Which cultural festivals take place in Japan?
Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2025 6:10 am
The Impact of Cultural Festivals on Businesses in Japan
Japan is a country known for its cultural traditions and celebrations. These are often related to the changing seasons. Cultural events play a significant role in Japanese life and so are important to the country’s economy and should inform marketing strategies.
It is crucial that businesses are aware of Japan cultural festivals and events. Sales and marketing ghana mobile database campaigns should be tailored to the festivals and planned well in advance. The right strategies can deliver business opportunities in Japan and yield impressive results.
Matsuri Lantern
There are far too many Cultural festivals (Matsuri (祭)) in Japan to highlight them all here.
But the following are many of the best known festivals and so are worth noting as they could influence Japanese consumer behaviour:
Aoi – known as the “hollyhock festival” but actually a festival of wild ginger that is held in Kyoto in May.
Atsuta – a famous festival of art, dance, food and fireworks hailing the arrival of summer that is celebrated at one of Japan's most venerated shrines in Nagoya.
Awa Odori - a dance festival held from 12 to 15 August as part of the Obon festival in Tokushima Prefecture.
Hakata Dontaku – held 2 – 5 May in Fukuoka during Golden week, the weeklong national holiday. This street festival features as many as 33,000 performers and attracts 2 million people.
Gion Matsuri– one of the largest festivals in Japan, Gion takes place throughout July in Kyoto. It features parades, performances and religious ceremonies. Its original purpose was to purify and pacify entities that cause disease.
Hakata Gion Yamakasa - is an annual festival celebrated 1st - 15th July in Hakata, Fukuoka. It is notable for the floats that are carried around the city. The festival is thought to date back to 1241, when the monk Enni had people carry him around the town on a float, while he was praying for the eradication of the plague.
Hanami – many cities in Japan hold hanami (flower blossom festivals). The dates of these vary according to when the trees blossom. Trees are illuminated at night and the Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival in Aomori is particularly notable, attracting over 2 million visitors each year.
Japan is a country known for its cultural traditions and celebrations. These are often related to the changing seasons. Cultural events play a significant role in Japanese life and so are important to the country’s economy and should inform marketing strategies.
It is crucial that businesses are aware of Japan cultural festivals and events. Sales and marketing ghana mobile database campaigns should be tailored to the festivals and planned well in advance. The right strategies can deliver business opportunities in Japan and yield impressive results.
Matsuri Lantern
There are far too many Cultural festivals (Matsuri (祭)) in Japan to highlight them all here.
But the following are many of the best known festivals and so are worth noting as they could influence Japanese consumer behaviour:
Aoi – known as the “hollyhock festival” but actually a festival of wild ginger that is held in Kyoto in May.
Atsuta – a famous festival of art, dance, food and fireworks hailing the arrival of summer that is celebrated at one of Japan's most venerated shrines in Nagoya.
Awa Odori - a dance festival held from 12 to 15 August as part of the Obon festival in Tokushima Prefecture.
Hakata Dontaku – held 2 – 5 May in Fukuoka during Golden week, the weeklong national holiday. This street festival features as many as 33,000 performers and attracts 2 million people.
Gion Matsuri– one of the largest festivals in Japan, Gion takes place throughout July in Kyoto. It features parades, performances and religious ceremonies. Its original purpose was to purify and pacify entities that cause disease.
Hakata Gion Yamakasa - is an annual festival celebrated 1st - 15th July in Hakata, Fukuoka. It is notable for the floats that are carried around the city. The festival is thought to date back to 1241, when the monk Enni had people carry him around the town on a float, while he was praying for the eradication of the plague.
Hanami – many cities in Japan hold hanami (flower blossom festivals). The dates of these vary according to when the trees blossom. Trees are illuminated at night and the Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival in Aomori is particularly notable, attracting over 2 million visitors each year.