murmurSakura Autumn Festival
Sakura City · Makata Shrine and around Shinmachi-dori Street (festival plaza)
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Chiba Prefectural Tourism & Local Products Association (Chiba Tourism Navi) · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Oct 9–11, 2026 （Ended） 15:00–22:00
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually mid October
- How the date is set
- The 2nd Friday of October Runs from the second Friday of October through Sunday; roads around the venue are closed to traffic
- Venue
- Makata Shrine and around Shinmachi-dori Street (festival plaza)
- City
- Sakura City, Chiba
About
In Sakura, a former castle town, this autumn festival giving thanks for the harvest has been passed down for more than 300 years since the Edo period. Makata Shrine is joined by the parish neighborhoods of Atago, Shinmei and Hachiman shrines, making it a festival of 4 shrines together. More than 20 floats, mikoshi and dance stages called omikisho travel streets once lined with samurai residences, and the floats being pulled through the evening with their lights glowing are a special sight. The procession of the Makata Shrine mikoshi, one of the largest in Chiba Prefecture, rings with Sakura-bayashi music and the chant "essa no korasa no essassa." The float figures, purchased in the Meiji era and designated cultural properties of Sakura City, can be viewed at the Ohayashi-kan hall and at each neighborhood's float station. In 2026, after heavy-rain damage, the festival was held on a smaller scale with part of the program changed.
Sources
- OfficialChiba Prefectural Tourism & Local Products Association (Chiba Tourism Navi) maruchiba.jp
- OfficialSakura Autumn Festival Executive Committee sakura-maturi.jp
- OfficialSakura Autumn Festival Executive Committee sakura-maturi.jp
Last checked: Oct 11, 2026. Event information is based on official announcements, but changes may not always be reflected here. Please check each official website for accurate details.
Other events this month
On the day, see what locals are murmuring on the murmur map
murmur is an app that shows short, anonymous posts on a map, right where they were written. On festival day, open the map around the venue and see what people nearby are saying.