Discover insider tips, travel guides, and inspiring stories for your next adventure in Japan
The "地球人.jp presents Hakata Summer Festival 2026" returns to JR Hakata Station Plaza from August 4 to 16 for its 8th year, with nightly Bon dancing, an approximately 8-meter lantern tower, and festival food stalls including newcomers serving Hakata-style chicken skin skewers and Korean cheese hot dogs.
Sanrio's Hanamaruobake becomes a mini bag-shaped keychain, rolling out in capsule toy corners nationwide from late July 2026 in five collectible designs.
New Hanayamata merchandise featuring newly drawn illustrations themed around "Japanese-style maids" is now on sale through eeo Store online, with in-store sales starting at eeo Store Ikebukuro Main Store on August 15.
From July 29 to August 11, 2026, Hankyu Umeda Main Store's Koto Koto Stage 12 hosts "THE BON," a pop-up featuring modern Buddhist altar goods, unique memorial candles and incense, and seasonal gifts for the whole family.
As forecasters call for another scorching summer, Hanshin Umeda Main Store is stocking a wide range of cooling goods, refreshing accessories, and odor-care items to help shoppers get through the season in comfort.
Due to popular demand, Fukuoka's Harapecolab is bringing back its "Birthstone Tart - July Ruby," an ice tart topped with hand-cut kohakutou styled after July's birthstone, for online sale starting at noon on July 10, 2026, while supplies last.
Hashiya Mansaku Fushimi Inari, a new chopstick and chopstick-rest specialty store from Wagokoro Co., Ltd., grand-opened on July 12, 2026, along the approach to Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto, becoming the company's 10th store in the Kyoto area and bringing traditional Japanese craft goods to domestic and international visitors.
Starting July 9, 2026, Hatsune Miku Logic Paint S+ adds the paid "Tropical Vacation" content pack with new costumes and puzzles, alongside a free update bringing additional puzzles to the base game.
Hatsune Miku "Magical Mirai 2026" launches in Hamamatsu on July 24, then tours to Osaka and Chiba through August, pairing live concerts and an exhibition with wide-ranging collaborations with local businesses and the city of Hamamatsu.
Starting August 1, 2026, Bar & Dining CLOUDS on the 35th floor of Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk is offering "After 8," a nighttime afternoon tea paired with Fukuoka's glittering skyline, featuring a sweets wagon, three kinds of snacks, and a choice of cocktail, mocktail, or sparkling wine for ¥3,500 per person.
Hiroshima Motomachi Aquarium is holding a yukata-themed summer exhibition from July 18 to September 6, 2026, featuring the colorful Coral hind fish, a ticket discount for visitors dressed in yukata or jinbei, and six days of extended evening hours during the Obon period.
Hitachi Seaside Park in Ibaraki is holding its "Tobikkiri! Summer Fair" from July 18 to August 31, 2026, featuring expanded kochia and flower gardens, a three-part water play area, hands-on summer events, and cool seasonal treats.