Access to Sendai[Nearest Station]JR Sendai Station, VenueFestival Square (Kotodai Park)3-9 Honmachi, Aoba ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture*Take the Sendai City Subway to Kotodai Koen Station. They each have different meanings. Hotels near Tanabata Museum: (0.66 mi) Hotel Sealuck Pal Sendai (0.79 mi) Castle Inn Sendai (3.92 mi) Hotel Metropolitan Sendai East (4.32 mi) The Westin Sendai (3.83 mi) Hotel Vista Sendai; View all hotels near Tanabata Museum on Tripadvisor The Sendai version, touted as one of the three major summer festivals in the Tohoku region, is the most famous of them all. Copyright © Japan National Tourism Organization. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. The event is so famous that it is known as one of the Three Great Festivals of Tohoku, along with by Akita's Kanto Festival and Aomori's Nebuta Festival. At the Kotodai Park, this is a corner where anyone can experience making small-scale sized Nanatsu Kazari decorations. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. The most famous is the Sendai Tanabata Festival (6-8 August, Thursday to Saturday in 2020).Traveling to Sendai is easy using your Japan Rail Pass, it takes around two and a half hours from the capital.The Tokyo Tanabata Festival is also a grand affair.. Book your Japan Rail Pass now According to /tanabata-story-of-two-star-crossed-lovers">ancient legend, wishes come true during Tanabata, which occurs on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. For example, a wastebasket represents cleanliness in the household, while a net is displayed in hopes of a plentiful catch at sea. It is said that the Sendai Tanabata Festival was started by the regions leader Masamune Date approx. Many events are held throughout the city during the festival. Planner & editor. For details, see here (English). Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies do not store any personal information. The decorations are judged on … 400 years ago as a way to endorse the Tanabata holiday rituals and to pray for a rich harvest as well as advancement of the arts. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. The gorgeous Sasakazari of the center city shopping district, the simple and traditional ones that cover the shopping streets of the surrounding communities, they all entertain the eyes of the city's visitors as representations of summer, adding a hint of refreshment. By train, take the Tohoku Shinkansen to Sendai Station from Tokyo, which arrives in an hour and 40 minutes. We use cookies on this site to enhance your user experience. Held annually from August 6 th -8 th , the main feature of the festival are thousands of colorful decorations, representing the threads of a weaving loom, that are hung in downtown shopping arcades. Seemingly out-of-place symbolic items are incorporated into the designs. The Fukinagashi, the most eye-catching decoration, represents the weaving yarn in the Tanabata legend of Orihime, and is a charm for the improvement in the arts. What is the Tanabata festival. Air is the fastest option to reach Sendai at just over one hour, but the most costly as well. People walk down the shopping arcades filled with huge, vividly colored handmade streamers in their finest summer kimono. Sendai Tanabata Festival is a beautiful summer tradition held every year between August 6 to 8 in Sendai, a central city in Japan's Tohoku region. 400 years ago as a way to endorse the Tanabata holiday rituals and to pray for a rich harvest as well as advancement of the arts. The Sendai Tanabata Matsuri runs from August 6 to 8, one month later than most of the rest of Japan. About the festival. Via highway bus, you'll find numerous buses throughout the day. It is said that the Sendai Tanabata Festival was started by the regions leader Masamune Date approx. Tanabata – literally meaning the ‘7th evening’ is a festival celebrated on different dates throughout Japan. Please take your time and take in the summer in Sendai to your heart's content. A whole city decorated with colorful wishes. The princess's strict father now only allows the couple to meet on the seventh day of the seventh month once a year if they work hard. By continuing to use our site you agree to our. *NOTICE: Due to concern over coronavirus, the Sendai Tanabata Festival has been suspended for 2020. There are pamphlettes and interpreters at the Tanabata Tourism Information desks set up at different locations around the city including the Sendai Station. All designs feature a large paper ball with sturdy streamers hanging low enough to touch and walk through. The Sendai Tanabata Matsuri runs from August 6 to 8, one month later than most of the rest of Japan. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Tanabata is a centuries-old tradition in Japan, born from a story about the doomed romance between the weaving princess Orihime (Vega) and the cow-herding Hikoboshi (Altair). 2 million people are expected to visit the festival over three days, traffic and crowds are unavoidable. An ancient legend of star-crossed lovers Orihime and Hikoboshi that predates the tale of Romeo and Juliet is the backstory to Tanabata. That day is Tanabata. Stage performances, live music, and entertainment, The big streamers, which are several meters tall. The biggest Tanabata festival in all of Japan. These will take roughly six and a half hours depending on traffic. The area is easily accessed via Hirosedori or Kotodaikoen subway station and a … The Sendai Tanabata Festival is known for its gorgeous, colorful decorations on display across the entire downtown area of Sendai. The special characteristic of this festival is the Sasakazari decorations that fill the city of Sendai. Approximately 16,000 fireworks are set off from the shores of the Hirose River which flows through central Sendai. Share your travel photos with us by hashtagging your images with #visitjapanjp, 1-10-10 Chuo, Aoba-ku, Sendai-shi, Miyagi-ken. Supporters Association for Sendai Tanabata Festival (Office: Sendai Chamber of Commerce and Industry). The best ways to get to Sendai from Tokyo are via bullet train, air, or highway bus. One old custom of the Japanese Tanabata holidays is to write one's wishes or short poems on a Tanzaku decoration and decorate it in hopes of having either the wish come true or to pray for one's improvement in the arts. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. At the Sendai Tanabata Festival, it is tradition to decorate the Nanatsu Kazari, or Seven Decorations. The most well-known celebration of Tanabata is held in Sendai and is one of the festivals we visited on our Tohoku road trip.