Festival Highlights
F E S T I VA L H I G H L I G H T S
We have listed a selection of our favourite festivals which we recommend you see at least one of.
Takayama Spring and/or Autumn Festival Dates: April 14th/15th & Oct 9th/10th Location: Takayama Town Ranked as one of Japans three most beautiful festivals, you can enjoy watching the magnificently carved giant wooden floats, ancient puppets, and colourful costumes worn by the locals who parade the streets with traditional music and street stalls in the background. Tours: • Japan Discovered (pages 18-19) • The Golden Route (pages 24-25)
Visit our website for a larger selection of festivals: www.uniquejapantours.com/japan-travel-guide/festivals-&-events
Awa Odori Summer Festival
Gion Matsuri
Nachi-No-Hi Fire Festival
Earth Celebration
Miyajima Floating Firework Festival
Dates: August 12th-15th
Dates: July 1st-29th (Main day July 17th)
Dates: July 14th
Dates: August (dates vary each year)
Dates: August (Saturday)
Location: Kii-Katsuura, Wakayama
Location: Sado Island, Niigata
Location: Miyajima Island, Hiroshima
The main festival of the Nachi shrine in Kii-Katsuura (Wakayama Pref) takes place on July 14 at the base of this magnificent falls. It is a fire festival in which 6 meter high portable shrines symbolically representing the waterfall are purified with the fires from oversized torches laboriously carried by men dressed in white.
Once a year, in the quiet port town of Ogi, people gather from all over the world to transform Sado Island into a bustling international arts festival, called Earth Celebration. The world renowned Japanese taiko drummers, KODO, are natives of Sado. Special performances from talented and energetic musicians make this a festival for not only music lovers, but for those looking for something very different in Japan.
Miyajima is home to many festivals but one most of us recognise is the fireworks festival seen from a distance behind the giant floating torii gates.
Location: Tokushima, Shikoku ‘Awa’ is the former name for Tokushima and ‘Odori’ means to dance. During Obon season, over one million people come to Tokushima to watch the most famous of many local dance festivals in Japan. Dressed in Summer kimono’s, the men and women of Tokushima come together to dance the ‘fools’ dance which sings: “Fools dance and fools watch, if both are fools, you might as well dance”!! Tours: • Lost in Japan (pages 30-31)
Location: Kyoto (near Gion) The Gion Matsuri, familiarly known as ‘Gion-san’, is held at Yasaka-Jinja (Shrine) where a delightful pageant of some 30 floats (yamaboko) proceed along the main streets of Kyoto on the 17th of July every year. Tours: • Spiritual Mountains & Samurai Trails (pages 20-21) • Self-Guided Tours (pages 22-39)
Irel and t el : +3 5 3 (0 )1 6 7 8 7 0 0 8
Tours: • Spiritual Mountains & Samurai Trails (pages 20-21) • K umano Kodo Pilgrimage Route (pages 34-35)
• Forgotten Japan (pages 28-29)
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We can tailor any itinerary to include the festival you really want to see. Contact us today for some expert advice.
U K t el : +4 4 (0 )2 0- 3239 2519
Tours: • The Northern Trail (pages 36-37)
email: info@uniq ue japantours .c om
www.uniq ue japantours .c om
F E S T I VA L H I G H L I G H T S
Festivals, known as ‘matsuri’, occur all year round in Japan, particularly between April and November. Hokkaido is home to the famous Sapporo Snow Festival in February and of course the New Year Celebrations on January 1-3 give most towns and villages a reason to throw some kind of festival in their temple or shrine.
Tours: • The Golden Route (pages 24-25) • Traditional & Tropical Japan (pages 26-27) • Lost in Japan (pages 30-31) • Wonders of the West (pages 32-33)
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