murmurSakata Sea of Japan Winter Cod Festival
Sakata City · Nakamachi Mall, Nakadori shopping street, Miraini by Sakata Station and Sakata Seafood Market
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Yamagata Prefecture Tourism Association · Last checked: Oct 10, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Sun, Jan 25, 2026 （Ended）
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually late January
- How the date is set
- The last Sunday of January
- Venue
- Nakamachi Mall, Nakadori shopping street, Miraini by Sakata Station and Sakata Seafood Market
- City
- Sakata City, Yamagata
About
On the last Sunday of every January, Sakata celebrates its signature winter dish, kandara-jiru: a hearty miso soup in which the whole Pacific cod — flesh, bones and innards — is simmered in giant pots. Stalls are set up around Nakamachi Mall, the Nakadori shopping street, the area in front of the station and Sakata Seafood Market, and there is nothing quite like a steaming bowl eaten outdoors as snow drifts down. A bowl costs 800 yen.
Sources
- OfficialYamagata Prefecture Tourism Association yamagatakanko.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.