murmurMarimo Festival (Lake Akan)
Kushiro City · Lake Akan and Akanko Onsen
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Kushiro & Lake Akan Official Tourism Site · Last checked: Oct 10, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Oct 8–10, 2026
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually early October
- How the date is set
- Changes from year to year A few days each October; dates are announced each year
- Venue
- Lake Akan and Akanko Onsen
- City
- Kushiro City, Hokkaido
About
Held on Lake Akan just as the autumn leaves begin to turn, this festival exists to protect marimo, which are designated a Special Natural Monument of Japan. At its heart are three solemn rites: welcoming the marimo, with dugout canoes floating on the lake, guarding the marimo, and finally sending them off. Everything takes place around the Akanko Onsen hot-spring area, and watching is free. 2026 marks the festival's 77th edition. The lake is about 80 minutes by car from Kushiro Station and about 60 minutes from Kushiro Airport. Enquiries go to the Akan Tourism Association.
Sources
- OfficialKushiro & Lake Akan Official Tourism Site ja.kushiro-lakeakan.com
Last checked: Oct 10, 2026. Event information is based on official announcements, but changes may not always be reflected here. Please check each official website for accurate details.
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.