murmurWarei Grand Festival and Uwajima Ushioni Festival
Uwajima City · Warei Shrine, Kisaiya Road, Uwajima Bay and other sites
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Uwajima Ushioni Festival · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Jul 22–24, 2026 （Ended）
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually late July
- How the date is set
- Every year, July 22 – July 24 Held every year on July 22, 23 and 24
- Venue
- Warei Shrine, Kisaiya Road, Uwajima Bay and other sites
- City
- Uwajima City, Ehime
About
From July 22 to 24, Uwajima puts on one of Shikoku's biggest summer festivals. The creatures on parade are ushioni, ox-demons known across southern Ehime: a bamboo-framed body about 5 to 6 meters long with a long neck, a ferocious demon mask and a sword-like tail, all draped in red cloth or palm fiber. Dozens of young men carry each one, swinging its head from side to side, while children trail behind blowing bamboo horns called buyare. The 3 days are filled with fireworks over Uwajima Bay, the Gaiya Carnival, parades of children's and full-size ushioni and the Uwajima dance contest. It all ends on the final night with the hashirikomi of the Warei Grand Festival in the Sukagawa River, lit by torches. Events center on Warei Shrine, the Kisaiya Road arcade and Uwajima Bay.
Sources
- OfficialUwajima Ushioni Festival ushioni.gaina.ne.jp
- OfficialUwajima Tourism and Local Products Association www.uwajima.org
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.