Summer Activities in Japan: 16 Must-Try Japanese Summertime Traditions
Summer is when Japan bursts into life with an array of festivals, traditions, seasonal foods, and more. Despite the hot and humid weather, it’s a great time to visit for those wanting to see a more fun, jovial side of Japanese culture. Here is a list of 16 must-do summer activities in Japan to help get your summertime itinerary sorted!
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1. Have fun at Summer Festivals (Natsu-Matsuri)
Summer is a season of traditional festivals in Japan. Join in the summer celebration to fully experience Japanese summer.
Also Check: The Best Way to Enjoy Japanese Summer: Matsuri
Participate in Bon-odori
Bon odori is a dance, traditional to Japan. As it is deeply related with the culture of the area, Bon-odori looks and sounds different in any region in Japan.
Enjoy the food and activities at the stalls
There are many stalls out selling food like yakisoba (fried noodles), grilled sweetcorn, chocolate covered banana, etc. Also, there are many activities such as kingyo sukui (catching goldfish) or shooting games.
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2. Make your wish come true at Tanabata Festival
Tanabata is a festival held on the 7th July to celebrate the meeting of the Altair and Vega, lovers separated by the Milky Way. In some areas it is celebrated a month after according to the traditional calendar. People write their wishes on a strip of paper and hang them on bamboo branches.
3. Enjoy the impressive fireworks
There are many firework events all around Japan in the summer. Japanese fireworks bursts in different shapes and can express many different colours. The events not only have the fireworks but also use music and lighting to make it an exciting show.
4. Wear yukata
Yukata is a summer Japanese traditional clothing. There are many different colours and designs for both men and women, so find your favourite one.
5. Get Passionate at Summer Music Festivals
There are many outdoor music festivals in the summer season. Get yourself in the heat and enjoy the high quality music and performances. The biggest and the most famous of them is the Fuji Rock Festival held in Niigata on 24-26 July 2015.
6. Cool yourself down with Ice Shaves -Kakigori-
Kakigori is one of the most popular sweets of summer in Japan. The ice is shaved finely and you can enjoy a fluffy taste. Even in such a representative dessert like kakigoori, there are many flavor variations such as strawberry, Blue Hawaii, cola, ramune, melon, lemon, orange, green tea, and more. Recently it’s becoming a deluxe, luxury sweet and that’s another reason why kakigoori is so popular.
Also Check: 15 Essential Kakigori (Shaved Ice) Shops in Tokyo
7. Crack open a watermelon! -Suika wari-
Cracking open a watermelon, or Suika Wari, is a game done in Japan in the summer. Blindfolded people, one by one, is guided by voice to the watermelon lying on the ground and tries to crack it with a stick. If they succeed and the watermelon cracks, then everyone enjoys the watermelon.
8. Try your best or you won't have noodles to eat! -Nagashi-Somen-
Out of the many noodles eaten in Japan, somen is the thinnest. It is a popular cold dish to enjoy in summer in Japan. Nagashi somen is one most exciting way to eat somen. Somen noodles flown down a bamboo slide filled with running water.
9. A Refreshing Drink at a Beer Garden
A refreshing evening drinking in the open air during the humid summer of Japan.
10. Get your personal artistic fan -Uchiwa & Sensu-
Use an uchiwa or sensu to cool yourself down with a steady stream of air. Some uchiwas are being handed out on the streets as advertisements, but many of them are traditional works of art.
11. Let Fireflies capture your heart
You can find fireflies all around Japan in the countryside during the summer season. The light of the fireflies are said to be a sign of romantic proposal from a male firefly.
12. Catch a fish with your own hands
Have you ever caught a fish with your own hand, rather than with your fishing rod? You can enjoy catching it in the rich natural environment. And what’s best, you can grill it and eat it fresh there.
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13. Look up to the stars and be mesmerized
Summer nights are great times to stay outside and look up to the stars. Go out into the countryside where it is dark at night and forget the flow of time under the starry sky.
Achi village in Nagano prefecture is said to be the best spot in Japan to see the stars.
14. Put yourself in the vastness of the sunflower fields
Sunflowers are a typical flower of summer, its brightness giving us power to overcome the summer heat. It can be enjoyed from July to August.
15. Ease yourself with the sound of the wind chimes -Furin-
The tingling sound you hear in the humid summer will definitely bring you coolness. Most of them are made of glass and when the wind blows, a gentle chime will ring.
You can experience painting your own pattern on the glass too!
16. Eat in the cool wind at Kawadoko
Kawadoko is a style of restaurant in Kyoto where the floor is placed over and/or besides a river to welcome customers in summer. Kawadoko is a special seasonal way of eating that helps to cool you down, usually available from May to September in Kyoto. Having a meal while hearing the sound of a stream and surrounded by nature helps us to forget the hot, humid, summer!
Also Check: "Kawadoko" is a Stylish Way to Eat During Summer
The information in this article is accurate at the time of publication.
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