Osaka's annual Lantern Night event takes place for three days during December, with attendees able to enjoy thousands of LED lanterns coloring the night sky. Along with the colorful lanterns on display, the event also includes Christmas-themed foods, drinks, handmade […]
Tokyo's oldest temple, Senso-ji in Asakusa, holds an annual three-day fair called Hagoita-Ichi to sell good luck ornamental bats, called hagoita in Japanese. Dating back to Edo times, the festival takes place in front of Sensoji. From December 17th to […]
The festive season is upon us, and Legoland will be welcoming it with their Legoland BricXmas event. Running from November 13th until December 26th, the family-friendly affair will include a variety of seasonal touches including the world's largest Lego Christmas […]
Hatsumode is the practice of the first religious worship of the year. It is typically associated with the first visit to a shrine, but some people prefer to worship at a temple. The temple at the Ushiku big Buddha, known […]
To welcome the New Year, Haneda Airport is hosting a unique, unmissable event: the Haneda Edo festival, recreating the era of Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa. Between January 1st and 3rd, you can enjoy different events on the theme of the Edo […]
Each month in Gyoda City dozens of locations participate in a floral water font "hanachozu" event by displaying hanachozu at their premises. The event is called hanachozu week, but you can actually see the floral fonts for two weeks each […]
On the 3rd of January, Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto will host the first New Year's 'Karuta' card game. Women dressed in Juni-hitoe (Heian period costume) will play this old card game. Karuta was introduced to Japan by Portuguese merchants in […]
Hashigo-nori is a traditional performance that attempts to pass on the techniques and methods of firemen in the Edo period. The performance is held every year on a coming-of-age day (the second Monday of January) in front of the main […]
Gongendo Park is renowned for its picturesque cherry blossom and rapeseed landscapes. However, the park also boasts an array of seasonal flowers that bloom throughout the year. During January and early February, you can witness over half a million daffodils […]
Kanasana Shrine is a 1900-year-old shrine in Saitama. It is a unique shrine in that it venerates the mountain rather than a religious artifact like most other shrines. The shrine is located in the mountain town of Kamikawa in Saitama […]
The Hanamaki Souminsai is held every year on January 2nd at the Koshio shrine on Mount Koshio. It's a purification festival for the new year, it starts by making mochi (rice cake) and getting blessings from the local Shinto priest. […]
A daruma doll is a hollow wooden round-shaped face with a beard. Most commonly they are red in color. When bought new, they have no eyes painted in. You paint one eye on receiving or buying the doll while making […]