Festivals To Enjoy In The Kyushu Region | Guidable - Your Guide to a Sustainable, Wellbeing-centred Life in Japan

Festivals To Enjoy In The Kyushu Region

By Guidable Writers Apr 25, 2020

There are various festivals across Japan that tourists can enjoy. Each region in Japan has their own peculiarities and traditions, which gives birth to the myriad festivals that each holds every year. In this article, we will give special focus to the Kyushu region, a region located in the southern part of the country, which is rich in tourist attractions and festivals waiting for us to explore.

Tamaseseri

A picture containing person, outdoor, sport, man Description automatically generated

(Picture from Feel Fukuoka Japan)

Tamaseseri or the wooden ball catching festival is held during the New Year holidays in Hakozaki Shrine, Fukuoka prefecture. The festival has several purposes; one of which is something akin to traditional New Year festivals, that is, to start off the beginning of the year. Another, perhaps surprising purpose of the festival is traditional fortune-telling.

The festival gathers a number of males and separates them into two groups: the land and sea group. The two groups will then compete to capture the wooden ball. The winning team will then represent the fortune for the year; the land team representing a bountiful harvest for the year and the sea team representing plentiful catches in the sea, pretty interesting isn’t it?

 

Nagasaki Lantern Festival

A picture containing colorful, store, street, sitting Description automatically generated

(Picture from Kyushu Tourism Promotion Organisation)

Another kind of New Year festival, the Nagasaki Lantern Festival is held annually during the Chinese New Year. Its origin dates back to a pretty recent time, which is 1994. It was started by Chinese living in the Nagasaki prefecture, which is why it has its roots in the Chinese culture’s lantern festival.

During the event, various kinds of lanterns will be placed along Nagasaki city and will be lit up beautifully during the night.

 

Yanagawa Sagemon Festival

A group of people on a boat Description automatically generated

(Picture from Fukuoka Now)

Yanagawa Sagemon Festival is actually just Yanagawa City’s localized version of the Hina Matsuri Festival (Girls’ Festival). Similar to the traditional Hina Matsuri, families who have female kid(s) in their household will arrange a set of dolls on the ladder during the period.

Compared to the traditional Hina Matsuri Festival, the Yanagawa Sagemon Festival is held for a longer period of time from mid-February to the beginning of April (which is February 11 to April 3 this year). It also has a distinct flavor to it with the display of “sagemon”, or the hanging of ornaments alongside the Hina dolls to celebrate their daughters.

For visitors, the Sagemon Meguri will display the Sagemon in public for everyone to see. Aside from that, there is also a ritual that the locals perform on boats with female children during this period.

 

Kyokusui no En

A group of people sitting at a park Description automatically generated

(Picture from Crossroad Fukuoka)

This festival is held at Dazaifu Tenmagu Shrine on the first Sunday of March. It is performed as a purification ceremony during the spring season. The shrine maidens will perform a dance to announce the start of the festival and set cups of sake to float along the stream. Participants of the festival are dressed in court attire and must finish writing Japanese poem before the sake reaches them. Unique isn’t it?

 

Hakata Dontaku Festival

A group of people walking down the street in front of a crowd Description automatically generated

(Picture from Fukuoka Now)

The Hakata Dontaku Festival originates from the New Year celebrations of the merchants, it is centuries old with more than 800 years of history! The word “dontaku” has its origins on the Dutch word “zontag” which means Sunday. The festival is held during May 3rd and 4th every year, with approximately 30,000 local people participating in the parade at Hakata city, Fukuoka prefecture.

 

Hakata Gion Yamagasa Festival

A group of people walking in front of a crowd Description automatically generated

(Picture from Fukuoka Convention & Visitors Bureau)

The Hakata Gion Yamagasa Festival is one of the festivals in Kyushu that is held during the summer. It is arranged at Kushida-Jinja Shrine in Fukuoka prefecture from July 1 to 15. During the festival, two kinds of the Yamagasa floats(as seen on picture) are held by groups of local males as they walk around the city.

 

Kokura Gion Daiko Festival

A picture containing person, man, table, holding Description automatically generated

(Picture from Mainichi Shinbun)

Same as the previous one, the Kokura Gion Daiko Festival is one of Kyushu’s summer festivals. The festival is centered around the Taiko or Japanese drum performances.

The Kokura Gion Daiko Festival begins on July 1 every year, as each town start practicing their drum performances. It eventually peaks on July 15 & 16, where parades for drum decoration arts will be held on the 15th and drum performances are then shown during the 16th.

 

Tobata Gion Oyamagasa

A large crowd at night Description automatically generated

(Picture from Tobata Gion Oyamagasa Promotion Society)

The Tobata Gion Oyamagasa is a summer festival held in Kitakyushu. In 2016, UNESCO registered it as an intangible cultural heritage. Local people will walk in the parade with festival floats containing letters and switchable lanterns. During the festive days, ceremonies, contests, and parades are held, making it a very lively festival.

 

Wasshoi Million Summer Festival

A large crowd of people Description automatically generated

(Picture from Kitakyushu Toki to Kaze no Hakubutsukan)

This is one of the biggest summer festivals in the Kyushu region. The festival has been held since 1988 with the purpose of celebrating the city’s founding anniversary. During the festival, local people and salarymen will dress in festival costumes, walk with festival floats, dance, and set off fireworks.

 

Hojoya

A group of people performing on stage in front of a crowd Description automatically generated

(Picture from Fukuoka Convention & Visitors Bureau)

A fall festival, the Hakozaki Shrine Hojoya, is one of the three major festivals of Hakata and a fall representative. The other major Hakata festivals represent the other two seasons, with Hakata Dontaku heralding spring and Hakata Gion Yamakasa representing summer.

The festival is held in September and has over thousands of years in history. It has the purpose of celebrating living beings with the release of doves and carps.

 

Nagasaki Kunchi

A picture containing table, man, photo, food

Description automatically generated

(Picture from All About Japan)

The Nagasaki Kunchi is a festival held at Suwa Shrine in October. The festival consists of snake dances that originated from one of the Chinese dance rituals. It is performed in Suwa Shrine and also around the city.

 

These are just some of the festivals that are held in the Kyushu region! We hope you will have the opportunity to experience some of these when you travel around Kyushu!