In a snow house, Kamakura, the water god placed on an altar is enshrined, a traditional event is held on Koshogatsu (the first month of the lunar calendar) in Akita and Niigata. Kamakura festival is a traditional festival with a history of about 450 years held on the 15th and 16th every February at Yokote, Japan's leading heavy snowfall area, and this festival is the one of the five major snow festivals in Michinoku area.
There are four main sites. If you want to fully enjoy the atmosphere of a festival, go to the main city hall building of Yokote where you can see a lot of Kamakura and food stands, and the Yokote park is a good place to fully enjoy the original scenery of Japan. Cute small- sized Kamakura are built on the ground of Yokote- minami elementary school and Janosaki-kawara of Yokote riverbanks. An array of countless small Kamakura being lighted up is amazingly fantastic.
A free shuttle bus tours for 4 sites in 15-minute intervals on the days. Walking around between sites is possible because the distance is not so long but if you go out at night or on a heavy snowfall day, riding a bus is recommended.
Highlights
-
One of the five major snow festivals in the Michinoku area with a tradition of about 450 years.
-
The festival is held on the 15th and 16th every February at the main city hall building of Yokote and the other sites.
-
Use of a free shuttle bus to move the sites is recommended.
-
Cute small-sized Kamakura built on a school ground and riverbanks are popular.