How to Play in Japan in Summer? Northeast’s Three Major Festivals are Must-Go!

In Japan, there is a place called Tohoku. Tohoku is named after its location in the northeastern part of Honshu Island. To describe it with more familiar place names, Hokkaido is to the north of Tohoku, and Tokyo is to the south.

People may know this place because of the 2011 earthquake, because Yuzuru Hanyu’s hometown is Sendai, because of the cute Akita dog or the carefully brewed sake. Although Tohoku’s overall reputation is far less than Tokyo or Hokkaido, in fact, there are many unspoiled rural landscapes and historical treasures here; natural conditions suitable for all kinds of outdoor adventures such as boating, mountaineering, and endless powder snow in winter.

If you travel to Tohoku in summer, you can’t ignore the three most famous festivals: Aomori Nebuta Matsuri, Akita Kanto Matsuri and Sendai Tanabata Matsuri. After all, summer in Tohoku has an average temperature of over 20 degrees!

And, there is an unexpected benefit to coming to Tohoku— getting a multiple-entry visa to Japan:

Here is a recommendation for “luggage express delivery” which can make your journey easy when traveling between cities.

Generally, hotel front desks have baggage storage services. Ask the hotel if they offer luggage delivery service. Hotels that offer delivery service will help you contact the hotel at your next destination. The luggage will be delivered the next day.

If the hotel does not provide mailing or storage services, you can ask nearby convenience stores for transportation companies that provide services. FamilyMart, 7-Eleven and Yamato Transport cooperate to provide delivery services, Lawson, MINISTOP and Post Office cooperate to provide delivery services.

The delivery fee needs to be checked specifically. Reference price: A 26-inch luggage costs 2000-2200 yen for mailing.

Because Tohoku is not as developed as large cities like Tokyo and Osaka, there are not many hotels in small cities, especially during summer festivals. A large number of tourists will come, and hotel rooms will be very tight. Therefore, it is recommended to book hotels as early as possible, book hotels that accept cancellations and changes. Hotels that cannot be booked consecutively need to be changed to book other hotels. You need to accept the most troublesome situation is to book a hotel that is convenient for transportation but far away.

For example, in Akita, if the hotels in Akita City are all booked, you can choose to stay near Ota Station;

When watching Nebuta Matsuri in Aomori Prefecture, if you only go to Aomori City, or choose to go to Aomori City and Hirosaki City, you can choose to stay in Aomori City; if you are going to watch the festival in many other cities in Aomori Prefecture, it is a good choice to stay in Hirosaki City, the center of each city.

But the festival is basically at night (the atmosphere is good at night), pay attention to whether there is enough time to catch public transportation after returning to the hotel. The last Shinkansen train is around 9 o’clock in the evening, and ordinary JR trains or private railways run until midnight.

When booking rooms, you can try using agoda, booking software, and Japanese native software jalan or Rakuten (these two software need to use the Japanese version to retrieve more room information).

During the festival, transportation will also be tight, and it is natural for the entire train to be full. It is best to book tickets in advance because except for the slow train YAMABIKO, all trains are reserved seats and there are no free seats.

Booking website link: http://www.jreast.co.jp/sc/

After booking tickets, you can get a free refund before the ticket pick-up deadline. After picking up the ticket, you can change or cancel the ticket at the manual window before departure.

Watching the festival is free of charge, but if you want a comfortable position to watch the festival, it is paid.

Specifically, whether to buy tickets depends on the individual situation. The difference between the three major festivals and the fireworks festival is that the experience with or without tickets is not much different. Paid seats are comfortable and close; it is convenient and flexible to find an empty seat yourself.

The three major festivals all start in early August.

Akita Kanto Matsuri: 8.3-8.6

Aomori Nebuta Matsuri: 8.2-6; 8.7 Evening for the sea fireworks festival

Sendai Tanabata Matsuri: 8.6-8.8

For a better and more complete experience, it is best to start with the Akita Kanto Matsuri.

1. Introduction to the small town

Akita Prefecture is located on the Sea of Japan side of the Tohoku region, just below Aomori. Kakunodate and Nyuto Onsen are must-sees. Kakunodate is a samurai residence built in the Edo period (circa 1603-1868), and Nyuto Onsen is a hot spring resort with hot spring inns scattered in the mountains. There are old shops that have been passed down from the Edo period, secret hot spring guesthouses, or high-end hot spring inns.

But what really makes Akita famous is the Akita dog, which has become a big star in the dog world because of the touching movie “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale,” and Akita rice, Japan’s best rice.

Akita Prefecture also has two major delicacies. Kiritanpo (grilled rice sticks) made by pounding fresh cooked rice and wrapping it in a cedar stick; Inaba udon, one of the three major udon noodles in Japan.

2. Highlights of the Kanto Matsuri

Kanto Matsuri (Kanto Matsuri, “Kanto Festival”) is a celebration related to Tanabata in Akita City, held annually from August 3 to 6.

Kanto is a string of lanterns tied to a bamboo pole. Skillful pole-holders balance themselves with the heavy and long Kanto, adhering to the principle of four-fifths strength and six-fifths skill. They coordinate with the wind direction at the time of the performance, freely using their entire body, palms, forehead, shoulders, waist, etc., to easily lift the Kanto weighing about 50 kilograms with a feather-like ease.

Kanto poles come in different sizes, the largest is 12 meters long and weighs 50 kilograms, carrying as many as 46 paper lanterns, each with a candle inside (but don’t worry, it won’t catch fire if it falls, I don’t know what kind of magical technology it is). Accompanied by drumbeats, flute music, and the cheers of spectators shouting “dokkoisho, dokkoisho,” each Kanto is held up by a performer using various techniques to maintain balance. Performers change every few minutes, gradually adding extensions to the pole until it reaches its maximum height.

Participation Guide

A procession will be held on Kanto Dori Street in the city center at night during the festival. More than 250 Kanto poles are held by various performing groups lined up on the street, and as soon as a signal is given, the poles will immediately rise, and the performers will show off their skills.

The event lasts about 90 minutes, and there is a 15-minute activity at the end of each night inviting the audience to interact with the performers, take photos and try holding up the Kanto poles.

The performance area is nearly one kilometer long, with many seats along the sidewalk, but the Kanto poles are very high and are constantly moving and flowing, so it might be easier to not buy a seat. You can also watch the more spectacular scene from the end of the closed road, of course, it may also be more crowded.

Daytime festival activities are held in the Agora Square in front of Sogo Department Store, from 10:00 to 17:00 throughout the festival. You can see the pole-holders’ skills more clearly during the day. There are five main skills:

1. Rotation

2. Palm

3. Forehead

4. Shoulder

5. Waist

You can also visit the Kanto Museum (Neburinagashi-kan) to learn more about the history of the festival and try balancing a Kanto pole yourself.

1. Introduction to the small town

Aomori is located at the northernmost tip of Tohoku. It is an undeveloped city, so it retains pristine forests and other verdant landscapes. Aomori Prefecture has a name as low-key as itself: “Hidden Treasure.” People enjoy hiking in its unpolluted wilderness, taking a stove train, tasting delicious seafood and sake, as well as famous apples and paddy art.

In summer in Aomori, there is one of the most famous festivals in all of Japan—

2. Aomori Nebuta Matsuri

Quietly, Nebuta Matsuri might be the most dazzling and fun of all the festivals!

Festival Highlights

“Nebuta Matsuri” is not about making everyone sleep well in summer. The festival aims to drive away the summer demons that hinder work, and to be energetic, with the meaning of praying for a good harvest and peace for the whole family.

There are many theories about the origin of Nebuta Matsuri. The most widely accepted view is that it originated from lanterns placed on the river during Tanabata Festival. In the Tsugaru dialect, the word “nemutai” (meaning sleepy) is pronounced “neputee”. People believe that the festival we know today as Nebuta/Neputa (Nebuta Matsuri) comes from this word.

Nebuta floats come in two types: humanoid Nebuta and fan-shaped Nebuta. The largest Nebuta is 9 meters wide, 7 meters thick and 5 meters high, including the body, and weighs 4 tons in total. Due to its attractiveness and long history, Nebuta Matsuri was designated as one of Japan’s important intangible folk cultural properties in 1980.

When it comes to the making of Nebuta floats, first, Nebuta float artists sketch the design and decide on the overall structure and color. The making of a Nebuta float, from building the skeleton with steel wires to covering it with washi paper to the final completion, takes a team of artists three months.

On the day of the festival, the dancers (dancers in Nebuta Matsuri) will wear colorful costumes and start shouting festival slogans. The shouts of “Rassera, Rassera” echoed through the streets of Aomori Prefecture for a long time. Accompanied by the music played by the accompanying musicians on site, the entire festival began to reach its climax. When the dancers started dancing more enthusiastically, the crowd erupted in cheers, and the atmosphere of the whole festival was pushed to its peak.

On the evening of August 7, Nebuta will be moved onto ships and paraded on the sea off Aomori Port, with fireworks display to mark the end of the festival.

Participation Guide

The festival is not only held in Aomori City, but also in other cities in Aomori Prefecture, and the festivals in different cities have different characteristics.

The largest ones are held in Aomori City (8.2-8.7), Goshogawara City (8.4-8.8), Hirosaki City (8.1-7), and Kuroishi City (7.30-8.5). In Kuroishi City, you can also see paddy art paintings. You can see paddy art paintings during the day and watch Nebuta Matsuri at night.

Although Aomori Nebuta Matsuri starts early, the latter part of the festival is more lively, with more Nebuta lanterns, and it’s worth watching, so it’s recommended to watch it after 8.4.

However, if you can’t catch Nebuta Matsuri or can’t grab a room at a hotel during the festival that is completely booked, you can also experience the charm of Nebuta Matsuri at Nebuta House Wa Rasse, which is open all year round.

“Nebuta House Wa Rasse” displays large floats that were actually used in Nebuta Matsuri, as well as many introductions and information about Nebuta Matsuri. The powerful floats, the vivid facial expressions of the figures, and the gorgeous color decoration, it’s no exaggeration to describe them as ingenious works of art.

1. Introduction to the small town

Sendai is the capital of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in northeastern Japan. Because of its location by the sea and surrounded by mountains, the main streets are lined with towering green trees. In autumn, the leaves turn a bright golden color; in winter, the city is lit up with spectacular illuminations, and Sendai is also known as the “Tree City”. The Hirose River flows through the city center, separating the busy city center from the old town. If you want to go to the surrounding mountains, you can plan to go to Zenshozan for skiing, or take a hot spring bath to relax.

And, in Sendai, you absolutely can’t forget to try— beef tongue!

This city where Yuzuru Hanyu was born has a grand festival that is older than the story of Romeo and Juliet, originating from the celestial lovers (yes, it’s the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl)—

2. Tanabata Matsuri Festival Highlights

About four hundred years ago, Date Masamune, who governed the area, recommended holding a Tanabata event to pray for a good harvest and skill improvement, which is said to be the origin of this festival. The biggest feature of this festival is the Sasaduki decorations that can be seen everywhere in Sendai City. There are luxurious Sasaduki decorations that adorn the city’s central shopping streets, and simple Sasaduki decorations that have been passed down from generation to generation in surrounding shopping streets.

It is a tradition of Sendai Tanabata Matsuri to set up “seven decorations”. The seven decorations refer to “colored flags”, “short notes”, “paper clothes”, “folded cranes”, “purses”, “throwing nets” and “trash cages”, each decoration has a different wish.

“Paper clothes” are to pray for warding off disease and disaster and improvement in tailoring skills,

“Purses” are to pray for thrift and business prosperity, etc.

Among them, the most eye-catching “colored flags” symbolize the colored threads of the Weaver Girl in the Tanabata legend, and are to pray for improvement in skills.

Participation Guide

From August 6th to 8th, Sendai Tanabata Matsuri is one month later than most places in Japan. Sendai Tanabata Matsuri is less picky about the time than the other two festivals. It can be said that from the moment you step out of Sendai Station, you are already in the atmosphere of the festival.

Everywhere is a shopping street with large handmade colored bells hung, and the whole city is full of flowing, endless colorful bamboo branches and Sasaduki decorations. These large paper balls are equipped with durable pendants, and are intentionally hung low so that people can touch them when passing by.

Hirosedori and Aobadori are the commercial streets where bamboo branches and Sasaduki decorations are most concentrated. Each bamboo branch and Sasaduki decoration is handmade by each store and enterprise after months of preparation, and the price of one bamboo branch and Sasaduki decoration is between hundreds of thousands and millions of yen. Each year, there will be a jury to select gold, silver and bronze winning bamboo branches and decorations.

If you walk around casually, you may encounter Yuzuru Hanyu, the promotional ambassador of the Sendai Tourism Bureau. You can take a photo with him!

In addition, Sendai has a fireworks festival on August 5th.

For Chinese tourists, fireworks festival tickets are not easy to buy. The best scenario is to ask and buy on site on the day; otherwise, you need to buy in advance, or buy from a convenience store.

Summer in Tohoku has a vibrancy and vibrancy that is no less than Tokyo. In the scorching summer, choose the cooler Tohoku and pick a summer festival to spend your summer!