Image: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival
As we head into winter, things are just beginning to heat up in Japan. With Japan’s summer season kicking off in June and running through to mid-September, the warmer months offer a host of exciting reasons to take your family on a Japan adventure.
Here’s a guide to some of the top activities you and your family can enjoy throughout the summer in Japan.
Meet the deer at Nara Park
There are said to be around 1,200 deer roaming around Nara Park in Japan’s Kansai region, which is one of the oldest parks in Japan established in 1880. Here, you’ll quickly find yourself surrounded by some of the many fearless and friendly deer that call Nara Park their home – especially if you’ve bought a few deer crackers from one of the park’s many vendors.
Spread over 660 hectares, there’s more to Nara Park than its friendly resident deer – the park is also home to several shrines and temples, and the Nara National Museum with its impressive displays of Japanese Buddhist art.
Snorkel the colourful reefs of Okinawa
Surrounded by clear warm waters, Okinawa is one of the most coral-rich regions in the world with diverse marine life thriving just below the water’s surface. Offering a huge range of world-class snorkelling sites, and with many easily accessible from the beaches, snorkelling in the shallows of Okinawa is a fun activity for adults and children of all ages who are keen to see and experience Okinawa’s underwater oasis for themselves.
Some of popular snorkelling sites 
include The Blue Cave on Okinawa’s main island, the Hatenohama sandbar near Kume Island, Kabira Bay on Ishigaki Island, and Yabiji Reef off Miyako Island. Glass bottom boat tours and guided snorkel tours are also available in the region.
Kabira Bay Snorkelling. Image: Visit Okinawa Japan
Experience the excitement of a summer festival
Featuring decorated floats, music, lights and spectacular displays of dance, there are many matsuri (festivals) taking place in Japan all throughout summer – including many festivals at local shrines and temples in mid-August, each with their own charm and characteristics. Major summer festivals to consider for your itinerary include:
• Tohoku Kizuna Festival 2023 , Aomori – June 17-18, 2023
• Gujo Odori Festival , Gifu – Mid-July to Early September, 2023
• Hakata Gion Yamakasa , Fukuoka – July 1-15, 2023
• Gion Matsuri , Kyoto – July 1-31, 2023
• Tenjin Matsuri , Osaka – End of June to July 25, 2023
• Nebuta Matsuri , Aomori – August 2-7, 2023
• Akita Kanto Matsuri , Akita – August 3-6, 2023
• Awa Odori , Tokushima – Mid-August, 2023
Challenge your family at Mobility Resort Motegi
Mobility Resort Motegi in Tochigi Prefecture is home to the Japanese Motorcycle Grand Prix and comprises four different motorsports tracks and a range of exciting activities for visitors. After marvelling at more than 300 cars on display at the Honda Collection Hall, you might decide to unleash some adrenaline in a go-kart racing competition or run on the resort’s zip-line and family-friendly obstacle course. Mobility Resort Motegi also offers onsite camping and has its own resort and public bath for those who decide one day simply isn’t enough.
Image by Mobility Resort Motegi
Sleep under the stars with an overnight glamping stay
Camping while travelling overseas might ordinarily seem like too much of a challenge, but you can experience a true wilderness escape in Japan with all the bells and whistles of a hotel stay. There are many glamping sites all over Japan in spectacular natural locations including Circus Outdoor near Tokyo, Nature Tokyo , Grax near Kyoto, and Fujino Kirameki which has spectacular views of Mt Fuji.
Take a walk or ride through one of the many flower parks
As the cold winter months make way for warmer temperatures and longer sunnier days, it’s no surprise that summertime in Japan is one of the most picturesque times of year to visit as the many native flower varieties begin to bloom. There are vast flower parks all over Japan where you and your family can simply stroll or ride at leisure through the sprawling carpets of vibrant colourful blooms which ripple over the hills.
Watch the summer fireflies
Firefly viewing has been a traditional summertime activity in Japan for centuries, with the glowing flies recognised as a metaphor for passionate love in ancient poetry anthologies and often featuring in popular culture.
If you’re in Japan during the summer season, visiting one of the country’s firefly fields in the evening is a real must as these insects come together to create a mesmerising moving performance of glowing light. Top viewing locations include Hotel Chinzanso, Tokyo, Tsukiyono Firefly Village, Gunma, Kemi Firefly Village in Nagano, and Nasu Fishland in Tochigi, but there are plenty more to visit depending on where your journey takes you.
Image by Nagano Tourism Organisation
Have some fun in a Taiko drumming class
If you’re looking for an opportunity to engage the whole family in a fun cultural experience during your time in Japan, booking everyone into a Taiko drumming class could be the way to go. With locations in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe, Taiko-Lab offer group lessons, private lessons and the opportunity to watch a live Taiko drumming performance by the instructors for that extra bit of inspiration.
Enjoy the fireworks festivals
When it comes to family entertainment, fireworks are usually always a crowd-pleaser. Unlike other parts of the world where fireworks usually only appear for special occasions, many cities in Japan hold fireworks festivals throughout the summer (and sometimes throughout the year). First started in 1946, the Nagaoka Fireworks Festival in Niigata Prefecture is regarded as one of the top fireworks displays in Japan – usually held at the beginning of August – but there are plenty more to consider if you’re travelling in Japan during the summer season.
For more information, please contact:
James Cooley | james@thelucidagency.com.au | +61 401 316 701
