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🏮 Hamamatsu Matsuri

浜松祭り

Hamamatsu, Shizuoka (Various Locations in the City) · Every year on 3 May

FloatsTraditional performing arts

231 days to go
Rooms around Hamamatsu, Shizuoka fill up while the festival is on.

The Hamamatsu Festival is held in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, every year from May 3 to 5, and is a citizens' festival in which more than 170 neighborhoods across the city take part. It is said to have originated about 450 years ago, when a kite was flown within the castle to celebrate the birth of the eldest son of the lord of Hikuma Castle, who then ruled Hamamatsu. The daytime highlight is the kite-fighting battle, in which citizens in happi coats boldly fly large kites from 2 to 10 tatami mats in size. In the "itokiri gassen" (string-cutting battle) held on the second and third days, each neighborhood tangles its kite strings with those of its opponents to bring their kites down, competing in skillful string handling amid shouts of "Yaisho, oisho." At night, more than 80 goten yatai (festival floats) gather over the three days and parade through the city with lanterns glowing. Children from each neighborhood play festival music on drums, hand drums, gongs, and flutes, and the elaborately carved floats color Hamamatsu's nights fantastically.

Getting there

The kite-flying venue is Nakatajima Kite-Flying Ground (2832 Shirahama-cho, Minami-ku, Hamamatsu). The nearest station is JR Hamamatsu Station, about 20 minutes by bus. For details, contact the Hamamatsu Festival Organizing Committee Secretariat (053-458-0011).