Aoi Matsuri

This article is based on a visit made on Tuesday, 15 May 2018.

Edit 10 October 2019: Updated prices to reflect the increase in Japan's national sales tax.


The Aoi Matsuri (葵祭, lit. 'hollyhock festival'), also known as Kamo-no-Matsuri (賀茂祭), is an annual festival procession held in central Kyoto on the 15th of May.  It is one of Kyoto's three biggest festivals, alongside the Gion Matsuri in July and the Jidai Matsuri in October.  The festival's origins, although unclear, date to the 7th century AD, even before Kyoto became the capital city of Japan.  According to ancient texts, it came about in order to appease the Shinto gods of the Shimogamo and Kamigamo Shrines, who were believed to be responsible for a stretch of disastrous weather.

The procession starts from the Kyoto Imperial Palace (京都御所, Kyōto Gosho) at 10:30 in the morning.  At 11:15 AM it reaches Shimogamo Shrine (下鴨神社, Shimogamo Jinja), where it stays for ceremonies until 2:20 PM.  At this point, it departs for Kamigamo Shrine (上賀茂神社, Kamigamo Jinja), arriving at 3:30 PM and ending there.  It takes 45 to 60 minutes for the parade to pass by any given spot from its start to end.  There is paid seating at each of the three main destinations; for more information, read the Cost section at the end of this article.

For our part, we stayed at Kyoto Imperial Palace park to watch the parade there, and after it left the area, we went on our own way from Kyoto to our next destination.  The palace itself is the former home of the Emperor of Japan, until Emperor Meiji moved the seat of power to Tokyo in 1868.  Since then, the former palace has been open to the public.  Until recently, you could only visit as part of a free guided tour; whilst it is now possible to explore the complex without prior arrangement, English-language tours are still conducted today.  It is nestled in the middle of a vast, 89-hectare (220-acre) public park, which also includes a couple of Shinto shrines and the secondary Sento Imperial Palace.

The Aoi Matsuri parade starts from the palace complex down this long avenue, on its way through the park.  It consists of over 500 people, and the occasional draft animal, dressed in costumes of the Imperial court from the Heian period (AD 9th-12th centuries).  From the signs on these saddles, it looks like some real police officers joined in to help lead the procession in-character.

The rituals at the Kamo shrines include horse races and horseback archery.  I wonder if these men are taking part in any of that...?

The equipment and costumes of the procession incorporate leaves and petals of the hollyhock flower (shown atop this basket), for which the festival is named.

Hollyhock petals are also featured in the emblem of the Tokugawa clan (shown in the middle of this drum), the shoguns who ruled Japan during the Edo period.

Not all of the flowers featured during the procession were hollyhocks, but they still coordinated well with the many colours of the marchers' robes, from yellow...


...to white.

The weather that day was clear, sunny, and unusually warm, with temperatures in Kyoto reaching highs of over 30°C (86°F).  I'm sure this young lady appreciated the shade.  On the other hand, we in the paid seats were instructed to take down our own umbrellas when the parade started, so as not to block other peoples' views.  Good thing we had hats!

The centrepiece of the procession is a maiden known as the Saio (斎王, saiō).  In early traditions, the Saio was a young female member of the Imperial family who pulled double-duty as the priestess of the two Kamo shrines.  Nowadays, since 1956, the Saio selected for this function can be any unmarried woman from Kyoto.  The kimono worn by the Saio for this event is called a Junihitoe (十二単), named after the twelve pieces it is (nominally) comprised of.

Now that the role of Saio is open to the public, any one of these young girls could earn this prestigious honour.  I'd bet that's something to look forward to...!

Finally, on our way out, we met this charming fellow who, although not taking part in the parade itself, was dressed for the occasion and let us take his picture.  I have no idea whom he was, but I do hope he enjoyed himself that day!

Well, that's it for me for Kyoto.  Find out where we set up camp next, and how we got there, next time on Sekai Ichi!

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Hours: The festival parade takes place on the 15th of May, at the times listed earlier in this article.  In the event of inclement weather, the event will be held on the following 16th, and if that date gets rained out too, it will be cancelled for that year.

Cost: Paid seating is available at the Imperial Palace and Shimogamo Shrine for ¥2,700, and at Kamigamo Shrine for ¥1,000.  Tickets for the Imperial Palace and Shimogamo Shrine can be purchased through convenience stores and certain websites.  Tickets for Kamigamo Shrine must be purchased at the shrine itself, at noon on the festival day.  Seating with an English audio guide included is available only for the Imperial Palace, for ¥4,300.  These tickets can be purchased at the tourist information centres at Kyoto Station and Kyoto Tower.

When I attended the festival in 2018, I bought my tickets online from Voyagin (English).  For 2019, they cost US$31 for regular seating at the Imperial Palace and US$50 for seating with audio guides.  Tickets for Kamigamo Shrine go on sale at noon on the day of the festival, at the shrine itself.

Kyoto Imperial Palace

Address: 3 Kyōto-gyoen, Kamigyō-ku, Kyōto-shi, Kyōto-fu 〒602-0881

Access: The front gate of the Kyoto Imperial Palace park is 3 minutes on foot from Marutamachi Station, exit 1.  From Kyoto Station, take the Karasuma (K) subway line to Marutamachi (K07, 7 minutes, ¥260).

Shimogamo Shrine

Address: 59 Shimogamo Izumigawachō, Sakyō-ku, Kyōto-shi, Kyōto-fu 〒606-0807

Access: From Kyoto Station (stand A2), take bus #4 or #205 (anti-clockwise) to Shimogamo Jinja-mae (下鴨神社前, 30 minutes, ¥230).  Upon exiting the bus, the entrance to the shrine grounds will be on the left-hand side.

You can also walk to Shimogamo Shrine in 10-15 minutes from Demachi-Yanagi Station.  From Kyoto Station take the JR Nara (D) line to Tofukuji (D02, 2 minutes, ¥150, JR Pass OK), followed by the Keihan Main Line to Demachi-Yanagi (KH42, 11 minutes, ¥270).

Kamigamo Shrine

Address: 339 Kamigamo Motoyama, Kita-ku, Kyōto-shi, Kyōto-fu 〒603-8047

Access: From Kyoto Station, take bus #4 (stand A2) or #9 (stand B1) to Kamigamo Misonohashi (上賀茂御薗橋, 40-50 minutes, ¥230).  The shrine entrance is directly in front of the bus stop.

You can also walk to Kamigamo Station in 25 minutes from Kitayama Station.  From Kyoto Station, take the Karasuma subway line to Kitayama (K03, 15 minutes, ¥290).