Each April, Kumano Hongu Taisha holds its Reitaisai - three days of purification rites, beautiful sacred dance performances, and a grand palanquin procession.
13–15 Apr 2027Exact date not confirmed yetTanabe · WakayamaShinto shrine in the Kaga region, said to date to 585 when an imperial kami was moved here, and among the region's most historically significant shrines.
Kaga · IshikawaA spring festival in Takayama showcases ornate floats with mechanical dolls and centuries-old craftsmanship, illuminated by lanterns during evening processions.
14–15 Apr 2027Takayama · GifuShrine in Hofu founded in 904 for Tenjin, the deified scholar and poet Sugawara no Michizane, with a single building that houses all its main sanctuaries.
Hofu · YamaguchiAn annual festival in Himi centers on Senju-ji Temple, where unmarried women pray for happiness using a traditional married woman's hairstyle in ritual.
17 Apr 2027Himi · ToyamaSaijo Inari is a 1,200-year-old Buddhist temple and one of Japan's three great Inari sites, preserving a rare form of Shinto-Buddhist syncretic worship.
OkayamaA shrine festival at Akama-jingu in Shimonoseki honoring Emperor Antoku with Shinto rituals, offerings and performances that mark the young emperor's death.
2–4 May 2027Exact date not confirmed yetShimonoseki · YamaguchiBitchukoku Soja Shrine consolidated deities of 324 provincial shrines into a single site dedicated to the deity of nation-building and good fortune.
Soja · OkayamaA traditional spring festival held over two days features three decorated floats and karakuri puppets, with origins dating to the Edo period.
3–4 May 2027Tokoname · AichiUesugi Shrine in Yonezawa honors the formidable warlord Uesugi Kenshin and was rebuilt in 1923 following a destructive fire.
Yonezawa · YamagataA traditional spring festival features six ornately decorated floats assembled without nails, pulled through streets with classical hikiyama music.
3 May 2027Exact date not confirmed yetToyamaThe head shrine of approximately 12,000 Tenmangu and Tenjin shrines throughout Japan, Kitano Tenmangu is dedicated to the deity of learning and culture.
KyotoThis Ishikawa festival of over 1,000 years parades three huge wheeled floats with life-size Kabuki figures, recognised as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
3–5 May 2027Exact date not confirmed yetNanao · IshikawaOkayama shrine to Kibitsuhiko-no-Mikoto, a legendary prince said to have defeated an ogre and brought peace to the region, the root of the Momotaro story.
OkayamaAnnual shrine festival featuring traditional performing arts, portable shrine processions, and demonstrations of ancient Minato kiyari songs.
5 May 2027Exact date not confirmed yetSado · NiigataSacred mountain shrine in Okayama with more than two thousand years of history, blending Shinto and Buddhist practices as a centre of pilgrimage.
Kurashiki · OkayamaBefore rice planting, children in Mamada parade huge painted serpents through town, chanting, then immerse them in a pond in a centuries-old rainmaking ritual.
5 May 2027Oyama · TochigiThis Sendai shrine has served as a center of devotion for over a thousand years, enshrining the divine family of Izanagi, Izanami, and their child Ebisu.
Sendai · Miyagi
