The Nakasendo matsuri is just one of many festivals that is normally held in Omiya at the end of July and start of August each summer. They are collectively called “Omiya Summer Festival”. Unfortunately, but understandably, they were all cancelled in 2020 due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Official notification ofRead More →
Spark Carnival – The 33rd annual spark carnival, one of a collective of Omiya Summer Festivals, was due to be held on August 1st 2020. However, due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the carnival was cancelled along with dozens of other festivals in Saitama City. The carnival is generally held onRead More →
Honjo Gion Festival – This festival occurs every year on the 2 days preceding “umi no hi”, an annual holiday in Japan. However, in 2020 the event was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak. It attracts about 40,000 people. There are 70 stalls. One of the unusual features of this festival is the 雨乞獅子“rainRead More →
Toda Summer Pool for kids at Kodomo No Kuni. Kodomo no Kuni is the name of the Children’s Center in Toda city, Saitama. Among their many facilities they have outdoor pools for children in the summer. They have a 30 cm pool and a 45 cm pool making them idealRead More →
The Kitamoto Neputa Festival is held annually in early November. However, the event has been cancelled in 2020 on account of the Coronavirus outbreak. In 2019 it was on Saturday the 2nd of November. You can read about my visit here (click). On the Sunday, the 3rd, there was anRead More →
The Iruma Air base air show happens annually on the 3rd of November. However, in 2020 the event has been cancelled due to the Coronavirus outbreak. November 3rd is a public holiday in Japan for Culture Day. This is a popular event that attracts thousands of spectators. For many yearsRead More →
Iruma Mando Festival – Mando or Mandou 万燈 means 10,000 lights and is a type of Japanese lantern. For this, the biggest annual festival held in Iruma, the festival field is decorated with Mandou (pictured). The popularity of the festival is growing year on year and is expected to attract inRead More →
Cosmos Festival in Konosu The Cosmos Festival in Konosu normally takes place toward the end of October. However, this year – 2020 – on account of the Coronavirus outbreak the event has been cancelled. Official notification of cancellation here (click). Each year to mark the blooming of 12,000,000 cosmos in theRead More →
Saikasai – Asaka City Festival. This festival is usually held annually on the first Sunday of August and the preceding Saturday and Friday. However, in 2020 it was scheduled for October (Olympics?). But it was subsequently completely cancelled on account of the Coronavirus outbreak. 2019 information. Due to all thisRead More →
The 2020 Grand Bonsai Festival was initially scheduled for May, but they postponed it until October on account of the coronavirus. They scheduled it for October 16th to 18th, but then subsequently decided to cancel it. This annual event in the Omiya Bonsai Village offers the opportunity to view specialRead More →