Somewhere in Asakusa a crowd is chanting in rhythm, shoulders pressed under long wooden poles, and a gilded portable shrine is swaying above their heads like a boat on a swell. Drums answer from a side street, and the shopkeepers have come out to watch. Tokyo’s two great shrine festivals, Sanja Matsuri in Asakusa and Kanda Matsuri around Kanda Shrine, give you this scene, and which one you can catch depends on the year and the week.
Which big festivals does Tokyo hold?
Two shrine festivals stand out for travelers: Sanja Matsuri, held at Asakusa Shrine, and Kanda Matsuri, centered on Kanda Shrine. Both are matsuri, the Japanese word for a festival held in honor of a shrine’s kami (the deities or spirits worshipped at Shinto shrines). Both revolve around mikoshi, the portable shrines that are carried through the streets so the kami can visit the neighborhood.
They feel different. Kanda spreads across central Tokyo and gathers a very large number of mikoshi from the surrounding neighborhoods. One happens every year, the other only every second year, which is the first thing to settle when you plan.
Sanja Matsuri at Asakusa Shrine
Sanja Matsuri is one of the three largest Shinto festivals in Tokyo, and it fills Asakusa for three days, Friday to Sunday. It draws between 1.5 and 2 million locals and tourists every year, so the streets around the shrine carry the mood of a neighborhood party that has grown very large. Lanterns, banners and the sound of flutes and drums mark the district, and the lanes around the shrine fill with food stalls selling the usual festival snacks, such as grilled skewers, sweet treats on sticks and shaved ice.
The heart of it is the final day. Three mikoshi owned by Asakusa Shrine appear then, and they are the festival’s main attraction. Each needs approximately 40 people to carry it safely, and about 500 people take part in carrying each shrine through the day, passing the poles from one group to the next.
You will hear the shouts of the bearers long before the shrine comes around a corner, and you will see the mikoshi tilt and bounce with each step. Bearers wear short festival coats called happi, and many neighborhood groups march in matching colors.
Kanda Matsuri around Kanda Shrine
Kanda Matsuri began in the early 17th century as a celebration of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s decisive victory at the battle of Sekigahara. Today it is also held in honor of the kami of Kanda Myojin, the shrine’s formal name. The shrine is the center, yet the festival does not stay there: it takes place at Kanda Shrine and in surrounding central Tokyo districts, so the parade passes through streets of offices, shops and old neighborhoods rather than through one single tourist quarter.
The parades are prominent and varied. They involve over 200 mikoshi, in addition to musicians, dancers and floats. That mix gives Kanda a more processional feel than Sanja: you watch a long procession of costumes, music and shrines go by, with each group arriving in its own style. It is a festival for people who like to see a whole city turn out in its traditional dress for a weekend.
When are they?
Sanja Matsuri takes place over a Friday, Saturday and Sunday, usually in May, while Kanda Matsuri is held on the Saturday and Sunday preceding May 15, but only in odd-numbered years. The two festivals are tied to the calendar differently, and that is why a trip planned around one of them needs a quick check of the year.
| Festival | Place | Days | Which years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanja Matsuri | Asakusa Shrine | Friday to Sunday | Every year |
| Kanda Matsuri | Kanda Shrine and surrounding central Tokyo districts | Saturday and Sunday preceding May 15 | Odd-numbered years only |
Why Kanda comes every other year
Kanda Matsuri alternates with the Sanno Matsuri, another of Tokyo’s great shrine festivals, and the two take turns. The result is that Kanda appears only in odd-numbered years. In an even-numbered year the neighborhoods that would have carried their mikoshi through Kanda wait for the next round, and the festival calendar of the city looks quieter for it.
If you are planning a spring trip, count the years first. In an odd-numbered year you can choose between Kanda and Sanja, and since Kanda is anchored to the weekend before May 15, the two festivals fall in the same general stretch of the season. In an even-numbered year Sanja is the one that is held, and it is a festival worth building a visit around on its own.
How Sanja fits into the week
Sanja runs for three days and gives each day its own character. Friday belongs to the grand procession, Saturday and Sunday add geisha performances, and the third day, when the three Asakusa Shrine mikoshi appear, is the climax. A traveler who has only a day to give will see a different festival on each of them, so it helps to decide which of those scenes you most want before picking a day.
Because the festival is held on a Friday to Sunday, it lines up neatly with a weekend away. Those who can be in Asakusa for the whole span get the procession, the performances and the shrine-carrying in one stay. The date of the weekend shifts from one spring to the next, so confirm it before booking anything tied to it.
How do you watch them?
You watch them by standing along the route and letting the festival come to you, since the processions and the mikoshi move through the streets, and for Sanja there is also a ticketed geisha performance. Most of the festival is free to see from the street, and the details below tell you where each part happens and when.
| Event | Day | Time | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daigyoretsu grand procession | Friday | Starts at 1 p.m. | From Yanagi Street and Nakamise-dori to Asakusa Shrine |
| Geisha performances (ticket required) | Saturday and Sunday | 1 to 3 p.m. | Second floor of the Asakusa Kenban |
The Friday procession
On Friday the Daigyoretsu grand procession sets out from Yanagi Street and Nakamise-dori and makes its way to Asakusa Shrine. Nakamise-dori is the shop-lined approach to the temple area, so the procession walks through a street that already looks like a festival, with stalls and souvenir shops on both sides. It is a good way to see the costumes and the music of the festival before the energy of the final day.
A procession is slower and more formal than the carrying of the shrines. You watch people in traditional dress go by, listen to the instruments and follow the line toward the shrine. Standing along Nakamise-dori puts you in the middle of the setting, and walking alongside it toward the shrine lets you see where it ends.
Geisha performances on Saturday and Sunday
On Saturday and Sunday, geisha performances take place on the second floor of the Asakusa Kenban, and these shows require visitors to purchase tickets. Geisha are trained performers of traditional dance and music, and a performance gives you a seat and a stage instead of a spot on the pavement. It is a calmer counterpart to the noise in the streets, set in the same festival weekend.
Because the shows are ticketed, they are a separate decision from the rest of the festival. If the street scenes are what you came for, you can see them without a ticket. If you want to sit and see the dance, plan for the ticket as part of your weekend and look it up before you travel.
The mikoshi on the final day
The three Asakusa Shrine mikoshi appear on the third and final day, and they are what people picture when they think of Sanja. Watch how the carriers work together: the shrine is lifted, shaken and pushed forward by a team, then the poles pass to fresh shoulders. The chants set the tempo, and the whole thing moves in surges rather than at a steady pace.
Spectators watch from the sides of the street, and the best habit is to stay out of the carriers’ way, since the shrines are heavy and the bearers are focused on the beat. Take photographs from the edge, let the shrine pass and follow the sound to the next corner. The stalls near the shrine are a natural place to pause between mikoshi.
Watching Kanda Matsuri
In an odd-numbered year, Kanda Matsuri offers its parades on the Saturday and Sunday preceding May 15, at Kanda Shrine and in the central Tokyo districts around it. The parade brings together mikoshi, musicians, dancers and floats, so a good spot along the route lets you see all of those pass in turn. The shrine itself is where the festival is anchored, and it is a sensible place to begin.
Since the festival spreads over several districts, you will not see everything from one corner. Choose a stretch of street, watch what comes, and then move toward the shrine if you want to see where the parade gathers. The rhythm is that of a city festival: long, colorful and loud, with groups from different neighborhoods arriving in their own colors.
Good to know before you go
Both festivals are Shinto celebrations held at working shrines, so the habits of a shrine visit carry over: bow lightly at the gate, keep voices friendly rather than loud when you are not in the middle of the cheering, and give the carriers room. Festival days are a good time to carry some cash for snacks at the stalls, and to wear comfortable shoes for standing along a route. Spring weather in Tokyo can bring rain, so a compact umbrella is a sensible companion for a day outdoors.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Kanda Matsuri (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanda_Matsuri), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Sanja Matsuri (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanja_Matsuri), checked October 11, 2026
To plan your stay
- Japan Rainy Season (Tsuyu): Dates, Regions and How to Plan Your Trip
- Seasons in Japan: Blossoms, Fall Color, Snow Festivals and Summer Matsuri
- Typhoon Season in Japan: When It Hits, Which Regions Take the Brunt and How the Warning Alerts Work
- Autumn Leaves Dates by City: Usual Maple Dates, 2025 Results and How Much They Shift