★THE TRIP HYPE✦Japan’s now, delivered pop★MODERN VOYAGE & TECH✦Food · Shopping · Places · Know-How · Culture★THE TRIP HYPE✦Japan’s now, delivered pop★MODERN VOYAGE & TECH✦Food · Shopping · Places · Know-How · Culture

★THE TRIP HYPE✦Japan’s now, delivered pop★MODERN VOYAGE & TECH✦Food · Shopping · Places · Know-How · Culture★THE TRIP HYPE✦Japan’s now, delivered pop★MODERN VOYAGE & TECH✦Food · Shopping · Places · Know-How · Culture

Tag · Season

#Summer

June's rainy season through the end of August. This is when the big Tohoku festivals land, Akita Kanto (August 3-6) and Sendai Tanabata (August 6-8) among them, along with fireworks almost everywhere else. Expect coverage of the humidity and how to avoid heatstroke, kakigori (shaved ice) and summer-only menus, and what to wear if you're going out in a yukata.

71 articles

Feathered samba dancers and a float parading down Umamichi-dori at the Asakusa Samba Carnival

Asakusa Samba Carnival 2026: Dates, Parade Route & Free Viewing Spots

The Umamusume x KFC Japan collaboration set in its special-design packaging, with Original Recipe chicken, fries and the kobu-mayo dip

KFC x Umamusume 2026: Net Order Only, Booking Opens Aug 5

Food stalls and a stage at dusk on the Nippon Dental University field during Higako Summer Festival

Higako Summer Festival 2026: No Fireworks Display in Recent Years

Yosakoi dancers with naruko clappers at the Otesuji main venue in Kochi

Yosakoi Matsuri 2026, Kochi: Aug 9–12, Otesuji Seats from ¥1,000, Same-Day Only If Any Left

The character "dai" burning on the dark slope of Daimonji-yama above Kyoto

Kyoto Daimonji 2026: 4 Official Spots for the Aug 16 Okuribi Fires (8 p.m.)

A large shell bursting over the Omono River at the Omagari fireworks competition

Omagari Fireworks 2026 (Aug 29): Ticketed Seats Only, No Same-Day Sales, July 31 Cutoff

A bronze statue of an Awa Odori dancer beside a bridge over the Shinmachi River in Tokushima, with strings of red and yellow lanterns hung along the street under a blue sky.

Awa Odori Tokushima 2026: Tickets, Dates, and Paid vs Free Viewing

Hello Kitty x Sushiro collaboration sushi plates with collab picks

Hello Kitty x Sushiro 2026: How to Get the Collab Picks and Mascots (and the Stores Left Out)

Nagaoka Fireworks lighting up the night sky over the Shinano River

Nagaoka Fireworks 2026: Sold Out, No Free Seats (Resale Is Japan Residents Only) — Access and the Ride Home

Fireworks over the Edogawa riverbank at the Edogawa Fireworks Festival

Edogawa Fireworks Festival 2026: Paid Seats Close July 28, Plus Free Areas, Road Closures & Access

Dancers (ren) performing at a Koenji Awa Odori stage as crowds line the street on a summer evening

Koenji Awa Odori 2026: August 29–30, Paid Seats, Free Viewing & Road Closures

Mister Donut and Mrs. GREEN APPLE collaboration: three apple-shaped donuts and a parfait

Mister Donut × Mrs. GREEN APPLE 2026: Apple-Shaped Donuts, Prices, and How to Pre-Order

Large fireworks bursting in the night sky at the Todabashi Fireworks Festival, with colorful pink and teal blooms above the silhouettes of spectators gathered along the riverbank.

Todabashi Fireworks 2026: A 40–60 Minute Walk to the West Site, Gates at 4 p.m.

Fireworks bursting in the night sky at the Itabashi Fireworks Festival, with layered pink and white blooms scattering points of light against the darkness.

Itabashi Fireworks 2026: The Free Viewing Area Moved Upstream — Head for Takashimadaira Station

The Zama Sunflower Festival, where a sunflower-decorated arch frames a vast field of sunflowers stretching toward distant mountains under a blue sky.

Zama Sunflower Festival 2026: 550,000 Blooms & an Easy Day Trip from Tokyo

Starbucks Japan summer orange and mango drinks including the Orange & Mango Frappuccino

Starbucks Japan Orange & Mango Frappuccino: 3 Summer Drinks from ¥579 (July 22)

The exterior of Ueno Station under a clear blue sky, with the green "上野駅 UENO STATION" sign and a clock on the rooftop, showing the historic station building housing the atré retail complex.

Ueno Park One-Day Itinerary 2026: Time It Around the Morning Lotus

A three-photo composite of the three great festivals of Tohoku: the glowing lanterns of the Akita Kanto Festival (left), a giant warrior float from the Aomori Nebuta Festival (center), and colorful paper streamers at the Sendai Tanabata Festival (right).

Tohoku's Three Great Festivals 2026: How to See All Three, and Why Aomori and Akita Don't Fit in One Night

Rows of glowing paper lanterns strung on bamboo poles against the night sky at the Akita Kanto Festival, each brushed with kanji and clustered like ears of rice.

Akita Kanto Festival 2026 (August 3–6): Which Night to Go — Tickets, Food Stalls, Drone Show

Tanabata streamers at the Sendai Tanabata Festival, with rows of colorful decorative balls and long paper streamers hanging from a covered shopping arcade.

Sendai Tanabata Festival 2026: Dates Aug 6–8, Fireworks the Night Before on Aug 5

NEWSLETTER

Japan’s now, by email.

Straight to your inbox

New dispatches from Glos Travel — seasonal events, new openings, and the small finds worth a detour. One click to unsubscribe, any time.