murmurWakkanai Port and Antarctic Festival
Wakkanai City · Central arcade area, North Breakwater Dome Park and Wakkanai Fukko Market
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Kita Hokkaido DMO (Wakkanai, Rishiri and Rebun tourism) · Last checked: Oct 10, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Aug 1–2, 2026 （Ended）
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually early August
- How the date is set
- The 1st Saturday of August Usually held over the first Saturday and Sunday of August
- Venue
- Central arcade area, North Breakwater Dome Park and Wakkanai Fukko Market
- City
- Wakkanai City, Hokkaido
About
This two-day festival brightens the short summer in Wakkanai, known as the northernmost city. Visitors often ask why Wakkanai celebrates Antarctica rather than the Arctic. The answer: Taro and Jiro, the Sakhalin huskies that served in Antarctic research, came from here, and the first research ship, the Soya, was named after the local area. The event grew out of the Wakkanai Antarctic Festival, first held in 1961, and an older port festival. Expect two street dances, the Hokkai Teppen Odori and the Nankyoku (Antarctic) Odori, a big fireworks show of 2,500 shells, a local products fair and boat races, centered on the downtown arcade, the North Breakwater Dome and the Fukko Market.
Sources
- OfficialKita Hokkaido DMO (Wakkanai, Rishiri and Rebun tourism) www.north-hokkaido.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.
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.