Sanja Matsuri

When: The third weekend of May, a three-day festival running Friday to Sunday.

Where: In Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan around Senso-ji temple and the surrounding streets.

Cost: Free to watch; expect to pay cash for shrine offerings, food stalls and souvenirs.

Don’t miss: The thunderous mikoshi processions and evening shrine parties around Nakamise and the back alleys.

Sanja Matsuri is Asakusa’s largest annual shrine festival, a centuries-old celebration centered on Senso-ji and the nearby Asakusa community. It honours the three men traditionally credited with founding the temple and is run by local neighborhood associations.

Over three days the district fills with music, stalls and roughly a hundred mikoshi (portable shrines) carried by shouting, sweating teams. Processions weave through the narrow lanes around Senso-ji and the Asakusa Shrine, with repeated stops, spirited chanting and boisterous crowds - part religious observance, part street carnival.

The festival is fixed to the third weekend of May and runs Friday to Sunday each year; dates do not follow a lunar calendar. Friday usually opens with ceremonial rites and smaller processions, while Saturday and Sunday feature the largest mikoshi parades and the busiest street activity.

Expect the loudest action late morning through the evening on Saturday and Sunday, when neighborhood mikoshi are marched, jostled and ceremonially returned to the shrine precincts.

Fly into Tokyo via Haneda (closest) or Narita; Haneda is significantly quicker to central Tokyo. From central Tokyo take the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, Toei Asakusa Line or Tobu Skytree Line to Asakusa Station and follow crowds toward Senso-ji. Arrive early on festival days and book accommodation well in advance for the May weekend.

• Respect the mikoshi carriers: do not cross in front of a moving mikoshi and keep sidewalks clear; join only if invited.
• Expect very crowded streets around Asakusa and Senso-ji; wear sturdy shoes and light clothing for warm, humid May weather.
• Bring cash for food stalls, shrine offerings and porters; many vendors do not accept cards.
• Photographing is allowed but be mindful of worshippers and avoid using flash during rituals.
• Plan transport alternatives: roads are closed during processions and stations get packed - allow extra time to leave the area.
• Book hotels and any guided tours months ahead, as space fills quickly for the third-weekend May slot.