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🏮 Kurofune Matsuri

黒船祭

Shimoda, Shizuoka · Every year on 25 May

Traditional performing arts

253 days to go
Rooms around Shimoda, Shizuoka fill up while the festival is on.

The Kurofune Festival is held every May in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture, and is the city's largest event. It began in 1934 (Showa 9) to honor the achievements of the Japanese and foreign pioneers who contributed to the opening of Shimoda after Commodore Perry's U.S. naval fleet arrived on the black ships in 1854, and to promote world peace and international goodwill. Held in the season of fresh greenery, the main festival features solemn ceremonies including a commemorative ceremony at Shimoda Park and a memorial service at the graves of the black ship officers and sailors within the grounds of Gyokusenji Temple, as well as a fireworks display over Shimoda Port, an official parade joined by the U.S. Seventh Fleet and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force band, and a reenactment of the signing of the Japan-U.S. Shimoda Treaty at Ryosenji Temple. A lively array of events unfolds on the waterfront and throughout the town.

Getting there

About 10 to 20 minutes on foot from Izukyu-Shimoda Station on the Izukyu Line (depending on the venue). By car, about 2 hours from Atsugi IC on the Tomei Expressway, and about 15 minutes from Shimoda IC. Paid parking is available nearby.