The Hakata Dontaku is a massive annual festival in Fukuoka. Here is a glimpse of what over 2 million spectators come to see. Hakata Dontaku takes place every May 3-4 during the peak holiday season of Golden Week. Its modern incarnation goes back to 1962, but its origins go back around 840 years. There are events held all across the city, but the climax is a grand parade comprised of tens of thousands of participants, with dancing, costumes, revelry, and a mix of old and new. The term Dontaku actually comes from Dutch - Zondag, meaning Sunday or in this case a holiday. The Hakata Dontaku is one of a couple of massive Japanese festivals; the other is Yamakasa held every July.
While thankfully this wasn't shot during the worst possible weather - pouring rain - it was for the next worst, which is strong gusty winds, and despite having the best dead cat available and trying to clean up the sound in post, there are a few areas with some bad noise - so my apologies.
For more detailed info on what to see and do, plus where to stay in Fukuoka, you can get tons of info at:
For other great festivals in Japan, please look at the Japanese Festivals Playlist:
And to see more videos on the sights of Fukuoka, please watch the Fukuoka Playlist:
For more videos like this, please subscribe:
Please leave some comments below. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
0 Comments