Held every August 15–16, the Yamaga Tōrō Matsuri is one of Kumamoto's most beloved summer festivals. Its centrepiece is the Hyakka Ren dance, in which hundreds of women wearing white yukata perform slow, graceful choreography while balancing handcrafted gold-paper lanterns (tōrō) on their heads. The lanterns trace their origin to a legend in which villagers guided an emperor through fog using torches. The event draws tens of thousands of visitors to this small castle-town each year.
- Type
- Festival
- Category
- Matsuri
- Season
- Summer
- Month
- Mid-August
- Region
- Kyushu
- Prefecture
- Kumamoto
- City
- Yamaga
Highlights
- ◆Hundreds of dancers performing the Hyakka Ren with paper lanterns
- ◆Parade of illuminated lantern floats through historic streets
- ◆Communal lantern-making workshops open to visitors
- ◆Night-time atmosphere in the old castle-town district
- ◆Local food stalls serving Kumamoto specialities