It's summertime and Ikebukuro is gripped by Hawaiian fever. The annual Hula Festival is hard to miss as the colors and sounds of the Pacific sweep the northwestern part of Tokyo. Up to 3,900 dancers show off their skills on […]
Marine Day or Umi no hi (literally ‘day of the sea’), is celebrated every third Monday of July. While there aren’t any traditional ceremonies (being a newer national holiday), many people choose to visit the beach on this day. Parks […]
This year, Osaka’s Tenjin Festival will only include the mikoshi procession, which will happen on the 25th, as well as various shrine rituals. The festival’s evening components, including the lighting of fires on the boats and the firework displays, are […]
The Daigaku festival takes place in late July every year at the Ikune Shrine in Osaka. Like other matsuri, it’s a lively community event with street food stalls and children’s games accompanying the traditional elements. The eponymous daigaku is an […]
Tenjin Matsuri (天神祭) is one of the most symbolic water and light festivals in Osaka also ranked as one of the three greatest festivals in Japan, held annually on the 24th–25th of July. Tenjin is the 'god of the sky' […]
The Kitakami River Rubber Boat race is an annual event held on the 4th Sunday of July in Morioka, Iwate. The race starts just below the Shijuushida Dam (四十四ダーム) and ends at the Kaiun Bridge (開運橋) in front of Morioka […]
The middle of May in Matsuyama is an uncertain time, weather-wise. It might be burning hot. It might rain. It might be cold and overcast. Or it might be all of these on the same day. You can expect any […]
The popular manga series Tokyo Revengers has been serialized in the Weekly Shōnen Magazine since 2017 and has exceeded a staggering 40 million copies sold. After the Tokyo Revengers Exhibition was held with great success in Tokyo and Osaka, the […]
In late July, the Tokyo suburb of Kagurazaka will host the annual Kagurazaka Matsuri. Famous for Kagurazaka Dori, the area's chic and pedestrian-friendly street slope, the suburb is also known for the historical Akagi Shrine, Edo period geisha houses, and […]
There is a myriad of great summer festivals to enjoy in Tokyo, and one of the prettiest has to be the Chidorigafuchi Moat Lantern Festival. With a history dating back to 1958, the event sees around 2000 gentle lantern lights […]
Eisa is a style of dancing that originated throughout the Okinawan islands, and each year in early August the Okinawa Zento Eisa Matsuri draws in hundreds of thousands of spectators. For those who can't get to Okinawa, the Shinjuku Eisa […]
In the summer months, local fireworks events are held all over rural Japan. Organized by sundry Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, and Chambers of Commerce, they are typically quite spectacular, reflecting the pride of the local area, and they draw crowds […]