Every August, while millions of visitors flock to the Aomori Nebuta Festival, a quieter city forty minutes west unleashes something even more jaw-dropping. In Goshogawara, a small city on the Tsugaru Plain of Aomori Prefecture, enormous illuminated floats called tachineputa rise up to 23 meters into the night sky and parade through streets barely wide enough to contain them. This is the Goshogawara Tachineputa Festival, one of Japan's most visually overwhelming summer celebrations.
A Festival Reborn from Lost Glory
The story of Goshogawara's tachineputa is one of dramatic revival. During the Meiji era (1868-1912), the city was known for extraordinarily tall festival floats that rivaled anything in neighboring Aomori or Hirosaki. But as power lines spread across urban Japan in the early twentieth century, the towering floats became impractical, and by the 1950s the tradition had faded entirely.
Then, in 1993, a local citizen discovered historical sketches and photographs documenting the original giant floats. Inspired by this rediscovery, the community launched a painstaking reconstruction effort. In 1998, Goshogawara's first modern tachineputa took to the streets once more. The revival was a sensation, and the festival has grown every year since.
What You'll See
The festival runs from August 4 to 8. Each evening around 7:00 PM, a procession of approximately 15 floats departs from the city center. Three of these are the colossal tachineputa, newly built each year by teams of local artisans who spend months constructing the wire-and-paper giants. The remaining floats are smaller fan-shaped neputa contributed by neighborhood associations, schools, and businesses.
The tachineputa themselves are breathtaking. Towering warriors, mythological beasts, and figures from Japanese folklore loom overhead, their translucent washi paper skin glowing from within as hundreds of light bulbs bring the painted scenes to vivid life. The floats weigh up to 19 tons each and require careful maneuvering through the narrow parade route.
Surrounding each float, dancers in colorful costumes leap and spin while drummers pound out driving rhythms. The crowd chants "Yattare! Yattare!" -- a distinctly Goshogawara rallying cry that translates roughly to "Go for it!" This differs from Aomori's famous "Rassera!" shout, marking Goshogawara's independent identity within the Tsugaru nebuta tradition.
The Tachineputa Museum
Even outside festival season, visitors can experience the scale of these floats at the Tachineputa no Yakata (Standing Neputa Museum), located in central Goshogawara near the JR station. This six-story building houses three full-sized tachineputa in a soaring atrium. A spiral ramp lets visitors walk upward alongside the floats, viewing them at every level from base to crown.
Practical Information
The festival runs nightly from August 4 through August 8, with the parade starting around 7:00 PM and lasting until approximately 9:00 PM. Viewing is free from anywhere along the parade route. Paid reserved seating is available near the starting point.
Getting There: From JR Aomori Station, take the JR Gono Line to Goshogawara Station (approximately 45 minutes). From Hirosaki, the Konan Railway connects to Goshogawara in about 30 minutes. From Tokyo, the JR Tohoku Shinkansen reaches Shin-Aomori Station in about 3 hours 20 minutes, with a transfer to the Gono Line.
Accommodation: Goshogawara has limited hotel capacity, and rooms book out months in advance during festival week. Many visitors base themselves in Aomori City (45 minutes by train) or Hirosaki (30 minutes) and make an evening trip.
Food: The festival grounds feature food stalls selling regional specialties. Look for Tsugaru soba (buckwheat noodles), ikamenchi (squid fritters unique to Aomori), and shijimi clam miso soup from nearby Lake Jusanko.
Combining With Other Festivals
One of the great advantages of visiting Goshogawara in early August is the proximity to other major Tohoku summer festivals. The Aomori Nebuta Festival (August 2-7), Hirosaki Neputa Festival (August 1-7), and the Goshogawara Tachineputa overlap, making it possible to experience all three in a single trip. Each has a distinct character: Aomori's horizontal floats are dynamic and colorful, Hirosaki's fan-shaped neputa are elegant and contemplative, and Goshogawara's towering tachineputa are awe-inspiring in their sheer vertical scale. Together, they represent the full spectrum of the Tsugaru nebuta tradition.
Image: A tachineputa float at the 2025 Goshogawara Tachineputa Festival, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
