‘Sapporo Summer Festival,’ a summer tradition you’ll want to experience at least once in your life!
Do you know about Sapporo’s summer tradition, the “Sapporo Summer Festival”?
This historical festival, now in its 72nd year, is a representative summer event in Sapporo, held in a wide area from Odori Park to Susukino.
In recent years, it has gained popularity among international tourists and is loved by both tourists and local residents as an international event that can be enjoyed by people of all ages.
Be sure to check it out in advance and fully enjoy the best summer in Sapporo!
《Event Outline》
- Event Name: 2025 Sapporo Summer Festival (72nd)
- Period: July 18 (Fri) – August 16 (Sat), 2025 (30 days)
- Sapporo Summer Festival Official Homepage
【Event Highlights】
- 2025 Sapporo Summer Festival Opening Ceremony
- Location: Odori Park (Odori Nishi 8-chome)
- Date & Time: July 18 (Fri) 12:00-
- 72nd Tanuki Festiva
- Location: Tanukikoji Shopping Street (Minami 2 & 3 Jo Nishi 1-7 chome)
- Period: July 18 (Fri) – August 16 (Sat) (30 days)
- Welfare Supported Sapporo Odori Beer Garden
- Period: July 18 (Fri) – August 13 (Wed) (27 days)
- Opening Hours: 12:00-21:00
- Location: Odori Park (Odori Nishi 5-8, 10, 11 chome)
- 61st Susukino Festival
- Location: Sapporo Ekimae-dori (Minami 4 Jo – Minami 7 Jo Nishi 3 & 4 chome)
- Period: August 7 (Thu) – 9 (Sat) (3 days)
- Hokkai Bon Odori
- Location: Odori Park (Odori Nishi 2-chome)
- Period: August 13 (Wed) – 16 (Sat) (4 days)
- Children’s Bon Odori / 18:00-19:00
- Hokkai Bon Odori / 19:00-21:00
72nd Tanuki Festival
Tanukikoji Shopping Street is one of the oldest shopping streets in Hokkaido, founded in 1873, and this year marks its 152nd anniversary.
The arcade shopping street, which stretches from 1-chome to 7-chome, is 900m long and has about 200 stores, making it one of the largest in scale!
The variety of stores is also very rich, including shops selling souvenirs and crafts for tourists, daily necessities stores and greengrocers essential for the lives of local residents, vintage clothing stores and record shops popular among the younger generation, and movie theaters and capsule toy shops that children can enjoy, truly a cornucopia!
Furthermore, there are also many restaurants where you can enjoy Sapporo’s famous dishes and local gourmet food at night, and during the day, there are ice cream, crepe, and tapioca drink shops perfect for eating while walking, so it has been loved for many years as a vibrant shopping street visited by many customers throughout the day.
At the “Tanuki Festival,” the event where Tanukikoji is most lively throughout the year, the arcade will be decorated with colorful balloons, lanterns, and banners during the period, creating a festive atmosphere.
In particular, the annual giant tanuki balloon is very impressive and is a popular decoration with children.
During the period, various food stalls will be set up, including Hokkaido gourmet food (Genghis Khan skewers, potato butter, seafood grill, etc.).
Old-fashioned fair games such as target practice, ring toss, superball scooping, and duck scooping will also appear, making it a recommended event for families with children.
■ Night Bargain
The annual Night Bargain will be held on the last Saturday of July!
Each store in the shopping street will set up unique stalls, offering special sale items and limited gourmet food.
This is a special event where you can enjoy bargain prices on food stall gourmet such as beer, sake, yakisoba, frankfurters, and edamame.
Furthermore, a special stage will be set up at the 7-chome venue, where street live performances by musicians and dance performances will be held, lively until late at night.
・2025 event: July 26 (Sat) 17:00-
■ Tanuki Hattoku Reitaisai (Children’s Mikoshi Procession, Tanuki Mikoshi Procession, Tanuki Taiko)
The “Tanuki Hattoku Reitaisai,” a festival of “Honjin Tanuki Daimyojin Shrine” located in Tanukikoji 5-chome, is held on the first Saturday of August every year.
The Tanuki Jizo enshrined in the Tanuki Shrine is said to have eight virtues (Hattoku), and it is also known as an auspicious event.
The sight of the adorable “Tanuki Children’s Mikoshi” and the powerful “Tanuki Mikoshi” parading inside and outside the shopping street with the powerful performance of “Tanuki Taiko,” enveloping the entire shopping street in excitement, is not to be missed.
・August 2nd, 2025 (Sat)
【Welfare Supported】Sapporo Odori Beer Garden
Held from 5-chome to 8-chome, and 10-chome and 11-chome of Odori Park, which can be called the center of Sapporo, is the “Welfare Supported Sapporo Odori Beer Garden.” It is famous as the largest beer garden in Japan*, with about 10,000 seats spread across a venue of approximately 1 km in length, where major domestic beer manufacturers and beers from around the world gather!
Last year, a whopping 902,000 people visited the same event, and beer consumption recorded an astonishing 340,050 liters!
The lively atmosphere of the people and the excitement, and the ice-cold beer enjoyed in the summer heat are truly exceptional.
Please enjoy it to your heart’s content with the gourmet food available in each area.
*Total number of seats at all venues in 2024 (according to Sapporo Summer Festival Executive Committee survey)
【EVENT INFORMATION】
- Period: July 18 (Fri) – August 13 (Wed) (27 days)
- Opening Hours: 12:00-21:00
- (Last order times vary by venue. Please check the official website for details.)
- Location: Odori Park (Odori Nishi 5-8, 10, 11 chome)
Area Highlights
SUNTORY The Premium Malt’s Garden
【Odori Nishi 5-chome】
The highlight is dishes supervised by Chef Shin Shimokuni, the first champion of “CHEF-1 Grand Prix,” such as “Genghis Khan Ratatouille with Lamb and Summer Vegetables”! We also have plenty of hearty mega-sized dishes such as “10-filling Mexican Taco Party Set,” so you can have a lively time with everyone.
ASAHI SUPER DRY BEER PARK
【Odori Nishi 6-chome】
You can enjoy ice-cold “Super Dry Extra Cold” in an aluminum “Kin-Kin Tumbler.” It’s also a great point that there are plenty of Hokkaido-like menus, such as Genghis Khan, fried Atka mackerel, and scallop skewers supervised by Yoyotei, a famous restaurant in Susukino.
Kirin Ichiban Shibori Beer Garden
[Odori Nishi 7-chome]
You can enjoy freshly made hot dishes such as fresh lamb Genghis Khan from Kirin Beer Garden, authentic stone oven pizza, and Muroran yakitori at the live kitchen run by specialty stores. A wide range of menus using Hokkaido ingredients is attractive.
THE SAPPORO BEER GARDEN
【Odori Nishi 8-chome】
You can enjoy delicious beer poured by Sapporo Lion staff. You can enjoy Sapporo-unique menus such as “Seafood Ankake Yakisoba” and “Half Roasted Young Chicken” from Otaru New Sanko, and “Genghis Khan” from Sapporo Beer Garden. Also pay attention to the live kitchen booth starting this year.
World Beer Plaza
【Odori Nishi 10-chome】
You can enjoy over 100 types of beer, including draft beers and bottled beers from around the world, as well as craft beers from Hokkaido. Hokkaido breweries will also be present, allowing you to taste their beers while directly hearing about the background and characteristics of their brewing from the brewers themselves. The food also changes between the first and second halves of the event.
Sapporo German Village
【Odori Nishi 11-chome】
From Sapporo’s sister city, Munich, Germany, Hofbräu’s draft beer from the official brewery of the world’s largest beer festival, “Oktoberfest,” will be available. The menu is rich with authentic flavors such as sausages and eisbein. Toasting along with the traditional German toast song “Ein Prosit” is sure to create a lively atmosphere throughout the venue.
61st Susukino Festival
The Susukino Festival, held from August 7th to August 9th, will turn a portion of Sapporo Ekimae-dori into a pedestrian paradise. Leveraging the characteristics of Susukino, Sapporo’s largest entertainment district, the festival combines the lively and flamboyant atmosphere of the night with traditional events and modern entertainment.
■ Oiran Dochu August 7th (Thu) 20:00-
Gorgeous oiran, led by a tayu,(both similar to geisha) are accompanied by attendants such as kamuro and shinzo, will parade with a unique “sotohachimonji” walk.
You can witness the traditional Japanese beauty and splendor up close, and it is a popular highlight of the Susukino Festival every year.
■ Mikoshi Togyo (Portable Shrine Procession)August 8th (Fri) – August 9th (Sat)
“Konkon Mikoshi,” “Onnoshu Mikoshi,” and “Manto Mikoshi” will appear and parade through the venue.
The energetic shouts and sweat further heighten the festival’s excitement, and the sight of hundreds of people carrying mikoshi weighing up to 1.5 tons is truly spectacular.
■ Susukino Night Fever August 9th (Sat)
One of the events that concludes the Susukino Festival, the venue transforms into a disco-like space, where the audience and participants dance and get excited together.
Hokkai Bon Odori
The “Hokkai Bon Odori” marks the conclusion of the “Sapporo Summer Festival.”
In recent years, many international tourists have also participated, and it has become a popular Bon Odori unique to Sapporo, enjoyed by people of all ages.
This is a very historical Bon Odori that has been held since the first “Sapporo Summer Festival,” and there are two types: “Kodomo Bon Odori Uta” for children and “Hokkai Bon Uta” for adults. With simple choreography, anyone can easily participate.
[Event Information]
- August 13th (Wed) – August 16th (Sat)
- Children’s Bon Odori: 18:00-19:00
- Hokkai Bon Odori: 19:00-21:00
Make your Sapporo trip an unforgettable memory by participating in the “Sapporo Summer Festival”♪
How was it?
The “Sapporo Summer Festival,” a summer tradition beloved by locals, has a long history of 72 years since its first holding this year. It has now become a voluminous and highlight-filled event enjoyed not only by local residents but also by tourists from all over Japan and the world.
With a duration of about one month, even a small participation during your stay schedule will surely enhance your trip with a unique Sapporo summer experience.
UNWIND HOTEL & BAR Sapporo offers excellent access to each venue!
After having fun at the festival, relax quietly in a calm, wood-themed room like a lodge.
Please consider us as your base for your trip.
UNWIND HOTEL & BAR SAPPPRO
Experience the comfort of a lodge with the style of a lifestyle hotel.
UNWIND HOTEL & BAR SAPPORO is a refined and rustic hotel that blends chic simplicity with a cozy, cabin-like atmosphere.
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