Hanamaki Festival

The Hanamaki Festival is a spectacular three-day celebration held annually in Hanamaki City on the second Friday through Sunday of September. With over 420 years of history dating back to the era of regional lord Kita Shosai, the festival honours both the city's origins and its ancestral legacy.

Festival Highlights

Procession of Floats and Mikoshi

Over 100 portable shrines (mikoshi) and numerous exquisitely decorated floats (dashi) parade through Kamimachi and surrounding streets. In 2015, the festival set a Guinness World Record with 114 mikoshi carried at a single venue - the most ever recorded at one time.

Shishi-Odori (Deer Dance)

One of Iwate Prefecture’s signature folk performances, this dramatic dance features performers wearing real deer antlers. The powerful rhythms and dynamic movements are performed as a ritual to pray for peace and ward off evil spirits.

Kagura-Gongenmai Dance

A sacred Shinto dance passed down by yamabushi (mountain ascetic monks). As part of the kagura tradition - ritualistic music and dance offered to the kami (deities) - this performance is dedicated to prayers for a bountiful harvest, good health, protection from misfortune, and regional well-being.

Hanamaki Bayashi Odori

A graceful group dance accompanied by flutes, drums, and shamisen. Based on Kyoto’s Gion Bayashi, dancers progress through the streets in joyful unison, bringing elegance and festivity to the parade.