Japan Autumn Festivals

Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive Tokyo

Arrive in Tokyo at any time.

Day 2-3 Yokohama Jazz Festival

Enjoy some great music as jazz musicians from around the world converge in Yokohama for this annual music festival. Grab a picnic mat or stand up and dance along to the beautiful sounds at this open air concert.

Day 4-5 Fukushima Festival

This is a parade with a twist! In Fukushima, six lantern-covered floats parade down the street with drummers on top. The drummers compete as they glide down the streets and rely on audience voting to determine who is the best.

Day 6-7 Kyoto

The centre of artistic and cultural history in Japan, Kyoto will leave you breathless with its temples, gardens, and its traditional courtyards. While you're there, attend an odori, or geisha dance performance, and be enchanted by the floating movements of these kimono-clad women.

Day 8-9 Mt Fuji

Visit one of the world's most famous mountains. Get lost in the throngs of pilgrims, families, and school groups who come to make the ascent.

Day 10-11 Takayama Festival

Massive floats, lanterns, and marionettes highlight this autumn festival. The dozen or so floats are displayed throughout the day time in the streets of this quiet city. Most are decorated with karakuri, sophisticated mechanical dolls that can move and dance. In the evening, yatai floats are lined up and once the town becomes veiled in the evening darkness, and as many as 100 chochin lanterns are lit on each of the floats as they parade through town.