Citta’ Matsuri Festival 2026

Citta’ Matsuri Festival is moving to June this year to kick off the summer with another of Kawasaki’s favorite annual celebrations. The three-night event is known for combining Japanese matsuri traditions with international flair, and this year, it’s taking things to another level.

What to expect

Held from June 19 to 21, Citta’ Matsuri Festival 2026 will coincide with the historic Inage Shrine Sannō Festival. In addition to the popular main stage performances and night market, this year’s event will feature energetic mikoshi (portable shrine) processions, vinyl DJs, and more.

Mikoshi processions

Mikoshi processions are a major highlight of traditional Japanese festivals and a big fixture of this year’s Citta’ Matsuri. Over the course of the weekend, the event will feature traditional mikoshi rituals, including a spirit transfer ceremony and a children’s mikoshi crawl-through for health and growth. Citta’ Matsuri’s signature pyrotechnics and lighting will add an extra touch of flair to the nighttime processions on Friday, and around 6 neighborhood mikoshi will gather prior to the main procession on Saturday afternoon.

Live performances

Each night, a new program of performances will take over the main stage. Expect to see Japanese taiko drums and traditional bon odori and awa odori dances as well as Brazilian beat performers, chindon-ya street entertainers, and a lion dance performance, to name a few. The main stage’s pyrotechnics have become a highlight of the festival, and the rotating roster of entertainment offers something new on each visit.

Night market

The festival’s yoichi night market will open from 11 a.m. this year, featuring over 100 stalls highlighting Japanese regional specialties and international street food. Hokkaido peach-flavored zangi fried chicken, Nagasaki Sasebo burgers, and Okinawan deep-fried kuruma prawns represent just some of the Japanese offerings.

Meanwhile, Korean cheese hot dogs, Hawaiian mochiko chicken, and Vietnamese-style grilled meat skewers are among the international options. If you’re feeling thirsty, stalls will be pouring a range of regional craft beer and gin.

Workshops and games

Interactive workshops invite visitors to get crafty by making uchiwa fans and lanterns from bamboo and washi paper. It wouldn’t be a summer matsuri without festival games, and shooting galleries and fishing stalls will be set up to keep you occupied.

On top of that, AKB48 members will make an appearance on Friday, June 19, to celebrate a new collaborative wall art project between the Kawasaki Brave Thunders basketball team and AKB48. The event will feature talk sessions about the project’s creation.

Mikoshi schedule

Here’s the schedule for the portable shrine activities over the weekend:

Friday, June 19

• 11:40 a.m.–12 p.m. — Spirit Transfer Ceremony
• 7:20 p.m.–7:40 p.m. — Mikoshi procession and children’s mikoshi procession
• 8:15 p.m.–8:40 p.m. — Mikoshi procession with pyrotechnics and lighting

Saturday, June 20

• 11 a.m.–11:15 a.m. — Children’s mikoshi procession
• 11:30 a.m. — Mikoshi display
• 12:50 p.m. — Departure ceremony for procession to Inage Shrine
• 5:30 p.m.–5:40 p.m. — Mikoshi procession
• 5:40 p.m. — Children’s mikoshi crawl-through ritual
• 7 p.m. — Mikoshi display at Arena Citta’

Sunday, June 21

• 11 a.m.–8:00 p.m. — Mikoshi display at Arena Citta’

How to get there

La Cittadella is a 5-minute walk from JR Kawasaki Station or a 7-minute walk from Keikyū Kawasaki Station.

Note: Images used in this listing are for illustrative purposes only.