Ryotsu Tanabata Festival & Kawabiraki

About This Event

Marching bands, children's floats, Ondeko drumming, and fireworks finale

A festival of Tanabata and the sea held in the Ryotsu-Ebisu and Ryotsu-Minato area, the gateway to Sado Island in Niigata. Said to have begun to commemorate Ebisu Port's designation as one of Japan's seven major ports in 1898, this historic festival runs two days from August 7 to 8, 2026. During the festival, marching bands, children's float parades, folk-song processions, and competitions of Ondeko, Sado's representative traditional drumming, fill the port town with energy. The finale is a grand fireworks display lighting up the night sky and the sea. Blending Tanabata decorations with a festival of the sea, it is an evocative summer tradition unique to Sado, drawing many visitors from on and off the island.