro Nagashi (Lantern Floating)

Thousands of memorial lanterns drift down the Oi River below Arashiyama as the 'Torii-gata' bonfire of the Gozan Okuribi blazes on the hillside above.

2026年8月16日周日 19:00 JST Kyoto免费

Festivals

Nishimonai Bon Odori 2026

Masked dancers in black hikosa-zukin hoods and deep amigasa hats sway through torchlit streets at one of Japan's three great Bon Odori, 700+ years old.

2026年8月16日周日 19:30 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Yamaga Lantern Festival (Yamaga Toro Matsuri)

A thousand women dance through summer night with golden paper lanterns glowing on their heads — Kumamoto's most ethereal festival.

2026年8月16日周日 20:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Shinjo Matsuri 2026

Twenty towering yatai floats - hand-built from scratch every year and dressed as scenes from kabuki and legend - parade the streets of Shinjo each August 24-26. This 260-plus-year-old UNESCO-listed float festival reaches a milestone in 2026: its 270th staging.

2026年8月24日周一 15:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Yoshida Fire Festival (Yoshida no Himatsuri) 2026

To mark the close of Mt. Fuji's climbing season, around seventy three-meter torches blaze along the streets of Fujiyoshida — counted among Japan's three most unusual festivals.

2026年8月26日周三 15:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Nippon Domannaka Festival (Domatsuri)

Nagoya's huge late-summer dance festival fills the city center with hundreds of energetic teams in a riot of color and choreography.

2026年8月28日周五 11:00 JST Nagoya免费

Festivals

Okinawa Zento Eisa Festival

Okinawa's biggest eisa festival, where drum troupes from across the islands perform thunderous traditional dance under summer skies.

2026年8月28日周五 15:00 JST Okinawa免费

Festivals

Noboribetsu Jigoku Matsuri 2026 (Hell Festival)

Noboribetsu's hot-spring Hell Festival returns Aug 29-30, 2026: a giant demon float, the 1-ton Oni Mikoshi, mass demon-dancing and fireworks -- free to attend.

2026年8月29日周六 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Nara Basara Festival 2026

Nara's energetic summer counterpoint — vivid street-dance teams parade past Todaiji, Kasuga Taisha and Sanjo-dori.

2026年8月29日周六 11:00 JST Nara免费

Festivals

Asakusa Samba Carnival

Tokyo's biggest samba parade fills Asakusa with feathered dancers and thundering bateria as competing teams vie for the championship along Umamichi Street.

2026年8月29日周六 13:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Tokyo Koenji Awa Odori 2026

Tokyo's own Awa dance takes over Koenji's backstreets as 10,000-plus dancers in 'ren' troupes whirl through the summer night.

2026年8月29日周六 17:00 JST Tokyo免费

Festivals

Owara Kaze no Bon 2026

By lantern light, faceless dancers in straw hats move with hushed grace to mournful kokyu strings through old Yatsuo's stone lanes.

2026年9月1日周二 17:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Kakunodate Festival 2026

Every September 7-9, the samurai town of Kakunodate fills with towering yama floats carrying warrior dolls by day; after dark comes the yamabuttsuke, when two floats that refuse to yield are rammed together in a thunderous, adrenaline-charged test of nerve.

2026年9月7日周一 09:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Hojoya Festival 2026: Sept 12-18 at Hakozakigu, Fukuoka

Hojoya runs 12-18 September 2026 - seven days and seven nights at Hakozakigu Shrine in Fukuoka, with several hundred stalls along the approach and around a million visitors. Free to enter.

2026年9月12日周六 10:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Wasshoi Hyakuman Summer Festival 2026 (Kitakyushu)

Kitakyushu's biggest summer festival sends massive 'Wasshoi' dance parades and mikoshi through Kokura, capped by fireworks.

2026年9月19日周六 09:00 JST Fukuoka免费

Festivals

Kishiwada Danjiri Matsuri

Teams haul massive wooden festival floats at full sprint through Kishiwada's streets in one of Japan's most thrilling matsuri.

2026年9月19日周六 06:00 JST Osaka免费

Festivals

Aizu Festival 2026

Some 600 people parade in full samurai costume through Aizuwakamatsu in a 'Lord's Procession' honouring the clan that made a famous last stand in Japan's last civil war.

2026年9月19日周六 10:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

柏祭 2026

千叶县规模最大的街头祭典，每年吸引70万至80万人参加。受近年破纪录酷暑影响，2026年柏祭将从传统的7月末周末改期至9月19日至20日举行。

2026年9月19日周六 13:00 JST Across Japan免费

Festivals

Fujisaki Hachimangu Boshita Matsuri 2026

Kumamoto's biggest autumn festival runs Sept 20-21, 2026: about 60 decorated parade horses and a twice-daily armored procession fill the streets, free to watch.

2026年9月20日周日 06:00 JST Across Japan免费