Gaido Japan

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-03 | Nagaoka Station Jōetsu Shinkansen, Nagaoka Station Jōetsu, Japan
The Nagaoka Festival is held from August 1st to August 3rd around the Shinano River in Nagaoka City. Its main attractions are the portable shrine float parades and folk dance processions during the day with large-scale fireworks displays in the evening on the final two days.
The festival has food tents with traditional Niigata cuisine: Kanzuri (a special seasoning made by leaving chili peppers exposed on snow, then adding flour, salt, and yuzu), Hegi-Soba (soba with a special kind of seaweed), Sasa-dango (Japanese rice cake filled with red bean paste, seasoned with mugwort and wrapped in bamboo leaves) and others.
The main fireworks viewing areas require tickets to enter. However, as with most fireworks festivals in Japan, if you’re prepared to watch from slightly further away, you can watch for free. Organizers claim over 1 million spectators attend over the three days, so make sure you have your transport and accommodation organized in advance.
Access
Nagaoka is directly accessible from Tokyo via bullet train in an hour and forty minutes, costing ¥8,400 for an unreserved seat. If you want to keep costs down you can catch local trains for ¥4,750 although this will take nearly six hours. There are buses available from Tokyo with prices starting from about ¥3,900 and a journey time of around three and a half hours.
Accommodation
With a cluster of business hotels located around the main station in Nagaoka, choices here are similar the cost and room-wise. For a simple room, you can choose from the Hotel Hokke Club or the Hotel New Otani which both have Western rooms and economy options. If you want to up the comfort level head to the Teradomari Misaki Onsen Hotel which is out on the coast.
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Aomori Nebuta Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-07
This festival for which Aomori is most famous takes place in Aomori City during the first week of August, however, on the 1st it is only an evening fireworks display. The main procession of the festival consists of large internally lit floats depicting kabuki scenes that are wheeled around wildly from side to side. Members of the public are free to join in as long as they are wearing the required haneto costume.
The Aomori Nebuta schedule sees parades each evening from the 2nd to the 6th with a procession of floats happening during the day on the 7th with a large fireworks festival in the evening.
If traveling to Aomori for Nebuta, you should make sure to book your accommodation well in advance. The best seating spots along the route are mostly reserved by hotels and tour companies. If you don’t have a seat, either staking out a street corner or buying the festival costume (they are on sale throughout Aomori City) and participating in the parade are your best bets for getting a good view.
In addition to the Aomori Nebuta, there are similar festivals throughout the Tsugaru Plain including Hirosaki Neputa, Goshogawara Tachi-Neputa, Hirakawa Neputa, and Kuroishi Neputa.

Yoshinogawa Festival and Fireworks
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-31
Taking place on the banks of the Yoshino River in the Shinmachi neighborhood of Gojo city, this is Nara Prefecture’s most popular fireworks festival.
Not content with a mere 4,000 exploding projectiles, the organizers have added a laser light show and music to the mix. The one-hour show will finish with the launch of a spectacular “star mine” firework.
The festival typically attracts 80,000 people. The venue is a 10-minute walk due south of Gojo station. The festival starts at 2 pm and the fireworks begin at 8 pm.

Hirosaki Neputa Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-07
The Hirosaki Neputa Festival is a lower-key (but still spectacular) sibling of the much rowdier Nebuta Festival in Aomori City.
While the Aomori floats are a lot more free-form, Neputa floats in Hirosaki are mainly of a distinctive fan-like shape with scenes from kabuki plays on either side of the float.
To chants of Ya-ya-doh!, the floats are wheeled along Hirosaki’s Dotemachi main shopping street starting next to the castle moat and then heading to the south. The attendants and paraders dress in distinctive Neputa kimono with a colorful sash around their shoulders, pinned with small bells.
While there are reserved, seated areas along the route, there are plenty of free seating areas along the road – which are quickly grabbed by both locals and visitors. Some of the best vantage points are at intersections on the route where the floats briefly stop while young men spin the fan part of the float at high speed using ropes, sometimes flying into the air in the process.
As with all the Nebuta festivals, booking well in advance is recommended if you don’t want to miss out on accommodation.

One Love Jamaica Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-09-01
The One Love Jamaica Festival is an annual summer event that will be held in Komazawa Olympic Park and is a good time for those looking to soak up some great food, drinks, dancing, and music. Music seems to flow from every corner of the festival space. Vendors and performers are everywhere playing drums, singing, and creating a truly Caribbean flair. Reggae mostly, of course, and those who can’t play or sing often have a stereo set up with the sounds of one of the most famous Jamaicans, Bob Marley. And that’s not counting the main event stage, which has a full lineup of singers and dancers that enthusiastically rocks all weekend.
Photo: RealShot MASATO
There are rows and rows of tents set up with crafts and vendors. Of course, there is a wide selection of clothes and beachwear, Jamaican style (which means lots of green, yellow, and black designs, lots of tie-dye, and lots of earthy, bohemian styles). There are lots of Latin drums for sale. One tent was selling Usain Bolt merchandise, with clothing and bags featuring the iconic “Fastest Man Alive.”
Usain Bolt merchandise for sale
Of course, every festival brings a huge array of food and drink stalls with it. Good smells wafted everywhere, with the focus on the jerk chicken. There was plenty of jerk chicken stands set up, and though the crowds seemed eager to line up and wait for one or two, there was plenty of delicious food to be found elsewhere, so don’t waste your time lining up with everyone else. The famous Jamaican Red Stripe beer was well represented, as were a number of smaller and lesser-known rum and alcohol makers.
Get them while they’re hot!
And if you can’t make it to the Tokyo event in August, head down to Nagoya’s Hisaya Odori Park to experience the same fun tunes and atmosphere.

Swinging Taiko at the Tsuribashi Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-15
Does the idea of taking the stage give you cold feet? Can you imagine if your stage was a wobbly Indiana-Jones-movie suspension bridge? That suspension bridge is the stage for the taiko drummers performing in Totsukawa-Mura’s Yuredaiko. The suspension bridge in question is the Tanize no Tsuribashi, the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in Japan at 297.7 meters in length, and one of, if not the tallest. The walkway sits 54 meters above the river below. The Yuredaiko (literally swinging/swaying taiko drums) is one of the big events to happen at the Tsuribashi Matsuri (Suspension Bridge Festival) in Totsukawa-Mura. The festival takes place on August 4th every year from 4 pm and features, in addition to the taiko, rock bands, ukulele and Tsugaru shamisen performances, and performances by local dance teams. The festival finishes with fireworks at 9 pm. Totsukawa-Mura and the Tanize no Tsuribashi are in the southernmost part of Nara Prefecture miles away from any train station. Nara Kotsu operates a bus service between Yamato-Yagi Station on the Kintetsu Line in Nara Prefecture and Shingu Station on the JR Nanki Line in Wakayama. There are only 3 outbound and 3 return buses per day so it is recommended that you stay the night in Totsukawa-Mura and enjoy its hot springs and other sites while you’re there. Nara Prefecture will refund your bus fare if you do stay one night or more. Happy travels!

Kojiya Awa Dance
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-15
The Kojiya Awa Odori is held along the town’s shotengai (shopping street) where roughly 600 spectators join – lined up 10 rows deep – to watch the dancers and cheer as they pass by. There are about 150 kids who also participate in the performance, which is one of Ota City’s summer highlights. Awa Odori is known as one of the more energetic Japanese festivals due to the style of dance performed. It originates from Tokushima on the island of Shikoku. The Awa Odori is a folk dance unique for its irregular and energetic movements. It is said that the dance started out as a celebration of the newly-built Tokushima Castle; supposedly the townspeople happily guzzled sake until they broke out into a drunken dance that became known as Awa Odori.

Miura Kaigan Fireworks Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-15
Every year in early August, Miura City hosts the Miura Summer Fireworks Festival. For me, that meant a beautiful beach in glorious, sunny weather followed by 3000 fireworks launched off the ocean lighting up the night sky. It had everything a good festival should be; sun, sand, festival food, beautiful yukata, and fireworks.

Morito no Hama bon Dance Festival
2022-08-01 - 2022-08-15 | 240-0112 Kanagawa-ken, Hayama, Horiuchi 922-2,Horiuchi, Japan, 240-0112 Kanagawa-ken, Hayama, Horiuchi 922-2,Horiuchi, Japan, Hayama, Kanagawa, 240-0112, Japan
Do you like the beach? Do you like or want to experience Japanese summer festivals? Then the Morito no hama, bon dance competition/Festival is the best place to be this summer. The Experience You can enjoy great grilled and barbecue dishes on the beach side as well as participate in the festival events. Definitely, a fun-filled experience with great food, great people, and great dancing. If you are not the dancing type, then you can simply relax near one of the food stalls, and enjoy the music and the ambiance. My Experience I went to this festival with three of my Japanese friends, not knowing what to expect, but I left wanting more. Anyone can go join the dancing and not feel foolish. That’s because many of the foreigners who were dancing didn’t seem to have a clue about the next move. But after doing it around three times, it became really fun. Of course, I had no chance of winning the dance competition, but it was fun to watch the experts! Food There are a variety of food stalls for your convenience, so you can pick and choose at will. Be it chicken, shrimp, or fish, it’s all there. This is certainly a festival worth checking out and best of all it’s FREE! I guarantee that this event is one you will look forward to going to again. The only part of this festival you won’t enjoy is when it’s over. Check it out with your friends-the Morito no hama bon dance competition/festival. It will be one that will live in your memories.

Zama Suzuka Shinto Shrine Festival
2022-08-01 11:00 - 21:00 (Asia/Tokyo)
During the annual Zama Mikoshi Festival (July 31-August 1st), residents and Mikoshi regulars from neighboring communities carry a portable shrine through the streets of Zama chanting “Say ya, Soi ya, Sah, Sorya” and “Dokkoi, Dokkoi, Dokkoi Sorya”. They are asking the Shinto gods for blessings of good health, more money, and successful procreation. Mikoshi festivals happen all over the country during the summer months. They are true community events and a good window into Shinto celebratory practice. It is no small feat to carry the shrine from noon into the night, the shrine is heavy and the festival happens at the hottest time of year; participants take turns to sustain the weight and heat. There are regular stops along the way, as festival sponsors set up tables of food (rice balls, fried chicken, croquettes, red bean buns, and melon) and beverages (beer, sake, water, green tea, and energy drinks) to keep the participants energized and hydrated. You know when the parade is about to rest when you hear a succession of claps; it is impossible not to join in and after a few hours it becomes a subconscious action. Tap, tap, tap…Tap, tap, tap…Tap, tap, tap…Tap. Passing through the streets, residents emerge from their businesses and homes to make an offering to the gods and cheer on the procession. Zama residents coming home from work join the parade as the shrine is carried past Zama Train Station around sunset. Tired Mikoshi carriers are cheered and re-invigorated by the crowd. It becomes a vibrant and festive party that ends back at the Suzuka Shrine where there is food, drink, and entertainment for all. Back at Suzuka, the nighttime shrine is brought out alongside the portable day shrine and the energy grows as the Mikoshi participants compete against each other to see how high they can toss the portable shrines. They move side to side, forward and back, and make wide circles that send the crowd running to avoid injury. This is meant to delight the gods before returning the shrines to the temple for another year.

Morioka's Sansa Odori
2022-08-01 18:00 - 2022-08-04 21:00
The festival is one of the top five festivals of the Tohoku (northeastern Japan) region–and it is easy to see why. The main event is the massive parade of over three thousand drummers, representing taiko groups created by schools, companies, organizations, and the over twenty taiko groups which call Morioka home. The number of so many drummers playing at once is a world record. Lines of performers are only separated by the occasional parade float or banner introducing what’s next. Most groups wear their own choice of colorful and stylish traditional wear, but a decent number made the festival even more festive with anime and video game character costumes, dressing as dalmatians (2014), or mixing some random fun. Even those not in the parade are still able to participate. At one moment during the festival, a float comes with instructors encouraging everyone to step into the street and dance together. Otherwise, a giant circle dance party after the parade is a Sansa Odori tradition. Special performances, lessons, and related events take place in front of JR Morioka Station and community halls around town during the four-day festival. Japanese and English event schedules, as well as volunteer staff, are on hand to assist. As a festival, Sansa Odori is just a few decades in the making, but from a historical perspective, it is inseparable from the city. Centuries ago there used to be a horrible demon that tormented the local people. The people prayed to the deity of Mitsuishi Shrine for help. The deity heard their cries and captured the demon. The people celebrate this feat with music and dance which has been carefully passed down from the Nanbu clan. The Sansa Odori dance is complex and dynamic in movement. It is visually and audibly a very entertaining festival in an exciting city with much to keep you busy for several days. The dance has been designated one of Morioka’s Intangible Cultural Properties. Definitely worth a special trip, the Sansa Odori Festival is not to be missed! Past festival report

Culture
Morioka Sansa Odori
The largest drum parade in Japan

Hirakawa Neputa Festival
2022-08-02 - 2022-08-03
Hirakawa city in Aomori Prefecture hosts a Nebuta Festival at the beginning of August each year. While the Aomori City has the crowds, Hirosaki has the refined tradition and Goshogawara has towering floats, Hirakawa’s claim to fame is having Aomori’s (and the world’s) biggest Nebuta float at an imposing 12 meters in height.
The shape of the giant Neputa floats (in the south of Aomori they’re called Neputa, not Nebuta) is similar to that of those in neighboring Hirosaki.

Akita Kanto Festival
2022-08-03 - 2022-08-06
Kanto (not related to the region of the same name) are poles that are approximately 15 meters long from which hang 46 lanterns – intended to resemble bags of rice.
Weighing up to 50kg, the festival performers balance these poles on their forehead or lower backs while walking the parade route. They are accompanied by bands of bamboo flute players and are urged on by the spectators.
As you can probably imagine, balancing a 15-meter-long pole that weighs 50kg while walking is quite a feat – especially if there is a breeze!
Pro tip: Book your accommodation, together with a viewing seat, in advance.

Tsushima no Miya Festival
2022-08-03 13:00 - 2022-08-05 22:00
There is an island, a shrine, and a station that is only open for a short festival each year. For two days this shrine, and the tiny Tsu island on which it sits, see around 10,000 people come and go. They come for the shrine and the summer festival. The bridge to the shrine opens early and closes late, and people come in droves throughout the day. Most people are families with children, who are brought to be blessed by the priests. Many charms are for sale as well. Back across the bridge on the mainland, the streets are lined with colorful stalls serving all the local favorite festival foods. There are games and drinks as well, and on the night of the fourth, there is a great big firework show. The station, 津島ノ宮駅 (つしまのみやえき), is also famous for train otaku fans who love to take pictures and save their tickets for their collections.

Goshogawara Tachi-Neputa Festival
2022-08-04 - 2022-08-08
Goshogawara hosts the third of the famous Nebuta festivals in Aomori. The others are Aomori Nebuta in Aomori City and Hirosaki Neputa.
‘Tachineputa’ means ‘vertical Nebuta’, so called because Goshogawara’s Nebuta floats are very tall – some as tall as a three-story building.
The Goshogawara festival starts later than both the Aomori City Nebuta and Hirosaki Neputa and finishes one day later.

Hinokuni Festival
2022-08-05 - 2022-08-07
The Hinokuni Matsuri is a festival that takes place in early August predominantly in and around Sunroad Shinshigai (a covered arcade) in Kumamoto City.
The festival will feature various dance troupes and competitions as well as a “Natsu Machi Yokocho” (summer town drinking alley).

Hiroshima Toro Nagashi
2022-08-06
Each year, on August 6th, candle-lit lanterns are set afloat on the Motoyasu River next to Hiroshima’s A-Bomb Dome in remembrance of deceased ancestors and as a wish for world peace.
The lanterns are on sale from 6 am with the lanterns released by hand in the evening in the vicinity of the A-Bomb Dome and Motoyasu Bridge. Organizers warn that due to big crowds, you may have to wait a little while to set your lantern afloat.

Sendai Tanabata
2022-08-06 - 2022-08-08
Tanabata – literally meaning the ‘7th evening’ is a festival celebrated on different dates throughout Japan. The Sendai version, touted as one of the three major summer festivals in the Tohoku region, is the most famous of them all. It’s so famous that it has become synonymous with Sendai itself.
The festival takes place from the 6th to the 8th of August. Encompassing the whole city of Sendai, neighborhoods hang colorful decorations paper decorations including handwritten strips of paper containing wishes of good fortune, paper kimonos, paper cranes, paper nets, and streamers.
The last night of the festival sees a major fireworks festival with 16,000 fireworks and 500,000 spectators making it the most popular in the Tohoku region.
Sendai Tanabata attracts 2 million visitors each year, so if you’re traveling to Sendai, you should make sure you have our accommodation arranged in advance.

Summer Festival in Honmoku, Yokohama
2022-08-06 10:00 - 2022-08-07 12:00 | 19 Honmoku Wada, Naka-ku, Yokohama, 231-0827, Japan, 19 Honmoku Wada, Naka-ku, Yokohama, 231-0827, Japan, Naka, Yokohama, 231-0827, Japan
Every year, in Honmoku, Yokohama, the Ouma Nagashi event is held during summer. Ouma is a figure with the head of a horse and a turtle-like body made of straw. Every year six pieces of Ouma are made for the event, which is dedicated to the Honmoku Shinto shrine. They are brought to the shrine by men in formal kimonos in the early morning of the day before the event. After they stay in the shrine overnight, they are carried throughout the town of Honmoku in the morning. Then they are sent about 5km offshore by boats from the Honmoku fishing port and thrown into the sea. The event is believed to take evil out of the town by throwing the figures into the sea. It is a kind of purification ritual. It has been practiced for nearly 450 years since the medieval era when feudal warlords fought each other to survive. Originally the figures were sent offshore by six wooden boats before the 1950s. Until last year, fishing motorboats had been used to bring the Ouma figures offshore. Last year the wooden boats came back for the first time in 50 years after being repaired thanks to donations by local residents and businesses. Beautiful beaches existed on the shores of Honmoku only 50 years ago.
Honmoku was a fishing village, where villagers produced seaweed and farmed fish. Among them werre anago sea eels and shako shrimp. They are essential ingredients of “Edo style sushi”. The beaches were reclaimed to expand the port facilities in the 1960s. Still, some fishermen continue to fish off Honmoku from this fishing port. Now we seldom have an occasion to enjoy the smell of the sea close by even though we are living in Honmoku, which used to be famous for its beautiful beaches. On the day of Ouma Nagashi ritual, six portable shrines, carried by men and women of all ages get together from six areas of Honmoku near MYCAL Honmoku to show off their high spirits in their own local matsuri festival costumes. That is the moment when Honmoku streets come alive with their cheerful calls, and everyone forgets the scorching heat of high summer. And it is an occasion for us to feel and smell the history of the town. Ouma figures are brought into the Shrine: at 10:00. Ouma figures leave the Shrine: at 08:00. This event is held yearly at the beginning of August, so if you miss it this year, be sure to visit the next chance you get. Check the website (Japanese) for details.

Yosakoi Festival
2022-08-10 10:00 - 2022-08-11 22:00
Summer is prime time for big festivals in Japan, and Kochi City is no exception. The highlight of the local year is a three-day dance/parade extravaganza in August, called ‘Yosakoi’. What the word means exactly is open to interpretation, but the general sense is ‘let the good times roll, and there’s a strong hint of, um, nocturnal naughtiness to it. During the Japanese holiday, obon, over 10,000 dancers in many dozens of teams throng the main streets and thoroughfares, beating time with small wooden clappers called naruko. The costumes are colorful and fantastic, and a highlight is the decorated trucks that head up each team, staffed by hard-core carnival party animals and blasting out music from their huge speakers. Every team is free to arrange its own style of music from Japanese ballad to big-Afro funk, but it must include at least part of the festival’s official song, the “Yosakoi Naruko Dance”. Things wind up with a grand parade down Otesuji-Dori Avenue and a huge fireworks display, lasting 90 minutes. Especially good dancers proudly wear ribands awarded by the judges, and there’s an overall winning team each year. Teams are organized by companies, businesses, and localities, and a lot of them are put together by izakaya – informal pub/restaurants, that Kochi City center is packed with. A festival is really a way for a town to bare its soul and show the world what it’s made of. I’m always impressed by the way Yosakoi displays the quintessential character of Kochi City – it’s loud, gaudy, cheerful, ever-changing, and irreverent, with the women of the town definitely front and center. Dancers come in all skill levels and ages, and they’re free to change teams every year if they choose. In addition, dancing styles are not predetermined, and the serious teams spend most of the year choreographing and practicing the next year’s dance routine. This kind of free-and-easy style might be frowned upon in other Japanese cities, but Kochi (as always) gives a broad grin and goes its own way. You’ll never see the same Yosakoi twice, and you’ll definitely never see a dull one. Let the good times roll!

Tokushima Awa Odori Festival
2022-08-12 - 2022-08-15
Tokushima Awa Odori is rated by many as Japan’s top summer festival. It takes place in Tokushima – a prefecture on the island of Shikoku.
The dance festival (Odori means dance) has its origins as a summer Obon festival. ‘Awa’ was the pre-Meiji name for the area in which Tokushima city is located. The festival was renowned as a raucous and drunken event and over the years a distinctive dance style emerged. There are a variety of styles of dress for men and women and they typically dance separately or together in large choreographed groups. Many of the female dancers wear distinctive hats resembling folded tacos which are made from the tatami. The main dances are performed from the 12th – 15th, but the Evening Selection is held on the night of the 11th.
The streets of central Tokushima City are closed to traffic each evening of the festival. Dancing takes place in the street (which can be viewed for free) and at seven stages with reserved seating. Tickets for the reserved seats range from about ¥800 to ¥2,000 in price and can be purchased in advance at the Information Center in front of Tokushima Station and at local convenience stores.
The festival is said to attract 1.3 million visitors, so if you intend to stay nearby, you should book well in advance. Another option is to do a day trip from Kobe on the mainland. The quickest way from Kobe to Tokushima is the Awa Express (link in Japanese) run by JR Shikoku Bus. From Shin-Kobe Station, the journey takes approximately 2 hours and 8 minutes. Tickets are 5,940yen return for adults and half that for kids. The Salad Express (link in Japanese) from the Hanshin bus covers the same route and charges the same price.
At present organizers are planning to go ahead with COVID-19 countermeasures in place.

Minato Mirai Bon Odori Dance Festival
2022-08-12 16:30 - 2022-08-13 20:30
The Minato Mirai Bon Odori Festival will once again be held in mid-August in Rinko Park, Yokohama. Looking out over the evening waters of Yokohama Bay, Rinko Park provides one of the most pleasant locations for one of Japan’s most-loved summer traditions. As with previous years, the festival will feature beer gardens and a Yokohama gourmet yatai street food stall corner delivering festival staples like kakigori shaved ice and yakitori skewers of grilled chicken. Traditional taiko drummers will be beating out their summer rhythms while yukata-clad dancers dance the bon odori around the central yagura stage. A community tradition, the bon odori’s circle of dancers is open to anyone wishing to join in and participate. Free to enjoy and with its views of Yokohama Bay Bridge lit up over the bay, the Minato Mirai Bon Odori Festival is the perfect Japanese summer experience.

Kanmon Straits Fireworks Festival
2022-08-13
This is a joint fireworks festival across the Kanmon Straits between Shimonoseki City in Yamaguchi Prefecture and Kita-Kyushu City in Fukuoka Prefecture.
More than 1 million people on both sides of the strait are expected to watch the almost 1-hour long show in which 15,000 projectiles will be hurled into the night sky.

Yanai Goldfish Lantern Festival
2022-08-13 15:30 - 20:00
The small city of Yanai in Yamaguchi Prefecture is famous for its lanterns, but they’re a little different from many lanterns you’ve likely seen in the past. The lanterns here are shaped like goldfish, and you’ll see them displayed outside shops, restaurants, and even personal residences in the area. The unique lanterns are said to have first been created by a Yanai merchant in the Edo period who was said to have been inspired by lanterns at Aomori’s Hirosaki Neputa Festival, and the rest is history.

Daimonji Okuribi
2022-08-15
This is a memorial service for the spirits of fallen soldiers and to pray for peace which takes place on August 15th every year. A large 大 (the kanji symbol for great) is set alight on Mount Wakakusa using 108 flames to represent the traditional number of worldly desires possessed by humans. The event is the culmination of the O-Bon festival and fires are meant to guide the spirits back to the afterlife. You can see the fire from various spots in Nara Park which lasts around 30 minutes.
For 2021 (as with 2020 due to COVID-19), the fireworks display which usually follows Daimonji ceremony has been canceled. Also, anyone not directly involved in the ceremony will be barred from attending and Nara Park will be closed to visitors.

Gozan no Okuribi
2022-08-16
The locals call it Daimonji, the celebration during the height of the O-bon festival where the city’s surrounding mountains are lit up with five bonfires.
Three of the bonfires are lit in the form of Kanji, while the other two are the shapes of a boat and a Shinto gate. It is said that the deceased family’s relatives rise from the spirit world for visits during August 16th, therefore Okuribi literally means, “send-off-fire”. To get the best view of all the bonfires, head to the center of the city: Nakagyo Ward. Or, you can also head one of the five mountains – Daimonji, Daikokuten, Funa Nishigamo, Daihoku-San, Okita, and Mandara. The bonfire is lit between intervals of five minutes, starting at 8:00 PM on Daimonji mountain.
2022 will mark the first time that the event has not been scaled down or canceled since 2019.

Summer Sonic Tokyo
2022-08-20 - 2022-08-21
Summer Sonic, one of Japan’s premier music events, is a two-day rock festival that’s held simultaneously in both Tokyo and Osaka. All-you-need-to-know As with the previous years, the rock festival is held in both Tokyo and Osaka. For the Tokyo locations, the festival will be held at the Zozo Marine Stadium & Makuhari Seaside Park. Tickets are sold as 1-day or 3-day passes, with prices ranging from ¥13,800 to ¥39,000 (based on 2019 prices). The tickets will be exchanged for wristbands when you enter the venue and will serve as your access pass to the event — so don’t lose them! Other than performances, there will also be food and drink stalls around the venue for party-goers to fuel up before continuing the night’s festivities. More details on the artist lineup will be announced on the official website. History of Summer Sonic Founded in 2000, the Summer Sonic rock festival has been held annually ever since. The festival was independently owned by Creativeman Productions Ltd but was bought over by Live Nation Entertainment in 2014. Star performers from previous years’ events include Coldplay, Zedd, BABYMETAL, The Chainsmokers, Radwimps, BLACKPINK, Perfume, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and more.
Summer Sonic Main Stage 2015: Zedd Performing from Afar (Photo: Nesnad / CC BY-SA 4.0)
The festival has, historically, attracted diverse lineups, from local rock musicians and indie bands to internationally-acclaimed pop/rock singers. With a star-studded lineup each year, it is no wonder how Summer Sonic attracted over 350,000 attendees in 2019 alone. Aside from Summer Sonic, the Fuji Rock Festival is another one of Japan’s biggest annual music events.

Anamori Inari Shrine Lantern Festival
2022-08-23 18:00 - 2022-08-25 22:00
Every year in late August, the parishioners of Anamori Inari Shrine In Ota City join the priests and their attendants to light handmade lanterns, asking Inari-sama, the god of rice, for the granting of wishes. The lanterns which bear images made by children and adults alike are set up on the day of the festival. Illustrations of kabuki actors and interpretations of ukiyo-e prints hang next to popular characters and naive landscape paintings. Parishioners and visitors gather around sunset for a Shinto ceremony in the sanctuary before the lantern lighting. The female shrine attendants in red hakama trousers and local elders distribute candles to each person and direct them to make their wishes at the opened sanctuary. One by one, each person takes a turn to light the 300 or so lanterns. Despite being part of vast urban Tokyo, the festival has a hometown feel, and the parishioners welcome everybody to join the festivities. Just like any small neighborhood festival, the evening is whiled away with children’s dance performances to pop music followed by more traditional drumming and dancing. And eating. Stay around a while and have yakisoba and drinks at the food stalls.

Shinjo Matsuri
2022-08-24 08:30 - 2022-08-26 20:00
Shinjo City in Yamagata is proudly home to Shinjo Matsuri, which is arguably the best festival in Tohoku. This festival, with its history of 250 years, is celebrated from August 24th to 26th every year and consists of city-wide parades of giant floats, each depicting a story, over three days. It is also remarkable for hosting over 400 stalls selling food, drink, toys, and even turtles.

Okutsuhime Shrine Festival in Wajima
2022-08-25 - 2022-08-28
Young men dressed in women’s clothes and with make-up on their faces carry a portable shrine into the ocean at Sodegahama Beach. Then small children on shore pull long ropes attached to the shrine back and forth. This is the Okutsuhime Shrine Festival, the first in a series of four shrine festivals in Wajima. What a spectacle to watch; full of excitement and great fun. Late summer is a perfect time to visit the Wajima area of the Noto Peninsula to enjoy some great spectacles at the Wajima Grand Festivals. Yes, it is not one but four festivals related to local shrines that take place from August 22 to 25 each year. The festive activities start with the Okutsuhime Shrine Festival. Here is the legend that gave reason to this festival: A Shinto God-Princess (hime means princess in Japanese) lived on Hegura Island about 50 km off the coast of the Noto Peninsula, Her Shinto God-Prince lived on the land in Wajima. They were very much in love but sadly, they were allowed to meet only once a year. The fisherman of Wajima wanted to help the lovers find each other by carrying giant lanterns to brighten the night. Giant candles became giant lanterns (kikiro) in the shape of votive candles. Well, it has been said that they get intimate, and the meeting of the two results in the birth of a new god. Where there is love, there is jealousy. The God-Prince got jealous of the young, healthy local men who carried the portable shrine (mikoshi) with the God-Princess. To attract the wrath of a Shinto God is a terrible thing. Hence, the local men started to dress as women and wore make-up like women. They still do this to this day making for a fun atmosphere. After the Shinto ritual, a group of local children and teenagers perform a vigorous taiko drumming show. The mikoshi is carried from Okutsuhime Shrine to Sodegahama Beach, where a Shinto priest conducts a purification ritual before the shrine enters the water of the ocean. Then the action starts for good: the young men carry the shrine down the beach lined to both sides by local noblemen, then through a Shinto gate and into the water of the ocean. A rope is attached to the mikoshi which is held by young children who aim to prevent the men from entering the water. Like this, the mikoshi is carried in and out of the ocean many times, until finally it is taken back ashore and brought to a temporary shrine for one night. The locals must enjoy this fun event a lot because they repeat it a second time the following day. Let legend by legend, the locals celebrate this shrine festival at the end of the fishing season to say thank you to the Shinto-Gods (kami-sama) for helping them to catch a lot of fish, stay accident-free, and bring good fortune to their homes. If you want to search for the princess, then make a trip to Hegura Island! It is just 2 km by 1 km in size and less than 100 people live there. A ferry takes locals and guests from Wajima Port to Hegura Port in 1h30min. Beware! There is only one ferry in the morning going to the island and one ferry in the evening coming back to Wajima. What to do if you get bored of princess hunt? Locals say that Hegura Island is a good spot for angling and bird-watching!
