During the Obon mid-August festival period, Noboribetsu Onsen hosts a fireworks display timed to coincide with the Bon Odori dancing festival, with shells fired so that they appear to burst directly above the smouldering Jigokudani (Hell Valley) volcanic crater. The sulphuric steam venting from the valley mingles visually with the falling sparks, creating an extraordinarily eerie and dramatic display unlike any other in Japan. Onsen town streets are lined with yukata-clad dancers, taiko drummers, and traditional stalls, while guests at nearby ryokan can view the fireworks from open-air hot spring baths overlooking the valley.
- Type
- Experience
- Category
- Fireworks
- Season
- Summer
- Month
- Mid-August
- Region
- Hokkaido
- Prefecture
- Hokkaido
- City
- Noboribetsu
Highlights
- ◆Fireworks appearing to explode above the volcanic Jigokudani Hell Valley
- ◆Sulphuric steam vents create a uniquely eerie, otherworldly visual effect
- ◆Obon Bon Odori dancing and taiko drumming in the onsen town streets
- ◆Viewable from open-air onsen baths at hillside ryokan
- ◆One of Japan's most unusual and atmospheric fireworks settings