Kanda Matsuri

What to know

The next full edition of the Kanda Matsuri is scheduled for May 2027.

Held in mid-May, the Kanda Matsuri is one of Tokyo's three most famous festivals, alongside the Sanno Matsuri and Fukagawa Matsuri. The full version takes place only in odd-numbered years, while a simplified "shadow festival" occurs in even-numbered years, drawing little tourist attention. The festival spans a week, but the main events happen over the weekend closest to May 15. Highlights include a day-long procession through central Tokyo on Saturday and neighborhood parades of portable shrines (mikoshi) on Sunday.

The festival dates back to the Edo Period (1603–1867). When the Tokugawa shogun ruled from Edo (now Tokyo), the festival celebrated the prosperity of the new regime. The Kanda Matsuri and Sanno Matsuri were the only two festivals allowed to pass through Edo Castle grounds. Originally held annually, competition grew so intense that they were ordered to alternate years.

The Kanda Matsuri is the festival of Kanda Myojin Shrine, which enshrines three deities: Daikokuten (god of harvest and marriage), Ebisu (god of fishermen and merchants), and Taira Masakado (a 10th-century rebel lord revered as a deity). Over time, the festival became a celebration of wealth and good fortune.

On the evening before the main procession, Shinto rituals invite the spirits of the three deities into three ornately decorated mikoshi. These portable shrines are the centerpiece of Saturday's procession, paraded through Kanda, Nihonbashi, Otemachi, and Akihabara. Accompanying them are about a thousand participants, including musicians, priests on horseback, and people in colorful traditional costumes.

The procession leaves Kanda Myojin Shrine at 7:50 AM. Around 10:00 AM, a brief stop is made for prayers at the shrine's former grounds near the Tokyo Imperial Palace. It continues through Otemachi and Kanda before a lunch break around 1:10 PM. After resuming, it passes Nihonbashi Bridge and the Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi department store around 4:20 PM, then proceeds along Chuo-dori Street through Akihabara, returning to the shrine around 6:20 PM. Also on Saturday, a secondary procession starts at 3:00 PM near Arima Elementary School and heads north to Kanda Myojin Shrine in about two hours. This procession features crowd favorites like men on horseback in samurai armor, festival floats with characters from folk stories and pop culture, musicians, and dancers.