Chubu Festivals

Large lanterns and drums fill Tsuzawa's streets in a festival praying for a good harvest.

Giant kites launched from opposite riverbanks meet in a dramatic contest of tangled ropes.

Fushiki's festival floats parade by day and meet in dramatic lantern-lit clashes after dark.

Festival floats present mechanical puppets and dances around the former castle town of Ogaki.

Towering lanterns light Fukuno's streets to the sound of drums and festival calls.

Pink moss phlox carpet at the base of Mt. Fuji.

Walk through 20-meter high snow walls on the Tateyama Alpine Route.

One of Japan's most beautiful festivals with ornate floats in the mountain town of Takayama.

Sacred puppets travel between shrines before a traditional dance offering in Kofu.

Spring festival in Shizuoka celebrating Tokugawa Ieyasu with a cherry blossom parade.

Neri floats parade through Yokosuka to the distinctive music of the shrine festival.

Suwa Grand Shrine's once-every-six-years festival where massive logs are ridden down hills.

A procession carries a carved fertility symbol to Tagata Shrine in prayers for harvests and prosperity.

Early-blooming cherry blossom festival along the Kawazu River.

Sacred-tree hauling and fire rituals honor the Dosojin deities in Nozawa Onsen.

Elaborate floats are pulled onto the beach at low tide during Kamezaki's spring festival.

Lively music accompanies communal circles of summer dancing in Shirotori.