Upcoming Events
Festivals, music events, film festivals, and cultural celebrations — updated regularly.
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Aoi Matsuri
Japan · kyotoOne of Kyoto's three great festivals — an imperial procession of 500 people in Heian-era court dress walking from the Imperial Palace to Shimogamo and Kamigamo shrines. Free to watch from the roadsides.
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Sanja Matsuri
Japan · tokyoTokyo's largest and most raucous shrine festival — three days of portable shrine processions, traditional dance, and crowds of a million or more through the streets of Asakusa. Held the third weekend of May.
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Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Matsuri
Japan · kanazawaThree-day festival marking Lord Maeda's entry into Kanazawa in 1583 — headlined by the Hyakumangoku Gyoretsu parade on 6 June with costumed warriors, lion dancers, and acrobats through the city centre.
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Sanno Matsuri
Japan · tokyoOne of Tokyo's three great festivals, held in even years at Hie Shrine in Akasaka. The main portable shrine procession (June 13) passes through central Tokyo. Free to watch along the route.
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Yosakoi Soran Festival
Japan · sapporoSapporo's signature summer festival — over 30,000 dancers in vivid costumes performing yosakoi routines across multiple outdoor stages in central Sapporo. One of the largest dance festivals in Japan.
- Gion Matsuri Japan · kyoto
Kyoto's greatest festival runs the entire month of July. The Yoiyama eve celebrations (July 15–16) and the Yamaboko Junko float procession (July 17) are the highlights. One of Japan's three great festivals.
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Hakata Gion Yamakasa
Japan · fukuokaA 770-year-old Fukuoka festival culminating in the Oiyama race on July 15, when teams sprint enormous festival floats weighing up to one tonne through the streets of Hakata in under 30 minutes. Starts at 4:59am.
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Tenjin Matsuri
Japan · osakaOne of Japan's three greatest festivals — processions of portable shrines, traditional boats along the Okawa river, and a fireworks display of over 5,000 shells. Centred on Osaka Temmangu Shrine.
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Sumida River Fireworks Festival
Japan · tokyoTokyo's oldest and most famous summer fireworks display — around 20,000 shells fired from two launch sites along the Sumida River in Asakusa. Held the last Saturday of July. Arrive very early for a good spot.
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Matsumoto Castle Taiko Festival
Japan · naganoTaiko drumming groups from across Japan perform in the grounds and moat-side of Matsumoto Castle over two days — the black castle walls make for a dramatic backdrop as darkness falls.
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Miyajima Water Fireworks Festival
Japan · miyajimaFireworks launched from barges over Hiroshima Bay frame the floating torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine — one of Japan's most photographed summer spectacles. Held on the first Saturday of August.
- Aomori Nebuta Festival Japan · aomori
Giant illuminated floats — warriors and mythological figures up to 9 metres tall — parade through central Aomori accompanied by thousands of dancers and taiko drummers. The final night (August 7) ends with a fireworks display over the bay.
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Nara Tokae Lantern Festival
Japan · naraAround 7,000 stone lanterns are lit throughout Nara Park and Kasugataisha Shrine each evening for ten days, casting the deer sanctuary and ancient pathways in soft candlelight.
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Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony
Japan · hiroshimaThe annual ceremony marking the atomic bombing of Hiroshima at 8:15am on 6 August 1945. Held at the Peace Memorial Park — a moment of silence, the ringing of the Peace Bell, and the release of doves. Deeply moving and open to all.
- Sendai Tanabata Festival Japan · sendai
Japan's largest Tanabata festival — Sendai's main shopping arcades are transformed with thousands of enormous paper streamers in five colours. Over 2 million visitors each year. Fireworks the evening before (August 5).
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Toro Nagashi — Hiroshima Lantern Floating
Japan · hiroshimaPaper lanterns are floated down the Motoyasu River beside the Atomic Bomb Dome at the close of the Peace Memorial Ceremony — one of the most moving rituals in Japan, held every year on the evening of 6 August.
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Awa Odori Festival
JapanJapan's largest dance festival in Tokushima — 100,000 performers and over 1.3 million spectators over four nights. Participating teams dance through the streets chanting the Awa Odori song. One of the most energetic events in Japan.
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Gozan no Okuribi (Daimonji)
Japan · kyotoFive giant bonfires lit on the mountains surrounding Kyoto send off the spirits of the dead at the close of Obon — the most famous is the 大 character blazing on Daimonji-yama. Best viewed from the banks of the Kamo River or rooftop bars.
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Awa Odori — Koenji
Japan · tokyoThe largest Awa Odori event outside Tokushima — over 10,000 dancers and roughly one million spectators pack the shopping streets of Koenji, west Tokyo, for two evenings of energetic traditional dance.
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Sapporo Autumn Fest
Japan · sapporoHokkaido's largest food festival fills Odori Park for three weeks with over 100 stalls serving fresh seafood, wagyu beef, soup curry, ramen, Hokkaido wine, and craft beer — the best single showcase of Hokkaido produce.
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Kanazawa Jazz Street
Japan · kanazawaFree outdoor jazz performances across more than 30 venues throughout Kanazawa — one of Japan's largest jazz street festivals, drawing domestic and international musicians across two days each September.
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Kishiwada Danjiri Festival
Japan · osakaOne of Japan's most thrilling festivals — teams of men pull enormous wooden festival floats at speed through the streets of Kishiwada (30 minutes from Osaka by train), with dancers performing on top. Physically dangerous, visually spectacular.
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Nagasaki Kunchi Festival
Japan · nagasakiA 380-year-old festival at Suwa Shrine featuring exotic dances and floats that reflect Nagasaki's centuries of Chinese and Dutch trading history — highlights include a dragon boat dance and a Dutch ship float pulled through the streets.
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Takayama Autumn Festival (Hachiman Matsuri)
Japan · takayamaOne of Japan's three most beautiful festivals — 11 ornate yatai floats parade through Takayama's Edo-era merchant streets, with mechanical karakuri puppet shows. The lantern procession on the evening of 9 October is unmissable.
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Naha Great Tug-of-War Festival
Japan · okinawaHolds a Guinness World Record as the world's largest tug-of-war — tens of thousands of participants split into east and west teams pull a 200-metre straw rope weighing 40 tonnes along Kokusaidori in central Naha. Free to participate.
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Nada no Kenka Matsuri (Fighting Festival)
Japan · kobeThree massive portable shrines are deliberately crashed into each other at Matsubara Hachiman Shrine in Himeji as a ritual test of strength — one of Japan's most dramatic and physically intense autumn festivals, an easy day trip from Kobe.
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Nikko Autumn Festival
Japan · nikkoA procession of 1,200 samurai in Edo-period armour carries portable shrines through the cedar avenues of Nikko Tosho-gu, one of Japan's most ornate shrine complexes. The autumn foliage is typically near peak at this time.
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Hirosaki Castle Chrysanthemum Festival
Japan · aomoriMore than 3,000 chrysanthemum plants displayed throughout Hirosaki Castle Park in elaborate sculpted arrangements — a quieter, more meditative counterpart to the city's famous cherry blossom season, with good autumn foliage to boot.
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Jidai Matsuri (Festival of the Ages)
Japan · kyotoA grand procession of 2,000 people in historical costumes from every era of Japanese history — from the Heian period through to the Meiji era — marching from the Imperial Palace to Heian Shrine. Held every 22 October since 1895.
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Ohara Matsuri
Japan · kagoshimaAround 20,000 participants in yukata and traditional dress parade along Kagoshima's main street performing the Ohara-bushi and Iso Ondori folk dances — one of Kyushu's largest street dance festivals.
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Hakone Daimyo Gyoretsu
Japan · hakoneA re-enactment of a feudal lord's procession along the old Tokaido road in Hakone — hundreds of participants in full Edo-era costume march 12km from Odawara to Moto-Hakone. Held annually on 3 November (Culture Day).
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Hakodate Christmas Fantasy
Japan · hakodateA giant Christmas tree on Hakodate's historic waterfront near Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse, with nightly fireworks over the harbour throughout December. One of Japan's most atmospheric winter illumination events.
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Arashiyama Hanatoro
Japan · kyotoKyoto's winter illumination festival — the bamboo groves, temples, and riverside paths of Arashiyama are lit with thousands of lanterns and coloured lights. Free to walk through; some venues charge entry.
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Sendai Pageant of Starlight
Japan · sendaiAround 600,000 LED lights illuminate the zelkova trees lining Jozenji-dori for three weeks each December — one of Tohoku's signature winter illuminations and a peaceful contrast to the crowds of Sendai Tanabata earlier in the year.
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Hatsumode — New Year Shrine Visits
JapanJapan's most important annual tradition — millions visit shrines and temples in the first three days of the new year. Meiji Jingu in Tokyo, Naritasan in Chiba, and Fushimi Inari in Kyoto see the largest crowds.
- Sapporo Snow Festival Japan · sapporo
Japan's most famous winter festival — massive ice and snow sculptures across three sites in central Sapporo. Free to enter. Book hotels six months ahead.
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Cherry Blossom Season — Tokyo
Japan · tokyoTokyo's hanami season — peak bloom typically late March to early April. Ueno Park, Shinjuku Gyoen, and Chidorigafuchi are the top spots for cherry blossom viewing.
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Cherry Blossom Season — Kyoto
Japan · kyotoKyoto's hanami season draws huge crowds to Maruyama Park, the Philosopher's Path, and Nijo Castle. Book accommodation well in advance — this is Kyoto's busiest week.
- Gion Matsuri Japan · kyoto
Kyoto's greatest festival — a month-long celebration with the Yoiyama evenings (16–17 July) and the spectacular Yamaboko Junko float procession on 17 July. One of Japan's three great festivals.
- Fuji Rock Festival Japan
Japan's largest outdoor music festival — three days of international and Japanese acts across multiple stages at Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata. The greenest music festival in Asia.
- Aomori Nebuta Festival Japan · aomori
Giant illuminated float parade through central Aomori — warriors and mythological figures up to 9 metres tall, accompanied by thousands of dancers and drummers. Best of Tohoku summer festivals.
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Awa Odori Festival
JapanJapan's largest dance festival — 100,000 performers and over 1.3 million spectators in Tokushima. Participating teams dance through the streets in traditional costume while singing the Awa Odori song.
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Autumn Foliage — Nikko
Japan · nikkoNikko's cedar-lined avenues and temple precincts turn vivid red and gold in late October. Peak colour typically falls in the last week of October — one of the most dramatic autumn displays near Tokyo.
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Autumn Foliage — Kyoto
Japan · kyotoKyoto's second peak season — maple and ginkgo turn crimson and gold at Eikan-do, Tofuku-ji, and Arashiyama. Mid to late November is peak colour. Hotels sell out months in advance.