# Yamagata Hanagasa Matsuri

> A dance parade held on 5, 6 and 7 August every year in the centre of Yamagata city. Dancers with sedge hats decorated with flowers modelled on the safflower, the flower of Yamagata, go down a straight course from Tokamachi to the Bunshokan, calling out "Yassho, makasho".

- Prefecture: Yamagata
- Type: Dance
- Admission: Free to attend
- Typically held: 5, 6 and 7 August every year, whatever the day of the week, from 18:00 to about 21:45 each evening.
- Official site: https://www.hanagasa.jp/

## Dates

- 2027-08-05 to 2027-08-07
- Status: confirmed
- Dates verified on 2026-10-31 from https://www.hanagasa.jp/about/

The parade began as one event of the Zao summer festival, held in 1963, the 1,250th year since Mount Zao was opened as a sacred mountain, to promote Zao to visitors. It has been held on its own as the Yamagata Hanagasa Matsuri since 1965. Dancing at the 1970 Osaka Expo made it known across Japan, and since 1993 the festival office has been at the Yamagata Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The hanagasa is a sedge hat decorated with flowers made to look like safflowers. The dances fall into four kinds. The standard women's dance, Kunpu Mogamigawa, is meant to suggest the wind crossing the Mogami River and ears of rice swaying; the standard men's dance, Zao Gyoko, the dawn over the Zao mountains. In the kasa-mawashi style from Obanazawa, where hanagasa dancing began, the hat is swung round in big circles, and in the creative dances each group makes up its own. The parade runs from 18:00 to about 21:45 along a straight course through Tokamachi, Honcho and Nanokamachi to the Bunshokan. In 2024 the three evenings added up to about 9,800 dancers in 139 groups. Visitors can join in twice an evening, with no booking and in whatever they are wearing: in the opening ring dance at 18:10 in front of City Hall, near the end of the course, and in the tobiiri section at the back of the parade, which sets off around 20:30.

## Where it happens
- Yamadera
- Zao Onsen

## FAQ

### When is the Yamagata Hanagasa Matsuri?

On 5, 6 and 7 August every year, whatever the day of the week, from 18:00 to about 21:45 each evening. In 2027 that is Thursday to Saturday.

### Can visitors join the dance?

Yes, twice each evening, with no booking and in any clothes. The opening ring dance starts at 18:10 in front of City Hall, and simple hanagasa fans are handed out there. The tobiiri section at the back of the parade sets off around 20:30: it is led by Miss Hanagasa, and once you spot its placard you can join anywhere along the course. Groups of up to 20 can join either.

### Does the parade go ahead in the rain?

In light rain, yes. A sudden downpour or rain with thunder can cancel the parade or change the programme. If the organisers decide by 15:00 to cancel, they post it on the official website, and while they are still deciding they post updates there.

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Source: [Yamagata Hanagasa Matsuri — Japan Voyage](https://travel.japanvoyage.jp/festivals/yamagata-hanagasa-matsuri)
Last updated: 2026-10-31