Sanja Matsuri Guide: Tokyo's Wildest Festival, from Inside a Neighborhood Team

Sanja Matsuri is Asakusa's biggest festival, and one of the loudest and most exciting in Japan. For three days in May, the streets fill with portable shrines (mikoshi) carried by hundreds of people shouting in rhythm.

I'm not a tourist at this festival. I have taken part for five years as a member of my neighborhood association's youth group. This guide is what I tell friends who want to see it.

When is Sanja Matsuri?

It is held over a Friday, Saturday and Sunday in mid-May at Asakusa Shrine, next to Sensoji. For 2027, Asakusa Shrine lists May 14–16. The shrine notes that the schedule may change, so check closer to the date.

What happens on each day

• Friday: a procession and traditional performances open the festival.
• Saturday: the neighborhood day. Around a hundred mikoshi from the local neighborhoods are carried through the area, and in the afternoon each is carried around its own streets. If you want to see the most mikoshi, this is your day.
• Sunday: the shrine's three main mikoshi leave Asakusa Shrine early in the morning and travel through the neighborhoods all day before returning in the evening. The departure is intense and very crowded.

What it is like from the inside

Each neighborhood has its own mikoshi, its own happi coats and its own way of doing things. Weeks of preparation go into those three days: cleaning and decorating the mikoshi, organizing who carries when, food and drink for the members, and safety. When you see a neighborhood mikoshi go past, you're seeing a whole community that has worked together for months.

How to watch respectfully

• Give mikoshi space. They are heavy, they swing, and they change direction suddenly. Stay on the side of the road and follow staff instructions.
• Don't try to join in or touch the mikoshi. Carrying is for registered members.
• Ask before photographing people up close. Wide shots of the crowd are fine. Close-ups of individuals are different.
• Never climb on anything to get a better view.
• Bring cash and water. Food stalls line the streets, and it is often hot in May.

Best viewing tips

• Arrive in the morning on Saturday and walk the backstreets, where neighborhood mikoshi pass by in quieter streets.
• The area right in front of Asakusa Shrine is the most crowded and can be closed off.
• Book your hotel early. Rooms in Asakusa sell out and prices rise for festival weekend.

Check Asakusa hotels for festival weekend

Want to see Asakusa on a normal day too? Start with my one-day Asakusa itinerary.

Festival dates from Asakusa Shrine's official website, checked in November 2026.