Skip to content

Things to Do

Festivals & Events

Festivals & Events
Gion Matsuri Festival

Kyoto holds many cultural, artistic, and nature-related events throughout the year.
See which ones you will have a chance to experience during your upcoming trip.

*Please note that the displayed dates indicate only the start and the end date of an event. There may be days within that period when the event is not held. Please visit the official website linked below each entry for further details and latest information.

Featured Events

Search for Events

Search for articles

48 Results

New Year’s Feature Exhibition – Pony Tales: Celebrating the Year of the Horse
Important Art Object: Pair of Horse Tomb Figures

New Year’s Feature Exhibition – Pony Tales: Celebrating the Year of the Horse

16 Dec 2025 - 25 Jan 2026

Art / Music / Theater

Venue: Kyoto National Museum, Heisei Chishinkan Wing, Galleries 2F-1, 2, 3

Official Website See details (Japanese)
Feature Exhibition: Ogata Kōrin’s Karuta Playing Cards and the Konishi Family Archives
"Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Karuta" by Ogata Korin

Feature Exhibition: Ogata Kōrin’s Karuta Playing Cards and the Konishi Family Archives

16 Dec 2025 - 01 Feb 2026

Art / Music / Theater

Venue: Kyoto National Museum, Heisei Chishinkan Wing, Galleries 2F-4, 5

Official Website See details (Japanese)
SATOYAMA: Mitsuhiko Imamori’s Photo Exhibition

SATOYAMA: Mitsuhiko Imamori’s Photo Exhibition

02 Jan - 02 Feb 2026

Art / Music / Theater

Venue: Museum EKI Kyoto (adjacent to JR Kyoto Station and JR Kyoto Isetan's 7th floor)

Official Website See details (Japanese)

Main Events

Aoi Matsuri Festival

Aoi Matsuri Festival

May 15

A long-held procession from Kyoto Imperial Palace to two historic shrines, with 500 people in courtly Heian attire.

Read more
Gion Matsuri Festival

Gion Matsuri Festival

July 1-31

One of the three greatest festivals of Japan, when downtown Kyoto is lively with lavishly decorated festival floats.

Read more
Kyoto Gozan Okuribi Bonfires

Kyoto Gozan Okuribi Bonfires

August 16

Five mountains around Kyoto are lit up with bonfires as a send-off for ancestral spirits who visit during Obon.

Read more
Jidai Matsuri Festival

Jidai Matsuri Festival

October 22

This parade of roughly 2,000 participants dressed in period garb representing over 1,000 years of Kyoto’s history.

Read more
Aoi Matsuri Festival
Gion Matsuri Festival
Kyoto Gozan Okuribi Bonfires
Jidai Matsuri Festival

Seasonal Events

11 Secret Tips for Enjoying Kyoto: From a Local Taxi Driver
Areas Art & Culture Food & Drink Morning Tourism People
The Aoi Matsuri Festival Procession Sales Information: Parade Viewing Seats
Festivals & Events
Hinamatsuri Festival
Cultural Sites Festivals & Events
Lake Biwa Canal Cruise
Activities
Yamashina in Spring
Areas Cultural Sites Nature & Outdoors
Aoi Matsuri Festival
Festivals & Events
“Haru no Odori” – Spring Dance performances by maiko and geiko in 2025
Festivals & Events
Cherry-Picked Sakura Spots on the Edges of Kyoto
Areas Nature & Outdoors

You may also be interested in

Areas

Plan your trip around which area's sites and scenery call to you.

Go to this page

Seasonal Information

No matter what time of year you visit, special experiences await.

Go to this page

Our Partners

Porta Kyoto. Dining 55 shops. Shopping 166 shops. Direct access from Kyoto Station!
Another Kyoto
Hands-on Japanese Culture Experience