Best time to go to Japan

Sunakake Matsuri 2025

Have you ever dreamt of going back to your childhood and starting a sand fight?

Dates: February 11

Sunakake Matsuri

The Sand Fighting Festival is an event to pray for rain and good harvests. People dress in raincoats and plastic glasses to cover their eyes to get ready for all the fun. First, some men in traditional clothes take shovels and start throwing sand at all the participants. Then everyone joins in! It surely is a fun way to pray! The festivities happen at Hirose Shrine, Kawai Town in Nara Prefecture, some 70 km away from Kyoto.

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Last updated: by Eleonora Provozin