Yamada Spring Festival is held annually in March in the Chichibu area of Saitama Prefecture. It is on in early March, usually on the second Sunday of the month. In 2023, that will be Sunday March 12th. They say the festival marks the coming of Spring. This will be theRead More →
The beautiful, lively spring festival, filled with traditional Japanese performances, is scheduled for the first time in four years. Moreover, it is in the scenic Ogano town. Unlike many other city and towns that have their main festival in the summer, Ogano’s principal festival is this spring one. It isRead More →
The Nagatoro Fire Festival is the largest fire festival in the Kanto Plain / Greater Tokyo area. However, in 2023 it will be held on a reduced scale. Nagatoro Fire Festival A truly awesome and invigorating festival, the fire festival is one of those only-in-Japan occasions that are a mustRead More →
NAKED Night Walk and Night Illumination Train, Chichibu, Winter 2023. Renowned for their digital art, Naked Inc needs little introduction for those in Japan. In the winter of 2023, they are creating, as they say, “a new winter festival” in Chichibu, the festival district of Saitama Prefecture. Chichibu is madeRead More →
The Setsubun Mamemaki train is coming back in 2023, for the first time in three years. It is a relatively new event that had only been running for three years before the pandemic, but it was very popular and a great way to celebrate setsubun. The setsubun mamemaki train isRead More →
The Japanese New Year tradition of Hatsumode… Hatsumode is the first visit of the year to a shrine or a temple, an important and much practiced tradition in the New Year in Japan. There are many shrines and also temples all around Saitama where you can practise Hatsumode. It doesn’tRead More →
The Otaki Ice festival, illuminated Misotsuchi Icicles in 2023 – One of the most famous, and beautiful, winter scenes of Saitama is at the Otaki Ice Festival. Located in the former Otaki village (now part of Chichibu city) in the Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park. The Misotsuchi Icicles are the only naturallyRead More →
The Chichibu Night Festival is held on the 2nd and 3rd of December annually. On account of the pandemic, the festival was very basic in 2020 and 2021. They only carried out some of the religious parts of the festival. Moreover, in 2021 it was for invited guests only. Also,Read More →
The Chichibu Kegon Falls is a popular spot with professional and amateur photographers in Autumn. This is because the waterfall is framed by maple leaves. Around mid November the leaves change to tones of orange and red. Chichibu Kegon Falls Recognize the name Kegon Falls? There is a very famousRead More →
The Chichibu Rocket Festival is most commonly referred to by its Japanese name “Ryusei Matsuri” even in English, possibly due to the uniqueness of this 400 year old festival. Ryusei literally means dragon power. The Ryusei Festival, or “Chichibu Yoshida Dragon Power”, is a National Important Intangible Folk Cultural PropertyRead More →