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The largest summer festival in Nagano Prefecture, held every August. It's a large-scale Bon Odori event involving the participation of the local community.
Matsumoto Bon Bon is the biggest summer festival in Nagano Prefecture, held on the first Saturday of every August in the city center stretching from the east side of Matsumoto Station to Matsumoto Castle. Under the theme of "Let the song and dance of Matsumoto Bon Bon resonate in the castle town that reminisces the history in the land of Alps!!", it is an event similar to Bon Odori, where people dance to a song woven with the names of districts within the city.
The festival started in 1975 and has been held annually except for cancellations due to bad weather or to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. The name of the festival comes from an old Matsumoto custom where girls in yukatas, holding lanterns and wearing paper-made flowers on their heads, would parade around singing during the Bon period. This custom is known as "Bon Bon".
Over 200 groups from local companies, schools, and others participate in the event as dancers. They form units called "ren" and parade through the city, dancing to the catchy original song "...Bon Bon, Matsumoto Bon Bon Bon♪".
The sight of multiple "ren" parading down the main street is impressive.
Each "ren" has different costumes and dances to watch.
There is also a "Dance Competition" where each participating "ren"'s dance is judged by several judges every year, and various awards are decided.
