A month of neighbourhood ritual, heirloom display, shrine movement and monumental floats whose night streets often reveal more than the parade grandstand.
What you’re here for
- Yoiyama - the streets close and become a night market
- Pontocho after
Where to stay
- Gion and Higashiyama, booked far ahead
- Downtown Kyoto near Karasuma
What to eat
- Kaiseki, if you booked
- yakitori on Pontocho
- hamo, which is the July fish
Know before you go
- Book central Kyoto with cancellation; paid parade seats and the detailed city guide release closer to July
- The Yoiyama evenings before each parade are the better experience - the parades themselves are slow and very hot
- July in Kyoto is brutally humid. This is the one real cost
The practical bits
when is gion matsuri
Typically All July; the parades on the 17th and 24th. Next edition: 1 July 2027. Dates are set.
what is yoiyama
A month of neighbourhood ritual, heirloom display, shrine movement and monumental floats whose night streets often reveal more than the parade grandstand.. Typically All July; the parades on the 17th and 24th.