Kayabuki no Sato Snow (Miyama Village) Lantern Festival
An amazing chance to see a remote, snow-covered thatched village illuminated with hundreds of lanterns.
An amazing chance to see a remote, snow-covered thatched village illuminated with hundreds of lanterns.
Warm up a chilly night with candlelight and your favorite songs from Studio Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi.
Discover handmade treasures and enjoy a relaxed atmosphere at Kyoto’s Umekoji Handicrafts Market, a monthly gathering of artisans and creators.
Fancy a dance with a demon? Nara's Kinpusenji Temple offers a unique Setsubun experience with its annual Demon Festival.
Instead of bean-throwing, you toss joss sticks into a fire at this traditional Setsubun Festival.
Setsubun at Yasaka Shrine's is unusual because it features geiko, geisha from Kyoto.
See a traditional Japanese village lit up bright on a cold winter's night.
A steamy festival in the depths of the freezing winter
A festival in which locals dress up as demons and scare the bejesus out of young children.
Chow down on cheap oysters at one of the most beautiful spots in Japan.
It gets very, very cold in the far north of Hokkaido, so what better place to have a festival with giant carved ice sculptures?
Tadami has an abundance of snow, from which participants carve giant monuments and statues.
9,000 men, freezing water, and one God-man. Japan’s wildest naked festival is not for the faint-hearted.
Watch the magical sight of of dozens of paper balloons adorning the night sky.
A quaint snow festival complete with snow sculptures and entertainment.
Getting soaked with freezing water while half-naked in the middle of winter? Catch Iwate’s Daito Ohara Water Festival.
A traditional festival in which the old grass on Mount Omuro is burnt away to allow new grass to grow.
Visit the Suita Fire Festival at Jōkō Enmanji Temple in Osaka for fire rituals, sacred smoke, and blessings for the year ahead.