Oshima Tanabata Festival (Munakata Taisha Nakatsugu)

Munakata Taisha Nakatsugu on Oshima Island off Munakata is said to be the birthplace of Japan's Tanabata legend: the stream through its grounds is called the 'Milky Way,' flanked by shrines to the Cowherd (Kengyu) and the Weaver (Shokujo). The Tanabata rite, said to date to the Kamakura period, is held on the month-delayed date of August 7, with decorations going up from around August 1. On the evening of the 7th, a special stage program and ceremony take place as the whole island takes on a magical air. Visitors in yukata ride the ferry back for free—an atmospheric island festival reached by boat from the Konominato terminal.