OSHU, Iwate Prefecture--One of Japan’s more bizarre festivals with a 1,000-year history that involves near-naked men fighting over a hemp bag of charms was held for the last time on Feb. 17.

Held this year from May 16 to 18, an event to the south of Tokyo turns a historical episode of national humiliation into a ...

Gion Matsuri, Kyoto: a thousand-year-old tradition and the most famous matsuri Kyoto's Gion Matsuri, a star among Japanese ...

Japan's Shikoku has pilgrim routes, lively cities, odd villages, luxe onsens and - in summer - a feast of joyful festivals.