Festivals in Japan: where and when to experience them

Festivals in Japan are vibrant, joyful celebrations and if you time your holiday here just right, you'll be lucky enough to experience one. Giving you a chance to mingle with locals when they’re relaxed and enjoying themselves and discover their traditional culture first-hand. In this post, we’ve rounded up some of the best Japanese festivals to add to your holiday hitlist.

Cherry blossoms in Japan

Where: Nationwide

When: March/April

Of all the festivals in Japan, Hanami, or the Cherry Blossom Festival, is the best known, and it’s unique to the country. Rather than being a local affair, Hanami is very much a national Japanese festival that brings the entire population together. People flock to the parks and rivers of the towns and cities, meeting with colleagues, friends and family to appreciate the flowering cherry blossom (sakura).

While beautiful in its own right, the cherry blossom’s short flowering period is symbolic of the impermanence of all things, a central idea within the Buddhist faith. Its timing, toward the end of March and beginning of April, also makes it a spring festival, reinforcing the association with rebirth.

The changing of seasons is important in the culture of Japan and has inspired Japanese traditions, cuisine and artwork for hundreds of years.

As Hanami is tied to when the sakura bloom, it does not fall upon a certain date. Instead, the weather reports in late March include a section tracking the emergence of the blossom across the country. Generally, the southern areas of Japan are the first to see the flowers, and a wave of pink moves north across meteorological maps until the entire country is celebrating the beginning of spring.

As for where’s best to appreciate the flowers? Parks along waterfronts are always popular and can be found in any city. While they may be crowded at times, particularly weekends, this can add to the spirit of the viewing.

Hanami is nationwide, but certain areas are more renowned for the celebration. Kyoto, the former capital and in many ways the spiritual heart of Japan, has some of the very best spots for viewing cherry blossom.

Sapporo Snow Festival

Where: Sapporo, Hokkaido

When: February

Sapporo, the largest city on the northern island of Hokkaido, hosts an annual snow festival that’s so popular the city’s population doubles for a week in February.

The festival is relatively new, having started in 1950 when a group of students started using the snow cleared from the roads to sculpt.

Over the years it’s blossomed into a major festival with varied groups, from communities and companies to the military, contributing to the vast array of artwork spread through the parks and squares of the city.

The sculptures all show a high degree of skill in their crafting, with some taking over a month to fashion out of the deep snow.

Their scale is often surprising. The defense force projects, in particular, can reach several meters high; in fact, they’ve been known to recreate entire buildings as the centrepiece of the festival.

While the sculptures are impressive enough in the daytime, it’s at night that many of them really come alive. The parklands make for a picturesque walk in the evening – just be sure to wrap up warm!

Where: Kyoto, Honshu

When: July

One of Japan’s largest festivals is also one of its oldest, with Gion Matsuri dating back to 869CE as a Shinto ritual appealing to the gods during an epidemic of plague. Now attracting around a million visitors, including tourists, there are events throughout July.

There are still links to its religious origins today, with a local boy selected as the divine child. Considered a messenger to the gods, he takes part in many of the month’s events and cannot set foot on the ground from July 13 until he has been paraded through the town on July 17.

The key dates are for the Yamaboko Junko, the main processions of the floats, with Saki Matsuri on July 17, and the second procession, or Ato Matsuri, on July 24. The biggest of the floats, known as hoko, can be up to 25m tall and weigh as much as 12 tonnes.

In the days leading up to the parades, there are also evening festivals called yoiyama, where roads are closed for street parties and food stalls pop up in the three days ahead of the procession. And you can also see the portable shrines of the deity of the Yasaka Shrine carried through the streets on July 17 and 24.

Bon Oduri, Obon

Where: Nationwide

When: August

Obon, or often simply Bon, is a nationwide holiday and will be observed wherever you are in Japan. Most regions celebrate on 15 August, though others recognise the 15th day of the 7th lunar month, meaning that the date changes every year.

Bon is the day when Japanese families honour their ancestors through tending shrines and grave markers and leaving offerings.

While there is a private aspect to the day, carnivals are commonplace and there’s plenty of Bon Oduri dancing accompanied by songs and music from traditional bands in every Japanese prefecture.

Interestingly, every region celebrates Bon in a different way, reflecting the history of the area. It’s an ideal time to get some street food and see some local culture – and it’s a treat to see people so proud of their regional identity.

Where: Takayama, Gifu Province, Honshu

When: April and October

This historic mountain town in the Japanese Alps holds one of the country’s biggest festivals, with a display of floats dating back to the 17th century. The two festivals take place in spring, honouring the deity of one of the town’s shrines and asking for a good harvest in the months ahead, while the second festival takes place after the crops have been brought in, giving thanks to another shrine’s deity for the good harvest.

While the festivals have their roots in the early Edo period, when agriculture was vital for survival, they’ve become a way to display some of the area’s traditional arts and crafts. Each celebration features around a dozen yatai, or floats, ornately decorated with luxurious details, rich fabrics, intricate metalwork, lacquer and carvings, and there’s a chance to view them during the day, as well as watching the procession as they’re pulled through the streets of the old town illuminated by 100 lanterns.

Another highlight is watching the mechanical puppets known as karakuri, with shows during the days of the festival where you can see these intricate marionettes, which need as many as nine puppet-masters to pull the 36 strings used to make the three traditional dolls move.

Where: Nationwide

When: Throughout the year – mainly spring and autumn

Regional pride can also be seen in the Hikiyama festivals celebrated throughout Japan at different times of year. Hikiyama are the floats common to many Japanese festivals, so the purpose of the festival may vary.

Considering the importance of the seasons in Japanese culture, it’s unsurprising to find that Hikiyama festivals are often clustered in the spring and autumn months, either celebrating the approach of summertime or the year’s harvest.

Your experience of the Hikiyama festival will depend on the size of the town and the scale of the festival. The important thing is you’re unlikely to be disappointed.

The floats are huge constructions; often decades old, and they’re continually renovated or rebuilt so they can be used in the annual festivals.

Some floats will be overloaded with actors in period dress, while others will bear mythical creatures or hundreds of lanterns swaying in the night.

The good thing about Hikiyama festivals is that no matter when you visit, there’s a good chance a festival will be happening nearby, particularly in spring or autumn. Given Japan’s reliable and tourist friendly rail system, it’s definitely worth making a day trip to a neighbouring prefecture if you have the time.

Fancy experiencing a festival in Japan for yourself? We offer guided tours of Japan that take in all the highlights of this serene island country.