Tōkasan is Hiroshima's oldest and largest festival, dating back 380 years to the founding of the Sumiyoshi Shrine in the heart of the city. It officially marks the start of summer and draws around one million visitors over three evenings, with the tradition of wearing yukata (summer kimono) so strong that Hiroshima effectively transforms into a sea of colourful cotton robes. The covered shopping streets of Nagarekawa and Hondori fill with food stalls, dance performances, and the warm glow of paper lanterns.
- Type
- Festival
- Category
- Matsuri
- Season
- Summer
- Month
- Early June
- Region
- Chugoku
- Prefecture
- Hiroshima
- City
- Hiroshima
Highlights
- ◆One million visitors over three evenings
- ◆City-wide yukata-wearing tradition
- ◆380-year-old festival history
- ◆Vibrant food stalls through covered arcades
- ◆Traditional dance and mikoshi processions