Katakai Fireworks Festival片貝まつり · Katakai Matsuri

When it is held

The Katakai Festival (片貝まつり, Katakai Matsuri) is officially the offering fireworks of the Asahara Shrine autumn grand festival (浅原神社秋季例大祭奉納大煙火), held in Katakai-machi, a town in Ojiya, Niigata Prefecture. Since 2024 it has taken place on the second Saturday of September and the Friday before it; in 2026 that meant September 11 and 12. The older fixed dates of September 9 and 10 no longer apply.

If the rule holds, the 2027 festival falls on September 10 and 11, but those dates have not been announced yet.

Fireworks as offerings

Katakai's fireworks are offerings to Asahara Shrine, and townspeople dedicate shells to mark events in their own lives. About 15,000 shells go up over the two nights, and 70 to 80 percent of them are large shakudama (尺玉), one-shaku shells about 30 cm across.

The headline shell is the yonshakudama (四尺玉), a four-shaku shell, launched at 10 pm on both nights. It bursts to about 800 m across. According to Ojiya City, Katakai launched the world's first three-shaku shell in 1891 and its first four-shaku shell on September 10, 1985.

The 2026 program

The shows ran from 7:30 to 10:20 pm on both nights. Three-shaku shells went up at 8:30 and 9:30 pm on September 11, and at 2 pm (a daytime shot) and 9 pm on September 12, ahead of the four-shaku shell at 10 pm each night.

Rituals

The festival keeps rituals tied to the shrine, including tama-okuri (玉送り), carrying the shells to the shrine, and tsutsu-hiki (筒引き), hauling a launch tube. The fireworks go ahead rain or shine and are postponed only in storms.

Echigo's three great fireworks

Katakai is counted among the three great fireworks of Echigo, the old name for Niigata, with Nagaoka, known for its river fireworks, and Kashiwazaki, known for its sea fireworks. Katakai is the mountain fireworks of the three. The festival draws an estimated 180,000 to 200,000 people.

Getting there and seats

• Buses run to Katakai from Ojiya Station (about 20 minutes) and Nagaoka Station (about 30 minutes).
• Paid sajiki (桟敷) seats cost 33,000 yen for both days or 25,300 yen for one day in 2026.
• The fireworks association publishes each year's program, including the times of the three- and four-shaku shells, on its official site.

Tips

• The four-shaku shell is the moment most people come for; be in place well before 10 pm.
• Check the official program for the year before you go: the times of the three-shaku shells change from year to year.