Hokkaido · Hokkaido · Hakodate
Hakodate Port Festival
函館港まつり
Begun as the first anniversary of recovery from a catastrophic fire; now five days of residents walking their city.
Next
1–5 August 2027
278 days away
Every year, 1 August, for 5 days — If it rains, the opening fireworks move to the final day. If both parade days are rained off, a single parade runs on the fourth day, on the Jūjigai–Matsukaze route only.
Future dates: 1 August 2027 · 1 August 2028 · 1 August 2029
Origin
The first edition was held in 1935. A fire the previous year had burned through much of the city, and this festival marked the first anniversary of its recovery, held together with the ceremony that established the port’s commemoration day. It still counts its editions from the opening of the port. Its origin lies in a disaster; what it now consists of is mostly a parade its own residents walk in.
What to look for
A large parade known as “Wasshoi Hakodate”, and fireworks over the harbour. The parade runs on two days, taking a different route on each. The city’s own Ika Odori — the squid dance — moves through the streets in matching happi coats, and its steps are plain.
How to watch
Stay out of the parade’s line of travel. On the fireworks night, foot traffic around the harbour moves essentially one way, so decide your route back before you settle in. The festival occupies a long stretch of the city, and the road closures are correspondingly wide.
If you go
**Events fall in the first three days; the remaining two are held as rain cover.** The fireworks open it; the parade takes the next two days on different routes, so seeing both is not a repeat. Hakodate is around four hours by rail from Sapporo, so plan to stay rather than day-trip. August here is cooler than an inland Honshū city.
Where
Central Hakodate
Hakodate, Hokkaido
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