The shape of it
About
Another of Edo's three great festivals, staged in full only in odd-numbered years from Kanda Myōjin shrine near Akihabara. The week peaks with the Shinkō-sai, a day-long procession of priests on horseback and ornate floats winding roughly 30 km through Kanda, Nihonbashi and Marunouchi, followed by hundreds of neighbourhood mikoshi converging on the shrine.
Highlights
- Saturday Shinkō-sai: a near-1,000-strong procession with priests on horseback and golden mikoshi over a 30 km route
- Sunday Mikoshi Miyairi — 200-plus neighbourhood portable shrines converging on Kanda Myōjin to be blessed
- Route threads the modern districts of Akihabara, Nihonbashi and Marunouchi, mixing old Edo and corporate Tokyo
Plan it well
- Held only in odd years — if you miss 2027 the next full edition is 2029
- Kanda Myōjin is a 5-minute walk from Ochanomizu or Akihabara stations; combine with an Akihabara visit
- Catch the Saturday parade along Chuo-dori for the floats; Sunday near the shrine for the mikoshi crush
Where it happens
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