Kurama Fire Festival (Kurama no Hi-matsuri)
The Kurama Fire Festival is the night rite of Yuki Shrine in Kurama, a mountain village on the northern edge of Kyoto, and is held annually on October 22, the same date as Jidai Matsuri in the city centre. It re-enacts the year 940, when the deity Yuki Myojin was moved from the imperial palace to Kurama and villagers lined the road with torches to guide the procession. After dark, households light watchfires in front of their houses and men and boys carry burning pine torches up the single narrow street toward the shrine gate, the largest weighing well over 100 kilograms and needing several bearers. Children carry small torches earlier in the evening. The night ends with two portable shrines being brought down the steep stone steps amid shouts of 'sai-rei, sai-ryo'. It is counted among Kyoto's three most unusual festivals. Because the village street is barely wide enough for two people, one-way pedestrian flow, entry limits and heavy crowd control are normal, and late trains back to the city are extremely congested.
Event information
| When | Usually held in late October; check the official site for the latest schedule |
|---|---|
| Where | Kyoto |
| Access | Yuki Shrine sits above Kurama Station, the last stop on the Eizan Electric Railway Kurama Line from Demachiyanagi in Kyoto. The village has one narrow main street, so expect one-way pedestrian routing and long queues at the station on festival night. |
| Schedule status | Check the official site |
| Official information | Open the official site |
Practical tips
- Kurama Station is the end of a single-track mountain line with small trains; queues to board in both directions are long, so plan for a slow journey and check the last departure before you go up.
- Wear closed shoes and clothing you do not mind smelling of smoke - burning pine resin drips and sparks fall on the narrow street.
- There is almost nowhere to leave luggage in the village; use coin lockers in central Kyoto before heading north.
- Entry restrictions and route changes are announced by the local crowd-control committee each year, so read the current notice before travelling.
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