Rachel Teo

Osaka is a lively city year-round, and it gets even more exciting in the summer when there are festivals abound. Many of our favourite seasonal celebrations are fireworks festivals. When vibrant explosions start lighting up the cloudless skies after sundown and the yukata-wearing crowds turn their heads towards the spectacle, that’s when you can get into a truly magical Japanese summer mood. This year’s celebrations kicked off in spectacular fashion with three fireworks festivals on the first weekend of June. The next wave of fireworks will begin in July. Outside of Osaka, you'll find equally stunning displays in Kyoto and Mie that are well worth a day trip. So dust off your yukata, arrive early to secure the best viewing spot, and enjoy the colourful fireworks while snacking on some tasty festival grub. Meanwhile, plan out your June with our curated lists of the best events in Osaka and Kyoto.

Cherry blossoms are the icon of spring, while summer is defined by hydrangeas. These colourful blooms appear in large clusters on leafy bushes from June through early July, and their photogenic arrival marks the start of the rainy season that sees Japan transition from spring into summer. We get it, the regular wet days and rising humidity may feel uncomfortable, but this early summer period is perhaps your last chance to head out for one final romp in the great outdoors before the intense heat sets in. In Osaka, hydrangeas grow in abundance at some of the prefecture's most scenic parks, while in Kyoto, you'll find them at serene temples tucked away from the city centre crowds – one of which even hosts an after-dark illumination in mid-June. So, head out and catch these gorgeous blooms now. And if you're looking to explore more nature, here are the best beaches and hiking trails in and around Osaka.

Osaka’s markets are as varied and vibrant as the city itself. From its temple courtyards and leafy shrines to its park promenades, the city hosts regular flea markets and antique and vintage clothes fairs throughout the year. Some unfold every Sunday for a slow, easy day of perusing; others appear monthly for treasure hunters who prefer quiet prospecting; yet others are festival-style events that come complete with music. Whether you’re chasing rare collectables, classy antiques, one-of-a-kind outfits or just a bargain, Osaka’s markets guarantee good finds and a good day out. Plus, almost all the markets we’ve put together boast a wide array of stalls offering seriously tempting food and drink, so even if you don’t find the niche memorabilia or eccentric ensemble you were hunting for, you’ll at least leave well fed. RECOMMENDED: The 15 best museums in Osaka

History buffs, assemble: the Osaka Castle Festival is a massive exhibition dedicated to all things Japanese history and castles. Held at Grand Front Osaka in Umeda on the weekend of August 8 and 9, the event brings together expert historians and a wide selection of booths to shed light on feudal Japan, historical sites across the country, and the distinctive designs and fortifications of Japanese castles. Besides a dizzying variety of displays and interactive elements, special lectures and seminars are available (in Japanese, at an additional fee) for those looking to dive deep into castle town and samurai clan lore. At the door, tickets cost ¥1,600 for adults and ¥1,000 for high school students. Admission is free for elementary school children and below. Tickets can also be purchased in advance online with an early-bird discount.

They say variety is the spice of life, and here’s a curry festival to spice up your weekend. Held at Klasi College near Osakako Station on Sunday July 26, the Curry Dojo brings together eight curry shops and a variety of flavour-filled dishes, craft brews and a selection of chai teas. Sample curry dishes from Sri Lanka and across East Asia, plus Japanese-fusion style curries, paired with biryani and flatbreads. Eight kinds of domestic and international craft beers are also available on tap. Admission to the event is free, but food tickets are required to sample the curries. Tickets cost ¥1,500 and are good for 3 bowls of curry (rice included). Advance tickets come with an early-bird discount and can be purchased online.

Calling all Star Wars fans: you’ll want to travel at lightspeed to this Star Wars-themed pop-up café, running until July 12 at Collabo Index Shinsaibashi in Osaka. Be transported to a galaxy far, far away with themed meals like The Mandalorian burger, which is shaped like a Beskar helmet, a Darth Vader Dark Side Curry and other themed drinks and desserts. The cute Grogu is the star of many menu items, being featured in a stew, in drinks and a parfait. While you’re there, browse the collection of exclusive merch, which includes acrylic keychains, assorted stickers, wooden badges, tote bags, plates and mugs. The café is open from 11.15am to 8.30pm daily and runs five 75-minute seatings a day. While walk-ins are possible, online reservations are highly recommended. These have a ¥770 booking fee but come with a Star Wars button badge as a door gift.

As the heat of summer approaches, what could be better than cooling off with some crisp chilled sake? Held three times a year in Tokyo and Osaka, Washu Fes returns to Osaka Bay Tower on the weekend of July 11 and 12. Featuring over 140 varieties of sake from 28 breweries across the country, the event invites you to sip on limited-edition summer sake and creative sake cocktails, as well as fruit liqueurs, shochu, craft beers, cider and mead. Food booths offer a variety of gourmet snacks to pair with the alcohol, and live music and entertainment runs throughout the weekend. Tickets cost ¥3,600 and include a drink tasting pass for all the featured alcoholic beverages, an event glass, a paper fan and a bottle of water. While walk-ins are possible, we recommend getting your ticket in advance online. Washu Fes is divided into two sessions each day: 12noon–2.10pm and 3pm–5.10pm. Each session requires a separate ticket.

The annual Kumata Shrine Summer Festival is one of Osaka’s largest float festivals, attracting over 300,000 people every year. Taking place this year from July 11 to 14, it has been held since the 1700s to express gratitude to the deities and to offer prayers for prosperity and divine grace. The main highlights of the festival are the parades, which take place on the evenings of July 12 and 13. The stars are nine spectacular wooden floats, called danjiri, that are carried down the street in a vibrant procession along Hirano ward’s Nanko Street. Lit up with lanterns and adorned with taiko drummers and dancers with paper fans, these giants are not to be missed. On July 14, a special procession led by a priest dressed up as a long-nosed tengu will be performed on the shrine grounds to provide blessings to children. Expect a vibrant bunch of festival stalls along the streets near the shrine grounds, peddling classic Japanese street foods and drinks and offering assorted carnival games for the young and young at heart.

Situated on the rooftop of the SiS Stargate Hotel in Rinku Town, Beer Salon Patio 28 is putting on a ‘World Beer Fest’ on the weekends throughout summer and until September 12. Enjoy 120 minutes of all-you-can-drink Yebisu beer in July and August with a stunning view of Osaka Bay – or wait until September, when you can partake in the same boozy activity without time constraints. The drinks menu features a wide variety of Japanese craft brews, including Yona Yona Ale and Sho-Kino Satan IPA, and a range of international beers, such as Corona Extra, Hoegaarden White and Budweiser. To match the beers, you can feast on steaks, spareribs, chicken wings and fritters, or go for some of the light bites if you’re not too hungry. While walk-ins are possible, advance reservations can be made online. Each seating costs ¥6,500 for adults, ¥3,000 for elementary school children and ¥1,000 for preschoolers.

If you love a good knick-knack or a browse at a pop-up shop, you’ll definitely be interested in Zakka Wonderland, a little market that sells a collection of miscellaneous items by independent brands and sellers. Held on the weekend of July 4 and 5 at the Namba SkyO Convention Hall, it’s set to feature everything from apparel and home décor to camping gear and garden tools. The sellers present will have some handmade items, too, including ceramics, woodcrafts and jewellery. Tickets cost ¥800 if you get them online, but they can also be purchased at the door for ¥1,000. Entrance is free for children in elementary school and under.

The Hankyu Umeda Department Store has opened its lush rooftop once again to ring in the warm weather with summery food and copious amounts of beer. Seatings run for 120 minutes and include a buffet and an all-you-can-drink deal. You get to choose from a spread of 30 different dishes, including deli items, salads, fritters, curry, pizza and shaved ice desserts. 120 kinds of drinks are available, with a wide selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Travel-themed booths featuring the cuisines of different countries also run for a limited time. The current special, Asian Table, is on until July 7 and serves up a range of Asian dishes alongside beverages like sake and shochu. You’ll get to enjoy eats and drinks from North and South America from July 8 to August 25, while a European wine market takes over from August 26 to October 12. Standard plans cost ¥5,000 per person (¥1,800 for children in elementary school). In addition to the buffet, each diner can choose one item from three options: a barbecued chicken leg, popcorn shrimp or soft-serve ice cream. For an additional ¥1,000, you can upgrade to the premium plan, which includes the buffet and a platter of barbecued chicken, steak and sausages. While walk-ins are possible, we recommend making reservations in advance online.

The Umeda Tanabata Festival is returning to Shin Umeda City (the area around the Umeda Sky Building) until August 8. Running for its 20th year, the free-to-enjoy festival features brilliantly colourful Sendai Tanabata streamers, which can be found around the Umeda Sky Building and along the ‘Showa retro’ shopping street at Takimi Koji.  Until July 7, those who dine at restaurants along the shopping street are presented with strips of coloured paper to write their wishes on, which are then tied onto bamboo branches along the street.  A small summer festival with carnival games for children will be held at Takimi Koji on the weekend of July 4 and 5, as well as on July 7. The festival runs from 4pm to 8pm daily. In addition, from 5pm to 9pm on the same days, you can light a tealight and set it out on a pond in a bamboo boat at the Star Pocket square outdoors. Live jazz performances will also take place from 6pm on these days to further enhance the vibrant atmosphere.

Japan’s rainy season is now officially underway, and so we’ve arrived at the best time to admire the rain-kissed hydrangea flowers that thrive amidst all the precipitation. The Hydrangea Fair at Nagai Botanical Gardens is one of the largest events of its kind in Osaka, showcasing approximately 10,000 hydrangea plants in full bloom. Besides the flowers themselves, programme highlights include displays of hydrangeas floating in water basins and an exhibition of different varieties of the bloom on a glass shelf, showcasing hues ranging from lilac and pink to purple and blue. Beautiful photo spots will also be set up in the garden: think hydrangea-coloured umbrellas suspended in mid-air, and a path decorated with traditional Japanese wind chimes that tinkle in the breeze. The gardens are open daily from 9.30am to 5pm, with last entry at 4.30pm. Tickets cost ¥300 for adults and ¥200 for university and high school students.

If you’re a fan of Japanese whisky, mark your calendar for August 22. Kyoto’s annual Whisky Messe showcases an impressive range of spirits across more than 100 booths set up by global and Japanese producers and distilleries. Expect free tastings, event-exclusive whiskies, opportunities to purchase your favourite bottles, and even a charity auction. Different exhibitors will be featured across the two sessions, which run from 10am to 1.30pm and 2.30pm to 6pm respectively. There are also optional add-ons you can purchase to enrich your experience, including tickets for whisky seminars by industry experts and the right to partake in special tastings of rare whiskies.  Tickets can be purchased in advance for ¥4,500 for the first or second session, or on the door for ¥5,000. All-day tickets that cover both sessions are available too; these cost ¥8,000 and can also be purchased online before your visit.

Summers are for grilling up meals around the barbecue and beating the heat with icy cold beers, and the ‘R’ Riverside Grill & Beer Garden at Nakanoshima Park is one of the best spots in Osaka to do just that. Open throughout summer and all the way to December 25, it offers 120-minute seatings that come with an all-you-can-drink deal featuring an extensive line-up of alcohol and soft drinks, plus a choice of three multicourse menus.  The Casual BBQ Course (¥4,500) highlights wagyu beef, pork chops in a lemon marinade and jerk chicken, while the Standard BBQ Course (¥5,500) gets you all of the above plus an additional plate of Indonesian-style lamb skewers and an assorted seafood platter. For the full monty, choose the Premium Course (¥6,500), which includes everything in the Casual and Standard offerings, an additional platter of Japanese Black wagyu steak, and a cut of tuna cheek. All three ‘courses’ also include assorted vegetables, shrimp crackers, Javanese chilli fries and spicy fried noodles. Lunchtime deals featuring the Casual BBQ Course are available on weekends and public holidays. While walk-ins are possible, we recommend making a reservation online in advance.

Summer is fireworks season in Japan. However, with the rising temperatures in recent years, heading out into the oppressive heat and humidity can be uncomfortable, to say the least. Perhaps it’s a good thing that Osaka is kicking off the 2026 summer fireworks season early, while the weather is still pleasant. The thing is, there isn't just one, but three fireworks events happening back-to-back in the first weekend of June alone. As two of them take place concurrently on opposite ends of Osaka on Saturday June 6, you’ll have to pick a side. Meanwhile, the postponed Japan Fireworks Expo 2026 is set to make up for its April cancellation with a jaw-dropping show on Sunday June 7. Read on for the deets on each fireworks event and make your choice quickly, as tickets are selling fast. Photo: Rinku Fireworks Festival Rinku Fireworks Festival, June 6 Held at Rinku Park’s Marble Beach, Rinku Fireworks Festival returns for its 10th edition this year. The 40-minute display will feature 7,000 fireworks synchronised to music.  While the fireworks begin at 7.30pm, the festival grounds are open from 4pm, giving you plenty of time to stake out a good spot and enjoy the spread that the festival food trucks and booths have to offer. Tickets from ¥3,000. More details here. Photo: Osaka Bay Skylumina Osaka Bay Skylumina Fireworks & Drones, June 6 Held at the Sky Plaza on the artificial island of Maishima in Osaka Bay, Skylumina bills itself as a ‘next-generation’ fireworks show that combines

April 29 marks the start of the 2026 Golden Week, which runs through May 6. Every year, this long stretch of holidays turns Japan into a lively playground filled with an assortment of events and festivals – and Osaka is no exception. However, if the sheer number of things to do feels overwhelming, let us narrow it down for you.  These food and drink festivals, happening at some of Osaka’s biggest attractions, will appease any foodie looking for an outdoor feast that combines the chance to bask in the beautiful spring weather. While entry is free, food and drinks are to be paid for separately. Plus, the Craft Gyoza Fes and the Meat Osaka are cashless. Photo: The Meat For carnivores: The Meat Osaka, Apr 29–May 6 The Meat Osaka returns after two years, bringing an expanded lineup of top-tier meat dishes from butchers, yakiniku specialists and innovative chefs who’ve developed exclusive menus for the festival. Expect premium wagyu sushi, rare-cut katsu (deep-fried cutlets), Korean-style grilled beef tongue, hearty menchi katsu (deep-fried ground meat patties) and more, served up by vendors from across Japan. Confirmed participants include World Diner (Hokkaido black wagyu sushi and roast beef with truffle sauce), Tamagawa Butcher Shop (rare beef katsu and secret-blend menchi katsu), Korean BBQ specialist 4si (two styles of grilled tongue), and Ishigaki Island Kitauchi Ranch (premium cuts from its own cattle). Photo: Tenshiba Oktoberfest For drinking in the park: Tenshiba Okto

Street art can breathe new life into public spaces, transforming blank walls into vibrant canvases. But it’s more than just decoration. When created with intention, it can reflect a community’s cultural values and identity, and help strengthen the connection between people and place. While murals remain relatively uncommon in Japan, interest is growing – especially in Osaka’s Konohana ward, where a new street art festival is making its debut this month. Photo: Jun Chihara The Enoen Festival will take over Konohana’s Shikanjima Sumiyoshi Shrine on Saturday, September 27, for a day of art, live music, street food and wholesome family fun. Alongside celebrating the town’s 25 existing murals – created by local and international artists from more than 20 countries over the past two years – the festival will also unveil five new murals painted during an artist residency running from September 21–28 in Konohana’s Baika district.  Photo: Wall Share At the heart of Konohana’s emerging street art scene is Wall Share, an organisation established in 2020 with a mission to transform Osaka’s urban landscape with bold, colourful murals. Since launching the Mural Town Konohana initiative in September 2023, Wall Share has invited local and international street artists to participate in an art residency programme, where they create captivating murals across the Yodogawa and Konohana wards during their stay in Japan. Photo: Wall Share In the week leading up to the Enoen Festival, five new

Summertime is festival time in Osaka. Kicking off the celebratory season is Tanabata, a traditional Japanese festival with origins in Chinese folklore. According to legend, deity couple Orihime and Hikoboshi are separated by the Milky Way, and they are only able to meet once a year: on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. Tanabata, or the Star Festival, celebrates the day of their reunion. As Japan has largely dropped the lunar dating system in favour of the Gregorian calendar, Tanabata is commonly celebrated on July 7, which falls on a Monday this year. The Star Festival is associated with grand, colourful streamers decorating streets, shopping malls and temples. Another popular custom is to write your wishes on strips of paper and hang them on bamboo trees. Tanabata is one of the most joyous and colourful traditional celebrations in Osaka – and it offers great photo opportunities. So if you’re in the city between July 5 and 7, put any of these three Star Festival events on your to-do list.   Photo via Hirakata ParkTanabata Lantern Festival at Hirakata Park Tanabata Lantern Festival at Hirakata Park July 5–6 Hirakata Park’s Tanabata festival features a special indoor lantern area, where lanterns filled with wishes are launched. Summer festival stalls offer carnival games like superball scooping, yo-yo fishing and shooting. There are also workshops that allow you to paint masks and make flower crowns or have your face painted. Consider picking up a ¥200 fortune-telli