{"id":707,"date":"2024-11-18T21:40:23","date_gmt":"2024-11-18T13:40:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php\/2025\/03\/07\/best-things-to-do-in-summer-in-japan\/"},"modified":"2025-11-23T09:56:04","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T01:56:04","slug":"best-things-to-do-in-summer-in-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/?p=707","title":{"rendered":"Best things to do in summer in Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Summer in much of Japan is hot and can be unrelentingly humid, but it\u2019s also the season for top festivals, mass folk dancing, mountain hikes, and enjoying a cold beer on a city rooftop. If you\u2019re travelling in Japan between June and September, carry a fan and make the most of these summertime experiences.<\/p>\n

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A boat near the Torii Gate of Itsukushima Jinja Shrine during the Kangen-sai Festival in Miyajima, Japan \u00a9 Keren Su \/ Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Japan’s summer festivals and fireworks<\/h2>\n

It is difficult to travel in Japan during summer and not find yourself caught up in a matsuri<\/em> (festival) of some sort. In cities and towns across the country, floats are paraded, people get kitted out in their colourful yukata<\/em> (cotton kimono), food stalls cram the streets, fireworks explode, and the beer and sake flows.<\/p>\n

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Among the summer big-hitters are Kyoto\u2019s famous Gion Matsuri, which runs for the whole month of July; and Osaka\u2019s Tenjin Matsuri, on 24 and 25 July. In Northern Honsh\u016b there are unusual feats of strength \u2013 from 3 to 6 August people balance long bamboo poles strung with lanterns on their heads and shoulders for the Akita Kant\u014d Matsuri. On Miyajima there is a centuries-old ceremony of traditional music in boats for Kangen-sai on 1 August. And on the island of Sado-ga-shima from 21 to 23 August, the Kod\u014d Drummers wow music lovers at the Earth Celebration.<\/p>\n

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Gion Matsuri float, Kyoto. Image by foooomio \/ CC BY 2.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In late July and August, fireworks dazzle the skies all over Japan. In the capital, the big one is the Sumida-gawa Fireworks Festival on the last Saturday in July. In \u014ctsu, Japan\u2019s largest lake forms a mirror for the Biwa-ko Great Fireworks Festival on 7 August. Or go west to see fireworks light up the Kanmon Straits separating Honsh\u016b and Ky\u016bsh\u016b on 13 August.<\/p>\n

Dance the Bon-odori<\/h2>\n

Many events happen in mid-August during O-bon, the festival for honouring one\u2019s ancestral spirits. It\u2019s a time when the whole country takes a holiday: families get together in their home towns, graves are tended, lanterns are lit and \u2013 perhaps most interesting for visitors \u2013 the traditional Bon-odori (Bon dance) is performed. Bon-odori is a type of folk dance, involving a series of simple repeated arm and hand movements, steps and claps, sometimes incorporating a fan or a towel.<\/p>\n

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Bon-odori dancers. Image by na0905 \/ CC BY 2.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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A good place to see Bon-odori en masse is at the Awa-odori Matsuri in the city of Tokushima, where each evening from 12 to 15 August teams of dancers move through the street competing for prizes, and much sake is consumed. If that\u2019s not enough dancing for you, head to the town of G\u016bjo-Hachiman in the mountains north of Nagoya. There are 32 nights of dancing here between mid-July and early September as part of the G\u016bjo Odori festival \u2013 four of these nights see people stepping and clapping until dawn. Participation is encouraged. As the Awa-odori song goes: \u2018It\u2019s a fool who dances and a fool who watches; if both are fools, why not dance?\u2019<\/p>\n

Taste the summer season in Japan<\/h2>\n

Any season is a good season for eating in Japan, but each has its specialities. One summer favourite is a cold-noodle dish using very thin s\u014dmen<\/em> noodles. The thought of slurping down a cold noodle may not appeal to some, but it is a surprisingly refreshing meal. The chilled noodles are served with a dipping sauce and sides such as chopped cucumber, ham, tomatoes and shredded egg. If eating your noodles from a plate is too easy, look out for nagashi-s\u014dmen<\/em> (flowing noodles) setups at some restaurants and festivals. To eat, you have to first catch the noodles (with chopsticks) as they flow past in water through a bamboo half-pipe.<\/p>\n

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Preparing okonomiyaki, a festival favourite. Image by Robert Swier \/ CC BY 2.0<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Excellent eating opportunities are also to be found at summer festivals, where fried goods and food-on-sticks dominate the scene. Before perusing the food stalls, it\u2019s good to know your yaki<\/em>. Yakitori (grilled chicken skewers), yaki-soba (fried noodles), tako-yaki (battered, fried octopus pieces), okonomiyaki (fried savoury \u2018pancakes\u2019) and ika-yaki (grilled squid on skewers) are all among the typical festival treats.<\/p>\n

For a cooling dessert, try a bowl of kakig\u014dri<\/em> \u2013 a fluffy hill of shaved ice flavoured with sweet syrup, sometimes drizzled with condensed milk or topped with sweet beans, fruit and a scoop of ice cream. Standard syrup flavours include strawberry and lemon, but green tea, yuzu and other varieties abound.<\/p>\n

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Green-tea-flavoured kakig\u014dri. Image by kanegen \/ CC BY 2.0<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Japan’s beer gardens<\/h2>\n

From late May to early September Japan\u2019s beer gardens open, attracting the weary after-work crowd, party groups, students, families and others looking to stave off the heat and have a cheap evening out. These are usually all-you-can-eat-and-drink affairs, with beer, barbecue and buffet food the staples. An all-in evening of food and booze typically costs between \u00a53500 and \u00a54000 (around US$32), though you can opt to pay as you go instead. It\u2019s best not to expect fine dining or, indeed, a garden.<\/p>\n

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Many beer gardens are to be found on the rooftops of major department stores and hotels, or within parks. In Tokyo, Forest Beer Garden is a popular spot located in the Meiji-jingu (Meiji Shrine) outer garden. In Kyoto, you can eat and drink below the spire of Kyoto Tower atop the Kyoto Tower Hotel. Elsewhere, ask around: in Japanese \u2018beer garden\u2019 is pronounced bi-ya gaa-den<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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Flowers in Furano Hokkaido, Japan \u00a9 Grace’s photo \/ Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Go north<\/h2>\n

When the sultry summer air gets too much, make for the milder climes of Hokkaid\u014d, Japan\u2019s northernmost island. Summer is perfect for hiking one of the prefecture\u2019s multiple mountains, and for exploring its remote and rugged national parks, many of which become inaccessible during the colder months. Yotei-zan, Rishiri-zan, Daisetsuzan National Park and Shiretoko National Park are just a handful of the many outdoorsy options.<\/p>\n

Summer is also when Alpine wildflowers make their appearance and the stunning flower fields of Furano come to life. At Farm Tomita, the landscape blooms into broad ribbons of pink, orange, yellow and purple from mid- to late July. Of course, you could just hang out in Hokkaid\u014d\u2019s capital Sapporo and take it easy. The Sapporo Summer Festival runs from late July to mid-August and centres on a beer garden that seats around 13,000 people. The festival has traditional dancing, firefly watching, and fireworks, too.<\/p>\n

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Climbing Fuji is one of the ultimate summer experiences in Japan \u00a9 pongnathee kluaythong \/ Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Climb Fuji<\/h2>\n

Official climbing season for Mt Fuji runs from July to mid-September. People do climb outside the official season, though authorities caution against this as there are fewer facilities and weather can be unpredictable. With vending machines at the summit, free wi-fi hotspots along the climb, and a few hundred thousand people traipsing up and down the volcano each summer, this is hardly the place for getting away from it all. To avoid the biggest crowds, steer clear of O-bon week and school holidays, or try for a weekday. Otherwise, it\u2019s best to just embrace the experience.<\/p>\n

This article was originally published in 2015. It was updated in June 2019.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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