Discover Hida: Festivals and Historic Streetscapes

Hida Furukawa is located in Furukawa-cho, Hida-shi. For a stay in Hida, you can choose your travel dates based on whether you want to focus on a festival held on fixed dates, the historic streetscape or seasonal scenes along the canal.

Getting to Furukawa and festival dates

You can reach Hida Furukawa by train from Takayama City. The journey from Takayama Station to Hida Furukawa Station on the Takayama Line takes about 15 minutes. Travel times and timetables may change, so check the connection before your trip.

The Furukawa Festival takes place every year on April 19 and 20 in Hida Furukawa. If you plan to travel on these dates, check that year's program in advance. The festival days are a distinct focus for a visit, while other traditions take place at a different time of year.

Festivals and living traditions

The events featuring the Okoshi-Daiko and the floats of the Furukawa Festival are designated as Important Intangible Folk Cultural Properties of Japan and inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. These designations apply to the specified components of the festival.

Santera Mairi is a tradition in Furukawa that dates back more than 200 years and takes place on the evening of January 15. Participants visit Enkoji, Shinshuji and Honkoji; the annual program may vary. On the calendar, Santera Mairi is well ahead of the Furukawa Festival in April, so the two traditions shape different travel periods.

The Hida Furukawa Festival Hall offers a chance to experience the Furukawa Festival year-round. This means you can explore the festival outside the event days in April. When planning, you can therefore choose between visiting during the annual festival days and staying at another time, with the Festival Hall providing a connection to the festival.

Canal, storehouses and seasonal scenes

Seto Canal and Shirakabe Dozogai Street are known for their white-plastered storehouses and historic townscape. The seasons also change the atmosphere: fresh greenery in spring, the sound of water in summer, autumn leaves and snowy scenery in winter. The streetscape therefore offers different things to see at different times of year, so you do not have to plan your visit around a single festival.

From April to November, koi are among the features of the area around Seto Canal and Shirakabe Dozogai Street. Visitors can feed the koi at Seto Canal; seasonal conditions may vary. If you are particularly interested in the fish, the stated period is a useful guide. The changing scenery extends across all four seasons.

Tea, tastings and creative activities

At Hida Mori no Megumi, you can blend herbs to make your own herbal tea. Herbal tea tastings are also offered there. Watanabe Sake Brewery also offers tastings. If you plan to attend a tasting, confirm what is currently available on the day of your visit, as operations may change.

Okadaya serves Hida fast food such as Mitarashi-Dango, Hida beef skewers and Gohei-Mochi. The menu may change. These dishes offer a glimpse of what is available, but you should not assume the selection will remain unchanged when planning your trip.

FabCafe Hida offers a space for café visits and creative work in a renovated traditional house more than 100 years old. It has 3D printers and laser cutters, and visitors can also make their own chopsticks. Facilities and offerings may change. In Hida Furukawa, traditional events and streetscapes are complemented by opportunities to connect with the place over tea, at tastings or through a creative activity.

Discover more destinations: Shirakawa, Kamo District, Takayama, Nakatsugawa, Yamagata, Seki, Gifu, Toki.

For the broader travel guide: Gifu Prefecture.