Chichibu Night Festival秩父夜祭 · Chichibu Yomatsuri

When it is held

The Chichibu Night Festival (秩父夜祭, Chichibu Yomatsuri) is the annual grand festival of Chichibu Shrine (秩父神社) in Chichibu, Saitama. It is held on the same dates every year: the eve, yoimiya (宵宮), on December 2 and the main day, taisai (大祭), on December 3. In 2026 these fall on a Wednesday and Thursday.

It is counted with Kyoto's Gion Matsuri and the Takayama Festival among Japan's three great float festivals (日本三大曳山祭), and Chichibu Shrine expects more than 200,000 people each year.

The floats

Six floats take part: two kasaboko (笠鉾), from Nakachika and Shitagō, and four yatai (屋台), from Miyaji, Kamimachi, Nakamachi and Motomachi. The heaviest weigh up to 20 tonnes. All six are National Important Tangible Folk Cultural Properties, and the float events together with the shrine's kagura are a National Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property. In December 2016 the festival was inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list as one of 33 float festivals in Japan.

The yatai double as stages. Stages built out from their sides host local kabuki (yatai shibai, Chichibu kabuki), and hiki-odori (曳き踊り) dances by local dance schools accompany the floats.

The two days

• December 2 (yoimiya): the four yatai tour the town until about 8 pm. It is the calmer day, with time to see the floats up close, and in the daytime visitors can sometimes help pull the ropes. In 2025 the Nakamachi yatai staged kabuki from 6 to 9 pm.
• December 3 (taisai): all six floats are out from early morning until the next morning. The festival peaks from around 7 pm, when the shrine procession and the floats leave Chichibu Shrine, until they reach the otabisho (temporary shrine) at about 10 pm. The climax is hauling the floats up the steep Dangozaka slope to the otabisho as fireworks burst overhead.

Fireworks

The fireworks are launched from Hitsujiyama Park. In 2025 about 370 shells went up from 7 to 8 pm on December 2, and about 4,100 from 7:30 to 9:55 pm on December 3.

Tips

• The Chichibu Tourism Association sells paid seats for watching the floats; 2026 details were due on October 10.
• Drones are banned during the festival.
• December nights in Chichibu are cold; dress for several hours outdoors.
• Large areas of the town are closed to traffic on December 3, and central car parks fill up, so come by train.

History

Records show the festival already existed in the Kanbun era (1661–1672), giving it more than 350 years of history. In the Edo period a Chichibu silk market was held with the festival, which earned it the name Okaiko Matsuri (お蚕祭り), the "silkworm festival"; locals also call it Myōken-sama (妙見様). The festival honors the shrine's deity Myōken. It was once held on the 3rd day of the 11th lunar month and moved to December 3 with the calendar reform of the Meiji era.