Okinawa Zento Eisa Festival
Due to COVID-19, the 2022 festival has been postponed. Find yourself in Okinawa around O-bon time, when the spirits of the dead return to the world of the living? Check out the Okinawa Zento Eisa …
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Earth Celebration
Update: For 2022, before boarding the ferry to Sado Island, you must complete a PCR or RAT Covid-19 test and fill out a form. More details on their website (Japanese). Every year since 1988, the …
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Omagari Fireworks Festival
An incredible 760,000 spectators are expected for one of the Tohoku region’s biggest fireworks festival. To put that in some perspective, the total population of Akita Prefecture is less …
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Shirahama Fireworks Festival 2023
Held in Wakayama since 1948, this festival sees over 3,500 fireworks light up the sky. One of the highlights is the 1000 m-long Niagara Falls display, which creates a waterfall of fire. The best …
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Naniwa Yodogawa Fireworks Festival
The Naniwa Yodogawa Fireworks have been running for thirty-one years and take place on the banks of the Yodo River, offering fantastic views of the skyline beneath the display. Originally a …
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National New Fireworks Games
Taking place at Suwa (the same location as Japan’s biggest fireworks festival in early August) the National New Fireworks Games is also one of the country’s largest fireworks …
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Uneme Festival
Update: For 2022, the festival will go ahead but on a reduced scale. There will be no procession, boat or otherwise, or shrine ritual available to the public. A melancholy and sombre festival, …
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Jozenji Street Jazz Festival
Featuring 700 jazz bands in an urban outdoor setting, the Jozenji Street Jazz Festival brings the blue note to the streets of Sendai each September. Held over a weekend, the Festival stretches …
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Misawa Air Base Festival in Aomori
Note: For 2022, pre-registration by lottery will be required. If you’ve never shaken off your childhood fascination with planes or just enjoy seeing fighter jets scream overhead, definitely …
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Sasebo Seaside Festival, Nagasaki
Nagasaki becomes Kyushu’s party capital in early August, with the Sasebo Seaside Festival. The Festival’s main draw is the island’s largest firework display in the evening on …
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Kangetsu no Yube: Full Moon Viewing
Continuing a tradition that has taken place at Osawa Pond next to Daikakuji since the Heian era, this event gives you the chance to float on a boat in the pond under a clear autumn moon. If the …
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Kiyomizu Temple Seiryu-e Dragon Festival (Autumn)
This festival at the beautiful Kiyomizu temple features a colorful dance/procession through the neighbourhood of the “Blue Dragon” (it’s a green dragon, but green is often …
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Tonegawa Fireworks Festival 2023
For the first time in three years, the Tonegawa Fireworks Festival will be held at Sakai Riverside Park. While usually happening in mid-July, this year they postponed the event to September due …
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Kyoto International Manga Anime Fair 2023
The Kyoto International Manga Anime Fair is more proof that Kyoto isn’t just about old buildings and tradition. Held at the Miyako Messe convention center as well as the International Manga …
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Danjiri Matsuri
This festival is is held in the city of Kishiwada, Osaka prefecture and is renowned as one of Osaka’s rowdiest. Danjiri are large, heavy wheeled carts that resemble small temples. The …
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Beers of Japan Festival – Fukuoka
Rebranded as the Beers of Japan festival, this event was previously known as the Kyushu Beer Festival. Based on past events, there will be a wide variety of Japanese and international beers to …
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Nagasaki Kyoryuchi Festival
Kyoryuchi is the shortened name for the Nagasaki Foreign Settlement in Oura – an area that dates from the late 1850s, when “treaty settlements” near a number of port cities in …
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Ujicha Ceremony
The home of green tea in Japan, the small town holds a traditional tea-jar opening ceremony on the first Sunday in October each year. Located just between Kyoto and Nara, Uji has long been famous …
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Paantu Festival
The Paantu festival takes place on the Okinawa Prefecture island of Miyakojima in the far south of the archipelego. What happens and when is it? The villagers dress up as ‘Paantu’ …
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Onomichi Lantern Festival
Onomichi is a world heritage listed town on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture made famous in the classic Ozu film Tokyo Story. Despite the love of things traditional here, the lanterns …
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Huis Ten Bosch Kyushu Ichi Fireworks Festival 2023
As the “ichi” in the name suggests, this fireworks festival is touted as the best in the whole of Kyushu. Given the large number of festivals, this is a bold claim. On length alone …
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Saiin Kasuga Shrine Festival
A large and popular fall festival in the heart of Kyoto with traditional parades and performances held annually on the second weekend in October. There will be grande Mikoshi parades with locals …
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Aomori
