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Kazanko Dondo
The traditional New Year’s event “Dondo-yaki”, where New Year’s decorations and calligraphy are burned as a prayer for good health and an abundant harvest, is hosted at Fureai-Dokoro 437. +H4:H16
Special Feature Special Feature
Yanai: a Treasure Trove of Festivals
In Yanai, there are many festivals! Every month, a festival is happening somewhere…
Please feel free to come and see!
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Atsuki Shinmei Festival
This traditional event has a history dating back to 1644. It is a fire festival held in the Atsuki district every year on February 11 (a National Holiday) to pray for plentiful crops and to ward off disasters and illness. In 2009, it was designated a Nationally-Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property. The festival begins when young people dressed in white, after purifying themselves by washing, raise two approximately 20 meter-high ceremonial poles to the east and west. After dancing the Shinmei-Odori dance around the poles in the day and night, both poles are set on fire. Then the poles are...
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Merchant Town Yanai Hina Doll Tour
Held in February and March, from the Shirakabe historic district to Retoro-dori street. The Hina dolls that have been handed down within the families of Shirakabe will be on display during this period. A variety of charming Hina dolls can be seen, including handmade dolls and some that date back as far as the Meiji period.
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Yanai Shirakabe Hanakouyu
This is a spring event for the enjoyment of flowers and scents, created by gathering ideas from a female perspective with the theme of “playing with flowers and scents”. With the Shirakabe historic district as a venue, participants play a fan-tossing game, where folding fans are thrown at a target called a “butterfly”. People also gather to sing Matsushima Utako’s famous songs. Visitors who wear a kimono to the event can receive a special bonus gift.
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Ikachi Tenjin Festival
This is a festival dedicated to the deified scholar Sugawara no Michizane, held on the first Sunday of April every year in the Ikachi district. After Shinto rites are performed, a portable shrine is pulled from the main shrine to the Otabisho (temporary dwelling). The procession is led by a saddled horse ridden by a child, and the members of the shrine community bring offerings such as flags, joinery, and arrow quivers. A highlight of the festival is the ox-drawn palanquin, evoking the Heian period (8th to 12th centuries). The ox, which is donated to the festival, is decorated with...
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Yanai Tenjin Spring Festival
This is an annual festival dedicated to the deified scholar Sugawara no Michizane. The main festival is held on the Sunday that precedes April 25, the anniversary of Michizane’s death, and the pre-festival eve is celebrated the night before. This festival has been held continuously since 1873, excluding a few temporary pauses during war or natural disasters. While many events take place on the main day, such as a ceremonial Kendo tournament, the major highlight is Daimyo Gyoretsu (feudal lord’s procession) that parades through the city, modeled on Sankin-Kotai (feudal lord’s journey to and from the capital) of the Edo...
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Fureai Uzushio Festival
Held in the parking lot in front of Yanai City Obatake Sogo Center. Includes many events such as on-stage performances, throwing mochi rice cakes, and a fun raffle!
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Hydrangea Festival
Held at the flagship store of Kashinoki confectionary and Yamaguchi Flower Land. This is a joint exhibition of Kashinoki’s hydrangea garden, which boasts 20,000 hydrangeas of 150 varieties, and the flowers of Yamaguchi Flower Land, with its stylish gardens of flowers and greenery surrounded by history and nature. During the festival period, a free shuttle bus between Yamaguchi Flower Land and the Kashinoki store will be in operation.
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Shirakabe Tanabata Festival
In the Shirakabe historic district, the eaves of houses and shops are decorated with bamboo hung with strips of paper with wishes written on them by local children and visiting tourists.
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Kingyo Chochin Festival
Held every year on August 13, this is one of summer’s biggest events, based on the motif of Yanai’s folkcraft “kingyo chochin” (goldfish-shaped lanterns). People who return to Yanai for the Obon holiday are welcomed with their hometown’s folkcraft. The festival venue is decorated with goldfish lanterns, around 2,500 of which are illuminated. The gentle light that emanates from the goldfish lanterns creates a dreamlike ambience. The major highlight is the “Kingyo Nebuta” festival float, which parades majestically, and sometimes boisterously, around the venue. The “Kingyo Chochin Odori” dance, performed by the Ryusenkai group, is also a must-see. Held in...
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Hassaku Drifting Boats
Hassaku Drifting Boats is an event held at the Yanai River to pray for abundant crop harvest and the healthy growth of female children. School-age girls dressed in colorful yukata robes place their wishes onto “Tanomobune” (“Wish Boats”), which are released to drift on the Yanai River, a scene that is popular with photography enthusiasts.
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Hizumi Hassaku O-odori
Held every year on the Saturday that precedes September 1, this is the last Bon-Odori (Obon dance) event held in the Yanai region, and is sometimes known as “the final Yukata-wearing event of the year”. With a history of almost 200 years, this dance has long been held on the 210th day after “Risshun” (the beginning of spring), which corresponds to September 1. Since this period is typhoon season, the dance is dedicated to prayers to the god of wind to ward off damage from typhoons.
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Southern Seto ・Long Ride in YAMAGUCHI
With Yanai City as both start and goal, this cycling event features a famous Seto-Uchi route, passing through the island of Suo-Oshima in the Seto Inland Sea and crossing the Murotsu Peninsula. The ride is not a timed race; instead, participants enjoy the beauty of the scattered islands of the Seto Inland Sea and the stunning views of mountain foothills while cycling within a time limit. The course offers plenty of variety to ensure participants will never get bored, including the scenic and leisurely coastline as well as more challenging mountain roads, and the hospitality provided by the aid stations...
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Autumn Festa
Held at Yamaguchi Flower Land. During the Festa, the park’s opening hours are extended to 20:00, and visitors can enjoy the illuminated autumn flower beds and the evening atmosphere.
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Yanai Sweets Festival
“Yanai Sweets Festival” (also known as the “Factory Festival”) is held every year at the end of October with a Halloween theme. The Kashinoki factory provides a variety of events together with freshly-manufactured sweets, packed with a daily sense of gratitude, for their many customers to enjoy. This lively festival also includes a Halloween costume contest, which a large number of participants dress up for.
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Yanai Festival
Yanai’s autumn festival is held every year on November 23 (a National Holiday) in gratitude for the autumn harvest. Events such as the “Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Exhibition” and the “Welfare Market” are held in the area around Yanai City Culture and Welfare Hall, and visitors can sample delicious foods made with local ingredients. In addition, the “Shirakabe Edo Festival” is held in the Shirakabe historic district, with activities such as an archery range and target shooting game. The biggest highlight is the “Hanagasa Odori” (parasol dance) performed along Retoro-dori street, where a competitive performance between parasol dancers unfolds together...
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Christmas Illuminations
The Christmas illuminations are centered on Retoro-dori street in front of Yanai Station. During the illuminated period, until December 25, the trees lining the street and Retoro Square (the square in front of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry) will be decorated with lights. In addition, from December 21 to 25 events will be held in the riverside park. (Period of events varies from year to year.)
