🏮 Furukawa Matsuri Okoshi Daiko

古川祭起し太鼓

Hida, Gifu (Furukawa Central Hida) · Every year on 19 April

Traditional performing artsFloats

217 days to go
Rooms around Hida, Gifu fill up while the festival is on.

The Furukawa Festival, held every year on April 19 and 20 in Hida-Furukawa, Hida City, Gifu Prefecture, is the annual festival of Keta Wakamiya Shrine. It is known for its Okoshi Daiko and yatai (festival float) events, designated as an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan and inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list, and it continues as a traditional festival representative of spring in Hida, set against streetscapes of white-walled storehouses and the Seto River. The highlight of the festival is the Okoshi Daiko, held from the night of the 19th into the small hours. Men in loincloths carry a turret bearing a large drum through the town, and young men called tsuke-daiko take turns challenging the turret. The powerful calls and drumbeats echoing through the night in Hida-Furukawa are a sight unique to the Furukawa Festival. Also not to be missed is the yatai hikou, in which elaborately carved and embroidered festival floats parade through the town. Karakuri puppet performances and children's kabuki are presented, offering an elegant and colorful spring scene.

Getting there

A short walk from JR Hida-Furukawa Station. Parking is available at Furukawa Elementary School (the 19th and 20th) and Furukawa Junior High School (the 19th only, with shuttle bus service).