NIKKO GRAND AUTUMN FESTIVAL – PROCESSION OF SAMURAI WARRIORS
October 17 @ 7:00 am - 6:00 pm
THU • 17 OCT
COST BY AGE GROUP:
$50 (16 & Up)
$40 (6–15)
$30 (4–5)
$30 (3 & Under if a seat is needed)
ITINERARY:
Depart 7 a.m.
Nikko 10 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Return 6 p.m.
The tour cost includes bus transportation and admission to Toshogu Shrine. Please note that there are many steps within the shrine. If the festival is canceled due to rain, this tour will become a Nikko Toshogu Shrine sightseeing tour. Shuki Taisai, or the Grand Autumn Festival, is held every 17th of October. The main attraction is the grand procession of a thousand warriors. Men dressed in samurai costumes re-enact the transfer of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s remains from Kuno-zan Shrine to Nikko Toshogu Shrine, in accordance with Ieyasu’s will. Led by a portable shrine, the samurai procession—composed of cavalry, warriors carrying guns, spearmen, archers with bows and arrows, and more—departs from Futarasan Shrine and heads to the Otabisho, a temporary resting place for the portable shrine about 1 km away. In the afternoon, you can also witness the procession’s return to the shrine. This event offers a fascinating glimpse into 17th-century Japan.
