Kyoto's Gion Matsuri, Aomori's Nebuta, and Tokushima's Awa Odori: when they happen, what you will see, and whether visitors can join in. A plain guide based on official festival sites and the Japan Tourism Agency.
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Three festivals stand out in a Japanese summer: Kyoto's Gion Matsuri (all of July), Aomori's Nebuta (August 2–7), and Tokushima's Awa Odori (August 12–15). Gion Matsuri is mainly for watching. At Nebuta and Awa Odori, visitors can join the dancing if they follow the costume or group rules. Dates can change from year to year, so check the official sites before you go.
Which festival should I choose?
- For history and old Kyoto streets: Gion Matsuri. It lasts a whole month, and 34 decorated floats called yamahoko parade through the city.
- For a big night show: Nebuta. Huge glowing lantern floats move down the streets to drums, flutes, and chanting.
- To dance yourself: Awa Odori. There are drop-in groups that anyone can join.
Diagram by J-Times, based on each festival's official site and the Japan Tourism Agency.
What is a Japanese festival, anyway?
Most Japanese festivals (matsuri) are shrine festivals. Local people thank their local gods, pray to keep away disasters and disease, and keep old customs going together. Gion Matsuri, for example, is the festival of Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto.
If you visit a shrine on festival day, see "How to Visit a Japanese Shrine (Step by Step)". For the difference between shrines and temples, see "Shrine vs Temple".
What can I see at Gion Matsuri in Kyoto?
Gion Matsuri is the festival of Yasaka Shrine, held every year from July 1 to 31 (Kyoto City Tourism Association).
- It began in 869. People raised 66 spears and prayed to stop an epidemic. This ritual, the Gion Goryo-e, is seen as the start of the festival (Gion Matsuri Yamahoko Association, in Japanese).
- The highlight is the float parade (yamahoko junko). On July 17 (the first parade) and July 24 (the second), a total of 34 floats move through central Kyoto (schedule, in Japanese).
- The evenings before each parade are called Yoiyama: July 14–16 and July 21–23. The floats stand in the streets, and you can see them up close.
- The floats are often called "moving museums." The Koi-yama float, for example, is decorated with pieces of a single tapestry woven in Brussels, Belgium, in the 16th century, now an Important Cultural Property of Japan. Today the float parades with faithful reproductions (Koi-yama Preservation Association, in Japanese).
- The Yamahoko float ceremony of the Kyoto Gion festival was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2009.
What is a "nebuta" in Aomori?
A large nebuta float at the 2025 Aomori Nebuta Festival. Photo: Hiart (CC0) / Wikimedia Commons
The Aomori Nebuta Festival runs every year from August 2 to 7 (official site, in Japanese). A nebuta is a huge paper lantern float, often shaped like warriors from old stories.
According to the festival's official Q&A (in Japanese):
| Size | Up to 9 m wide, 7 m deep, 5 m high, including the cart |
| Weight | About 4 tons, including the cart |
| Made of | Washi paper on a wire frame (about 2,500 sheets) |
| Time to build | About three months |
| After the festival | Most are taken apart |
Dancers called haneto jump and bounce around the floats, shouting "Rassera!" Anyone can join as long as they wear a haneto costume (official site). The festival was named an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan in 1980.
Can I dance at Awa Odori, or only watch?
Women's dance at Awa Odori, Tokushima, August 2009. Photo: Stemu2000 (CC BY 3.0) / Wikimedia Commons
Awa Odori in Tokushima City takes place every year from August 12 to 15 and draws more than one million visitors. According to the Japan Tourism Agency, its roots go back more than 400 years, and the name "Awa Odori" was given in the early Showa era, before the war (Japan Tourism Agency commentary, in Japanese).
- Dance groups are called ren. About 800 ren take part each year.
- A famous line from the festival song goes: "The dancers are fools, the watchers are fools. If we're all fools, why not dance?"
- You don't have to just watch. At set times, there are niwaka-ren, drop-in groups that anyone can join.
What should I know before I go?
- Check the dates every year. Event days and times sometimes change; the Gion Matsuri association says so on its own schedule.
- Want a seat? At Nebuta, there are paid seats along the sidewalks of the parade route (Q&A, in Japanese).
- Remember it is the local people's festival. Don't cut through a procession, don't touch floats without permission, and follow the staff. For general manners, see "The Complete Guide to Japanese Etiquette".
- Festivals in other seasons: see "Enjoy Japan's Four Seasons to the Fullest".
FAQ
How many festivals are there in Japan? Nobody knows exactly, because there is no agreed way to count small local festivals. This article does not give a number.
Can foreigners take part? Yes, at Nebuta (in a haneto costume) and at Awa Odori (with a niwaka-ren). The Gion Matsuri parade is run by each neighborhood, so enjoy it as a spectator.
Do I have to go in summer? These three are all in July and August. Some nebuta floats can be seen year-round, for example at the Nebuta Museum WA-RASSE in Aomori City (Q&A, in Japanese).
What to read next
- How to Visit a Japanese Shrine (Step by Step)
- Shrine vs Temple: Shinto and Buddhism in Japan Explained
- Enjoy Japan's Four Seasons to the Fullest — Festival Calendar 2026
- The Complete Guide to Japanese Etiquette
Sources
- Gion Matsuri Yamahoko Association: History, Schedule (Japanese)
- Kyoto City Tourism Association: Gion Matsuri Festival
- Koi-yama Preservation Association: Koi-yama decorations (Japanese)
- Aomori Nebuta Festival official site: English, Q&A (Japanese)
- Japan Tourism Agency, multilingual commentary database: Awa Odori (Japanese)
- Cover photo: Corpse Reviver, "Kyoto Gion Matsuri J09 060" (July 17, 2009, CC BY 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons