Saijo Sake Festival 2026 Guide: Tickets, Breweries & Logistics

Saijo Sake Festival 2026 Fast Facts

Saijo Sake Matsuri runs on the weekend before Japan's Health and Sports Day. For 2026, Get Hiroshima lists Saturday October 10 and Sunday October 11. Confirm both dates on the official sake festival site before you book anything, because Japan Travel still marked its own dates as unconfirmed at the time of writing. Saijo sits in Higashi-Hiroshima, about 40 minutes by train from Hiroshima Station. Sake has been brewed here since 1650, according to InsideJapan, and the town still has ten traditional breweries. Attendance is reported at 100,000 to 200,000 across the two days.

• Dates: Saturday October 10 and Sunday October 11, 2026 (verify on the official site)
• Location: Saijo, Higashi-Hiroshima, around JR Saijo Station and Chuo Park
• Sake on offer: over 900 varieties at the tasting plaza, per Japan Travel and InsideJapan
• Sake Hiroba advance ticket: ¥3,900 including tax
• Train from Hiroshima Station: 40 minutes, ¥580 one way for adults
• Crowds: 100,000 to 200,000 over the two days

Two Ways to Experience the Saijo Sake Festival

Most first-time visitors assume the festival is one gated event. It is actually two experiences that overlap. One is a ticketed tasting plaza. The other is a town-wide festival of brewery openings, food stalls, parades and stage shows. You can do either or both, and your choice shapes the whole day.

• Sake Hiroba (Sake Square): an enclosed tasting area in the west side of Chuo Park. Entry is by ticket only, and the sake comes from breweries across Japan, not just Hiroshima. It suits you if you want range and want to compare regions.
• Brewery street (Sakagura-dori): the narrow lanes near JR Saijo Station, with white-lattice walls and red-tile roofs. Individual breweries open their doors for tastings, tours and small shows. It suits you if you want atmosphere and local Saijo sake.
• Chuo Park East: free entry, with food stalls, stages and free concerts. Use it as a rest stop between the other two.

Sake Hiroba Tickets, Sessions and Costs

Get Hiroshima lists advance Sake Hiroba tickets at ¥3,900 including tax. You can buy them from 7-Eleven ticket machines using Ticketopia code P657-797. Remaining tickets may be sold at the venue on the day. Do not count on that, since popular sessions can sell out. An older Japan Travel report quoted ¥1,800 at the gate, so treat ¥3,900 as your 2026 planning figure and check the official site for the final price. Entry is by timed session, and each session lasts 2 hours 15 minutes. That is why the "nine hours of drinking" line you may read elsewhere is misleading. The plaza is open for long hours, but you only get one slot.

• Session 1: 10:00 to 12:15
• Session 2: 13:00 to 15:15
• Session 3: 16:00 to 18:15 (listed for the first day only)
• Get Hiroshima describes five sessions across the two days in total
• Ticket includes: 8 sake samples, snack tickets, a bottle of yawaragi-mizu water, a ceramic o-chokko cup and a brewery list in Japanese

How the Sake Hiroba Sample System Works

Sake stands inside are grouped by region, and each sake carries a letter and number code. Lists of codes are posted on the front of the tents, so you can see which bottles are still pouring. Japan Travel's writer chose first by sweet or dry, then by label. That is a sensible way to start if you know little about sake. Sample limits are the one detail sources disagree on. Get Hiroshima says the ticket includes 8 samples, but also says caps on the number you can taste were lifted this year. Ask at the entrance what applies to your session. Some drinks, such as sake cocktails or beer, cost extra according to Japan Travel.

The Brewery Crawl Along Sakagura-dori

If the Sake Hiroba sells out, the brewery street is still a full day. Wikipedia lists ten well-known breweries around Sakagura-dori. Brewery events vary, and Japan Travel notes lectures on sake making, tastings and, at some sites, concerts and kids' games. You will also find parades on opening day. Local school children beat drums as they march. A women's group carries a shrine. Opening day also features the Osaka-bayashi, a symbol of sake breweries, which is paraded from Matsuo shrine to the main stage.

• Chiyonoharu
• Fukubijin
• Hakubotan
• Kamoki
• Kamoizumi
• Kamotsuru
• Kirei
• Saijotsuru
• Sakurafubuki
• Sanyotsuru

Bishu-nabe and Festival Food

Bishu-nabe is the festival's signature meal. It is a local stew seasoned only with sake, salt and pepper, so it does not dull the brewers' palates. Japan Travel reports that ¥8,400 secures a table for four. Book ahead, since tables are limited and the price covers the group, not each person. Split that cost four ways and it works out to ¥2,100 each. Outside Bishu-nabe, food stalls line the road from the station to Chuo Park. Chuo Park East has more stalls and free stage acts. Vendors inside the Sake Hiroba use a separate system. You must trade yen for food tickets at a dedicated tent, and those tickets cannot be refunded. They work only for food inside the plaza. Keep that in mind before you convert a large amount.

Getting to Saijo from Hiroshima Station

Saijo is 40 minutes east of Hiroshima on the JR Sanyo Honsen Line. Get Hiroshima lists one-way adult fares at ¥580. Trains fill up on festival mornings, so leave early if your Sake Hiroba slot starts at 10:00. The most useful tip is to buy your return ticket as soon as you arrive. Lines at the ticket machines get long in the evening, when thousands of people head back at once. Build that habit into your plan.

• Route: JR Sanyo Honsen Line from Hiroshima Station to Saijo
• Time: 40 minutes
• Fare: ¥580 one way for adults
• Rule: buy the return ticket on arrival
• Walking: the streets between the station and Chuo Park are packed with stalls, so allow extra time

Mistakes to Avoid and Pro Tips

Most problems at Saijo come from planning a full day around one gate. These habits keep the day comfortable.

• Drink the yawaragi-mizu. Get Hiroshima recommends using the water provided between samples.
• Assume no re-entry. Japan Travel says once you leave the Sake Hiroba you cannot go back in.
• Bring water and a snack. Outside food is officially not allowed inside, so eat before you enter.
• Do not rely on reserving space. Rules say you cannot hold seating, though tarps appeared in one report.
• Buy tickets early. Advance tickets come from the 7-Eleven machines, and sell-outs are possible.
• Pair a session with the free areas. Book one 2-hour 15-minute slot, then spend the rest of the day on brewery lanes and Chuo Park East.

A Simple Saturday Plan

Take a morning train so you reach Saijo before the 10:00 session. Buy the return ticket the moment you arrive. Enter the Sake Hiroba for the first slot, which ends at 12:15. Then walk the brewery street for lunch at the stalls. Use the afternoon for two or three breweries and the free stage in Chuo Park East. If you booked Bishu-nabe, plan your table time first and fit the rest around it. Families do attend, according to Get Hiroshima, so the daytime crowds are mixed. Leave before the evening train rush if you can.

Pairing Saijo with the Rest of Your Hiroshima Trip

Saijo works well as one day in a longer Hiroshima itinerary. See the 3-day festival itinerary to fit it into a long weekend. Our Hiroshima events guide covers the wider season. If you want to see the city as well, Hiroshima Attractions: The Complete 2026 Pillar Guide lists the main sights near the station. Planning around several dates? The month-by-month 2026 calendar shows what else falls near October 10. Summer is different in mood. For comparison, read about summer festivals and fireworks. Yukata fans can also check the Tokasan yukata festival. In spring, the Hiroshima Flower Festival: Dates, Schedule & Crowd Tips is a lighter, free alternative.

Nearby Events After the Sake Festival

Get Hiroshima lists two related events that follow Saijo. The Takehara Shokei-no-michi Candle Festival runs October 31 to November 1. Ritual fire-walking at Daigan-ji Temple on Miyajima happens on November 3, from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Both make good second trips if you miss a Saijo ticket. A third event, Dezomeshiki New Year's Fire Review, falls on January 5, 2027, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm.