By Harry Nara · Last updated
- Where
- Kyoto Imperial Palace to Heian Jingu Shrine
- Tickets
- Free
- Time of year
- October
- Dates
- Around the same dates every year
Held on 22 October every year, the anniversary of the transfer of the capital to Kyoto. Heavy rain postpones the procession to the following day.
Watching is free and you do not need a seat, but you do need to know that the procession takes about two hours to pass any single point and that the published times refer only to the front of it. Stand anywhere along the route between the Imperial Palace and Heian Jingu, work out roughly when the front reaches you, and arrive before it. Paid grandstand seats exist and are worth it only if you want the beginning at the palace.
What Jidai Matsuri actually is
One of the three great festivals of Kyoto, alongside the Aoi Matsuri in May and the Gion Matsuri in July, and the youngest of them by a long way. It was created in 1895 for the eleven hundredth anniversary of the founding of the city, and moved the following year onto the anniversary of the day the capital was transferred to Kyoto, where it has stayed ever since.
The procession carries the spirits of Emperor Kanmu, who moved the capital here, and Emperor Komei, the last emperor to rule from the city, in sacred carriages from the Imperial Palace back to Heian Jingu. Around it walk roughly two thousand people in the dress of eight historical periods, arranged in reverse chronological order, so the parade moves backwards through Japanese history from the Meiji Restoration of 1868 to the Enryaku era of the late eighth century. There are about seventy horses and oxen, and some twelve thousand costumes and ceremonial items, researched and reproduced using period materials and techniques.
Where to watch Jidai Matsuri
- Kyoto Imperial Park, at the start. The procession forms here and departs around midday, and it is the only place you see the whole thing assembled rather than passing. It is also where the paid grandstand seating concentrates.
- Karasuma Oike and Kawaramachi Oike. Wide central streets with room to stand several deep, reached easily by subway, and far enough along that the procession has settled into its rhythm.
- Sanjo Ohashi, on the river. The bridge gives the procession a setting rather than a backdrop of shopfronts, and it is a good compromise between crowd and view.
- The approach to Heian Jingu. The last stretch, where the procession arrives in mid-afternoon. Quieter than the start, and it pairs naturally with visiting the shrine itself afterwards.
Tickets and what it costs
You do not need a ticket. The entire route is public street and watching from it costs nothing, which is how most people see it.
Paid grandstand seating is sold at a small number of points along the route, including at the Imperial Park where the procession forms. It buys you a guaranteed seat for a long event rather than a better view than the street offers, and it is genuinely useful if you want to watch the whole two hours from the beginning rather than standing.
Official information and booking: kyoto.travel/en/travel-inspiration/jidai-matsuri-festival
Getting there
The route is served end to end by the subway, which matters because the roads it uses are closed. Marutamachi and Imadegawa on the Karasuma line put you at the Imperial Park for the start, Karasuma Oike and Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae sit on the middle of the route, and Higashiyama on the Tozai line is the closest to Heian Jingu at the end.
The published timings give the arrival of the front of the procession at each point: the Imperial Palace at noon, Karasuma Oike around ten to one, Kawaramachi Sanjo at about half past one, and Heian Jingu at around half past two. Work backwards from whichever point you choose and add a margin, because the good standing positions fill before the front arrives.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Treating the published time as the whole event
Those times are when the front of the procession reaches each point. The full two-kilometre parade takes around two hours to pass, so arriving at the stated time means you catch the beginning and nothing before it.
Standing at the Imperial Park because it is first
It is the most crowded point and the most heavily given over to paid seating. Further along the route you will stand closer to the procession with fewer people around you.
Planning other sightseeing across the middle of the day
Central roads close for the route and the subway is the only reliable way to move. A Kyoto day built around this festival is built around it, not fitted in beside two temples.
Assuming it moves to a weekend
The date has been fixed since 1896 and does not shift for anyone or for the calendar. If it falls midweek, it falls midweek.
Not checking the weather the night before
Heavy rain postpones the procession by a day, which is a serious problem if the festival falls on your last day in the city.
Other Kyoto events
Frequently asked questions
When is Jidai Matsuri held?
On the same date every autumn, without exception for the day of the week, and the dates card above has it. It marks the anniversary of the transfer of the capital to Kyoto and has been fixed since 1896, the year after the festival was first held. Heavy rain is the only thing that moves it, postponing the procession to the following day.
Do you need a ticket for Jidai Matsuri?
No. The whole route is public street and watching from it is free, which is how the large majority of people see it. Paid grandstand seats are sold at a handful of points including the Imperial Park, and what they buy is a guaranteed seat for a long event rather than a materially better view.
Where is the best place to watch Jidai Matsuri?
Along the middle of the route rather than at either end. Karasuma Oike, Kawaramachi Oike and the Sanjo bridge over the river all have room to stand and are reached directly by subway. The Imperial Park is the most crowded and the most given over to paid seating; the approach to Heian Jingu at the end is the quietest.
How long does the Jidai Matsuri procession take?
About two hours to pass any single point, because the parade itself is roughly two kilometres long. The times published for each location refer only to the arrival of the front, so a stated time of half past one means the procession is still going past at half past three. Plan to stand for longer than you expect.
What is the Jidai Matsuri procession showing?
Japanese history in reverse. Around two thousand participants walk in the dress of eight historical periods, beginning with the Meiji Restoration of 1868 and working backwards to the Enryaku era of the late eighth century, accompanied by around seventy horses and oxen. Some twelve thousand costumes and ceremonial items are used, reconstructed with period materials and techniques.
Is Jidai Matsuri worth building a Kyoto trip around?
If you are in Kyoto in late October, yes, and you should plan the day around it rather than beside it, because the central roads close and the subway becomes the only dependable way to move. It is one of the three great festivals of the city, and the only one that sets out to show the whole span of its history at once.
Sources
Dates on this page are checked against the organiser’s own listing and confirmed through 2028. Written and maintained by Harry Nara.