murmurAmakusa Hondo Haiya Festival
Amakusa City · Hondo Port, National Route 324 (Amakusa City Hall to Amakusa Shinkin Bank head office) and Amakusa Civic Center
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Amakusa Hondo Haiya Festival Executive Committee · Last checked: Oct 10, 2026
Dates
Dates not confirmed
- 2026
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually late July
- How the date is set
- Changes from year to year Made up of a children's dance, fireworks and a stage show in late July, plus the main street dance parade on a Saturday around the turn of July and August; dates are announced each year by the organizing committee
- Venue
- Hondo Port, National Route 324 (Amakusa City Hall to Amakusa Shinkin Bank head office) and Amakusa Civic Center
- City
- Amakusa City, Kumamoto
About
Hondo in Amakusa celebrates summer with a festival run every year by a local organizing committee. The dance at its heart comes from Haiya-bushi, a folk song believed to have originated in Ushibuka; the name is thought to come from hae, the southerly wind of early spring, and sailors aboard coastal trading ships spread the song across Japan. The Hondo festival traces back to a Haiya street dance staged to mark the opening of the Amakusa Five Bridges. Since 1998 the big street dance has followed National Route 324 from City Hall to the Amakusa Shinkin Bank head office, with judges awarding the Haiya Grand Prize. There is also a children's Haiya by nursery and kindergarten kids, a dance showcase at the Amakusa Civic Center and fireworks at Hondo Port, including a 1.5-shaku shell. In 2026 the street dance was dropped because of the Kumamoto earthquake.
Sources
- OfficialAmakusa Hondo Haiya Festival Executive Committee haiya.org
- OfficialAmakusa Takarajima Tourism Association www.t-island.jp
- Reference8/1（土）ハイヤ道中総踊り 中止のお知らせ（天草ほんどハイヤ祭り実行委員会） haiya.org
- Referenceハイヤ祭りの歴史（天草ほんどハイヤ祭り実行委員会） haiya.org
- Reference2026踊りの競演（天草ほんどハイヤ祭り実行委員会） haiya.org
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.