Festival

Enjoy Tohoku's Summer Festivals to the Fullest! - Complete Guide to Summer Festivals -

With summer in full swing, thoughts turn to summer festivals..

Due to restrictions on activities and self-restraint imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, most places that have refrained from holding summer festivals in recent years are holding full-scale festivals this year, so there are likely many people looking forward to enjoying a summer festival for the first time in a while

This time, we will introduce information about summer festivals in Tohoku and a complete guide to enjoying them all at once

Tohoku summer festival information

Hachinohe Sansha Festival

The Tohoku region is home to three major festivals: the Aomori Nebuta Festival (Aomori Prefecture), the Akita Kanto Festival (Akita Prefecture), and the Sendai Tanabata Festival (Miyagi Prefecture) .

The three major festivals mentioned above designated as important intangible folk cultural properties by the national government and are extremely famous festivals throughout the country.

The three major festivals mentioned above, plus the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival (Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture), make up the Four Major Tohoku Festivals , and the Morioka Sansa Odori (Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture) make up the Five Major Tohoku Festivals .

However, there are various opinions regarding the four and five major festivals in Tohoku, with some saying that the Fukushima Waraji Festival (Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture), Goshogawara Tachineputa (Goshogawara City, Aomori Prefecture), and Koriyama Uneme Festival (Koriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture) are missing! Opinions vary by region, so please use the information above for reference only.

However, summer festivals in Tohoku are concentrated from late July to early August , so every year I find myself wondering, "I want to go to this! I want to see that!"

First, let us introduce the dates for the Tohoku Summer Festival

In 2023, 11 days will pass by in a flash, from the Soma Nomaoi in Fukushima Prefecture to the Sendai Tanabata Festival in Miyagi Prefecture.

If the festivals themselves lasted for several days, it might be easier to organize your schedule, but the Sleepless City in the Sky is held over two days, while the Soma Nomaoi, Koriyama Uneme Festival, Fukushima Waraji Festival, Yamagata Hanagasa Festival, and Sendai Tanabata Festival are held over three days.

It looks like it will be a bit of a difficult schedule to see everything quickly

Why Tohoku's summer festivals are concentrated in early August

Yamagata Hanagasa Festival

As the summer festival dates are listed above, are concentrated from late July to early August

Have you ever wondered, "Why?"

There are various theories about this, but it is said that summer festivals originated when people carried a portable shrine carrying a god on it through the town, purifying it, and praying for a good harvest in the fall, as disasters caused by wind, floods, and illnesses in the summer were thought to be the work of evil spirits.

Early spring is rice planting season, autumn is rice harvesting season, and winter is snowy, so it is a characteristic of each region of Tohoku to hold summer festivals at times when farm work and the seasons are not an issue.

Here's the recommended route to complete the summer festival!

Sendai Tanabata Festival

To be honest, I think it would be physically difficult to visit everything

but,

This time, we will introduce two routes: Northern Tohoku and Southern Tohoku

North Tohoku Route

July 31st Hachinohe Sansha Festival (Hachinohe, Aomori) → August 1st Morioka Sansa Odori Dance (Morioka, Iwate) → August 2nd Hirosaki Neputa Festival (Hirosaki, Aomori) → August 3rd The City That Never Sleeps in the Sky (Noshiro, Akita) → August 4th Akita Kanto Festival (Akita, Akita) → August 5th Aomori Nebuta Festival (Aomori, Aomori)

The event will start on July 31st at the Hachinohe Sansha Festival

The festival will take place in Morioka, Hirosaki, Noshiro and Akita, one day at a time, with the final Aomori Nebuta Festival being held on August 5th

You will be going around northern Tohoku in circles, but you will be able to complete all of the summer festivals in the region

However, many of the summer festivals in northern Tohoku this year are being held on weekdays , so if you can only take the weekend off, it looks like you'll have to concentrate on visiting the Hirosaki Neputa Festival, Aomori Neputa Festival, and Akita Kanto Festival.

South Tohoku Route

July 29th: Soma Nomaoi (Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture) → August 3rd: Koriyama Uneme Festival (Koriyama, Fukushima) → August 4th: Fukushima Waraji Festival (Fukushima, Fukushima) → August 5th: Yamagata Hanagasa Festival (Yamagata, Yamagata) → August 6th: Sendai Tanabata Festival (Sendai, Miyagi)

The start will be the Soma Nomaoi on July 29th , but in the southern Tohoku region there will be a gap until the Koriyama Uneme Festival, which is also held in Fukushima Prefecture, followed by the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival and Sendai Tanabata Festival.

In southern Tohoku, there are festivals every weekend , so if you can't take a day off during the week, you'll probably just end up admiring the Tanabata decorations on Sunday night.

Furthermore, the Sendai Tanabata Festival begins on August 5th, the day before the festival, with fireworks being launched in Sendai city as a pre-festival event, so if you're here to see the fireworks, you could spend the night of August 5th in Sendai, then head to the Fukushima Waraji Festival on August 4th , the Sendai Tanabata Festival on August 5th, and finally the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival on August 7th .

It's important to check summer festival information in advance

Akita Kanto Festival

We have introduced some fairly challenging routes that can be completed, but please use actual information to decide on a route that is not too difficult for you

Summer festivals are outdoor events, and this year's temperatures are forecast to be even hotter than usual, so please take all necessary precautions to prevent heatstroke

Regarding the record-breaking heavy rains that hit Akita Prefecture in July this year, the Akita Kanto Festival announced on its official website on July 19th that it is "proceeding with preparations to hold the festival as scheduled," so please continue to check the official website below frequently until the festival begins.

Festival2023 event periodOfficial URL
Soma Nomaoi (Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture)July 29th (Saturday) - July 31st (Monday)Soma Nomaoi
Hachinohe Sansha Festival (Hachinohe City, Aomori Prefecture)July 31st (Monday) - August 4th (Friday)VISIT HACHINOHE
Morioka Sansa Dance (Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture)8/1 (Tuesday) - 8/4 (Friday)Morioka Sansa Dance
Hirosaki Neputa Festival (Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture)8/1 (Tuesday) - 8/7 (Monday)Hirosaki Tourism and Convention Association
Aomori Nebuta Festival (Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture)8/2 (Wed) - 8/7 (Mon)Aomori Nebuta Festival
The city that never sleeps in the sky (Noshiro City, Akita Prefecture)August 2nd (Wednesday) - August 3rd (Thursday)Noshiro Tanabata
Akita Kanto Festival (Akita City, Akita Prefecture)August 3rd (Thursday) - August 6th (Sunday)Akita Kanto Festival
Koriyama Uneme Festival (Koriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture)August 3rd (Thursday) - August 5th (Saturday)Koriyama Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Fukushima Waraji Festival (Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture)August 4th (Friday) - August 6th (Sunday)Fukushima Waraji Festival
Goshogawara Tachineputa (Goshogawara City, Aomori Prefecture)August 4th (Friday) - August 8th (Tuesday)Goshogawara Tachineputa
Yamagata Hanagasa Festival (Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture)August 5th (Saturday) - August 7th (Monday)Yamagata Hanagasa Festival
Sendai Tanabata Festival (Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture)August 6th (Sunday) - August 8th (Tuesday)Sendai Tanabata Festival

summary

We've given you a quick introduction to Tohoku's summer festivals in 2023

Summer in Tohoku is short

Summer festivals are held to help people make the most of the short summer. It may be impossible to enjoy all the summer festivals that are crammed into a short period of time, but wouldn't you like to enjoy as much as you can?

This is the first summer festival in several years, so I hope you all enjoy it

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