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Asakusa Sanja Matsuri - Tokyo Hotels .com

Asakusa Shrine

Visitors to Tokyo in search of some serious cultural excitement should try to catch a glimpse of the Sanja Matsuri (Sanja Festival), which is held from May 16 to 18 at Tokyo's Asakusa Shrine. The Sanja Matsuri is one of the "Three Great Festivals of Edo" (along with the Asakusa Sanja Matsuri Festival and the Sanno Matsuri at Hie Shrine), which date all the way back to Japan's glorious Edo period.

Attracting over one million people a year, it bears all the earmarks of an Edo festival. Although it may initially seem smaller than some comparable festivals (the Kanda Matsuri, for example, is much larger in terms of scale), the Sanja Matsuri has a reputation for being the wildest festival in all of Japan. For three days, the lively culture of Edo is reawakened as celebrants are treated to traditional music, theatrical performances, and dance.

The highlight of the festival is undoubtedly the grand procession, which takes place on May 16 amid boisterous celebrations. Another attraction is the purification ceremony, during which about 100 portable shrines are paraded to Ueno-Asakusa-Ryogoku.