Gion Matsuri
祇園祭
1–31 July 2027
Kyoto
These dates repeat every year, so they are what to expect in 2027 rather than dates the organiser has announced yet — this page is updated as soon as it confirms them. Last held 1–31 July 2026.
Gion Matsuri fills the whole of July in Kyoto. It is the festival of Yasaka Shrine, held for well over a thousand years, and it unfolds as a series of rites, rehearsals and street evenings that culminate in the Yamahoko Junko, the parade of towering wooden floats through the downtown grid. Some of the floats stand as tall as a building and are hung with tapestries from Persia, Belgium and China acquired by the merchant families who still maintain them.
The festival has two halves. The Saki Matsuri parade on 17 July is the larger, leaving Shijo-Karasuma at 9:00 and turning along Kawaramachi and Oike. The Ato Matsuri parade on 24 July is smaller and more sedate. Before each, the floats are assembled in their home streets and the neighbourhood opens up for the Yoiyama evenings, when the lanterns are lit, families display heirlooms in their front rooms and the streets around Shijo become a pedestrian sea of yukata. The Yoiyama nights of 14 to 16 July are the most atmospheric part of the whole month.
Book Kyoto accommodation many months ahead for the middle of July, and expect heat and humidity. The float district is within walking distance of Karasuma and Kawaramachi stations, and the parade route is lined with free standing room that fills early. If the procession's crush is not for you, the Yoiyama nights let you walk right up to the floats, and the quieter rites through the rest of the month reward anyone staying longer.
- 14–16 July: Yoiyama evenings, floats lit and streets pedestrianised
- 17 July: Saki Matsuri procession, departing Shijo-Karasuma at 9:00
- 21–23 July: second set of Yoiyama evenings, smaller and quieter
- 24 July: Ato Matsuri procession