Yokohama is commemorating its port city heritage with an annual weekend festival filled with street dance parties, fireworks and family-friendly activities. All the events leading up to the fireworks display on June 2 serve to showcase and celebrate Yokohama’s 165-year-old legacy as Japan’s first port that opened to the West.
Get your yukata ready this June 1-2 weekend, as the Japan Bon Dance Association is hosting multiple Bon-odori dance gatherings on both days at Pacifico Yokohama's Plaza Hiroba. We recommend joining the locals for a spot of street dancing at 5pm on Saturday. This particular session will be playing the classic ‘YMCA’ by the Village People as the opening song. There are several Bon-odori folk dancing events throughout the weekend (Saturday at 4pm, 5pm and 7pm, Sunday at 4pm and 5pm) and they are all free.
At the nearby Rinko Park, kids will have a field day with the multiple play sites and attractions including inflatable pools, trampolines and cute ponies. The main highlight of the festival is, of course, the fireworks on Sunday at 7.30pm. Be sure to not miss the impressive audiovisual spectacle combining lights, music and pyrotechnics.