Category
- Festivals
TOHOKU
It is a parade that people walk through the central street while they ring bells and drumsand push a huge festival car with large lanterns which are printed ukiyoe on their surface.The characteristic of Aomori Nebuta Festival is that the attendees called Haneto jumpand dance following the festival car.A visitor cannot pass it over.Everyone is allowed to take part in the Haneto, and costumes for th...
TOHOKU
Hirosaki Festival is called Neputa, which is different from the Aomori Nebuta Festival.In Hirosaki Festival, the attendees pull festival cars that are elegantly decorated and parade it around the townwhile the attendees of Aomori Festival dance freely.The lantern cars are also different with the fan shape and black pictures painted on the surfaceswhile the lantern cars of Aomori are cubic-shaped.T...
HOKKAIDO
Various outdoor activities are held in winter.An ice bar, outdoor baths on the frozen lake, an ice theater, cross-country skis, the walk in the forest, a knight watching,the making of glass, snowmobiles, concerts, and wedding ceremonies on the ice.It is not enough to enjoy the fun in a day due to so many events(From the end of January to the middle of March). ...
TOHOKU
The characteristic of this festival is its difficulty that people holdthe pole of 12 meters long, 50 kilograms weight, with 46 lanterns hung on it with different parts of bodyand have to keep balance which needs expert skills.It is held August 3 to 6 every year.The hotel reservation should be made in advance during the festival.The contest to fly in the summer night sky attracts visitors to watch....
HOKKAIDO
The Snow Festival in particular is a big event in the winter.Different sizes of sculptures made of snow are lined up in the main street park (Odori) of the city center. It is held at the beginning of February every year and world famous for its large scale. ...
TOHOKU
Kamakura Snow Festival is a traditional winter event in the snowy area of Tohoku and Niigata.Kamakura is a custom that people set up an altar in the "house"(snow cave) made of snow and worship the God of water,and the Kamakura of Yokote is the representative one among them which has continued for 400 years.Children are in the snow cave where candles are lighted and entertain visitors with liquors ...
CHUBU
Gujo Dance has been continuing for 400 years, it is pleasant that anyone including tourists,local people becomes one circle and dances.Here is the reason that Gujo dance "is not a dance to watch" but is "a dance to dance”.This dance lasts for one month from the middle of July to the beginning of September,and what makes it famous is all-night dance for four days between August13 and 16, in particu...
CHUBU
The festival was originated in the sixteenth or seventeenth Century,which is separated into two, spring festival and autumn festival.12 festival cars of the mechanism device in spring,11 in autumn are prepared and show the gorgeous figure at the festival.It is one of the typical festivals of Japan.The Spring Festival is held on April 14, 15, and the Autumn Festival is held on October 9 and 10.&nbs...
KYUSHU
This summer festival is held on August 15, 16, for two days,which is inherited by the inhabitants of Yamaga City from the ancient times.Yamaga lanterns are made with washi or Japanese papers rather than wood or metal,this traditional handicraft has 500 years history.Particularly, the best part of the festival is that women putting a lantern on the head dance elegantlyon August 15,16,which is calle...
CHUGOKU
It is a festival of magnificent customs to be held in Saidai-ji Temple of Okayama City on third Saturday of February every year.Thousands of naked men who come from the whole country gather to struggle for only two talisman sticks ”shingi”(it is said that it is lucky to hold it in hand) thrown by a priest from the in hall of the Buddhist temple at 10:00 mid-night,which is unique festival.If you ar...
SHIKOKU
Ushioni is a festival car covered with hemp palm or red cloth and a cow modelled the neck and head of the ogreand a sword made with a log.The festival car is carried up by dozens of young people and is accompaniedby the sound of the musical instrument of the bamboowhich children blow and parade while swinging a neck having a long neck to shove every house,and to exorcise evil spirits. It is pleasa...
KYUSHU
Hakata Dontaku Festival is held annually during the May 3rd of the Golden week.The festival is celebrated for about 4 days.Visitors can see parades of cars covered in flowers (hanajidousha) and Embu shows that features participants dancing on the stage.All areas in Fukoaka celebrate the festival with marching band and flower illumination.The crowd gets to a height of about 2 million people that co...
KYUSHU
Gion Yamakasa is a festival in Hakata in Fukoaka that is celebrated annually from July 1st to 15th.It is said to be a tradition of almost 750 years.The height of the festival is the famous huge colorfully decorated float-racing that are being pulled 5 km around the city.The float racing starts in the early morning of the 15th day of the festival which is held in seven areas in the city.This festiv...
KYUSHU
Seven fan-shaped Neputa with heroic pictures of samurai of 5 meters highand 4 meters in combat painted on their surfaces draw flutes, hit drums while passing through the night streets.The festival was originally famous in Hirosaki City in Aomori Prefecture and then began to be held in Chiranaccording to the children who attended the community party.Now it is a communication that the northern festi...
KANSAI
Danjiri is a festival car of Kansai Region, which has 300 years of history and features a pillar support a roof in dual structure.500 people pull the float with two ropes of 100 meters and at full speed in the Danjiri Festival when many spectatorscome to watch the force while 500 people turn round the street corner.As for the local Danjiri Festival the city, the attendees turn round at a violent s...
KYUSHU
Kunchi is a kind of autumn festival which is held in the north of Kyushu.The Karatsu Kunchi Festival is held by Karatsu Shrine in fall.14 floats which are built by using a technique of traditional lacquer craftsmanship know as “Ikkanbari”are pulled around old castle town vigorously but gracefully with the sound of the bells,the beat of the drums, and the lilt of bamboo flutes.“Ikkanbari”is a techn...
SHIKOKU
It is held on October 10 every year as event called "Osagari" at this event,500 people go down 785 steps of stone stairways in a line with a miniature shrine carried on their shoulders.The event shows the power of the common people....
KYUSHU
It was once a festival to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year but has now been expanded to a big festivalwhich decorates the winter of Nagasaki.The downtown is decorated by 15,000 lanterns. Meanwhile, various Chinese-style events are held.The date of the festival is different depending on years.It is held during 15 days in the winter season....
CHUBU
It is a festival which began in 1635.Local people moving together on flutes, drums take 13 festival cars with dolls on the cars around the town.The scene of many lanterns moving in rows cherry trees in full blossom is attractive with gorgeousness.It is an ideal festival to experience a Japanese old castle town.It holds on the first Saturday and Sunday in April every year. ...
CHUGOKU
This festival is called "the Yukata Festival" and is held in Enryuji Temple in the downtown of Hiroshimaon the first Friday, Saturday and Sunday of June every year,and is well-known because worshipers wear a yukata (Japanese informal summer kimono).The downtown of Hiroshima is full of people in yutaka during the festival period.Would you try a rental yutaka? ...
OKINAWA
It is the biggest rock event in Okinawa, held for two days of the first Saturday and Sunday of July.It was first held in 1983, and then has been held continuously every year.The overwhelming and charming festival attracts various attendee including a new bandwho has just won an audition and an expert band, which makes people feel the summer power of Okinawa.It is held in the Koza Exercise Park....
OKINAWA
EISA Festival is an event of traditional arts that young people dance with songs and musical accompaniedwhile dancing and parading around the town in order to take the ancestral spirits coming and going in summer.There are such customs in various parts of Okinawa, but the festival has history especially in the around area of Koza.The biggest EISA Festival is held in the city center and the Koza E...
Hita Gion Festival and Yamahoko Hall
KYUSHU
The Gion Festival is held in Hita on the last Saturday and Sunday at the end of every July.The gorgeous Yamahoko goes round Mameta-machi and Kuma-machi opposite the station.The festival matches the environment of the town, which impresses tourists deeply.The Yamahoko Hall displays six Yamahokosto be used for the Gion Festival.Tourists are surprised in the financial power of the merchants of old Hi...
KYUSHU
Kitsuki Castle Festival is held at the beging of May , the civilians wear costumes of the Edo period,a march and show public plays.It is a pleasant festival that the town seems to become into the Edo period. ...
OKINAWA
Itoman Harrey is a popular race of hand-rowing fishing boatswhich is the same as the one called Hari in other areas in Okinawa.The race here is marked by using a small boat of ten rowers unlike the one in Naha.The difference from the one in Naha is that there are more expert rowers in Itoman,proving they are really the people of the sea, which is worth seeing.It is held only 1 day during the end o...
KYUSHU
It is the biggest festival in southern Kyushu,where 20,000 people from different parts take part in and dance to folk songs of Kagoshima, and have a parade.Visitors are also allowed to be in.It seem really a Kagoshima-like festival which offers alcoholic beverages produced by the local areas at the water pointin the dance meeting place. ...
OKINAWA
Harri is a traditional event of Okinawa of the competition of a hand-rowing fishing boat with another fishing boat.This Hari is held in the various parts of Okinawa, but in other parts small Sabani (hand-rowing fishing boat) is used, while the characteristic of Naha Hari is that Haryusen is used. Haryusen is several times larger than others.Naha Hari can take 42 people while a Hari of other areas ...
OKINAWA
The festival is held in three days of Saturday, Sunday and Monday of the middle of October every year.On the second day, a heroic line of people parades around the International Street of the city,and the world's biggest Tsunahiki is held, which is registered on the Guinness world record.The state that tens of thousands of people are united and pull a rope against each other by great force is just...
