Once every 33 years, a mikoshi brings a divine couple together from Kotsubo to Hayama
Yukiai Festival
Festival information
EVENT INFORMATION- Season / frequency
- Every 33 years / Once every 33 years (every 32 years by traditional age reckoning)
- Location
- Moriyama-sha (Moriyama Shrine) and Suga Shrine in Kotsubo, Zushi City
- Area
- Kanagawa Prefecture・Hayama Town(From Tokyo: approx. 30 min–1 h · train)Prefecture-level estimate to a main station or airport, not the venue. Airport access, check-in and onward travel are extra; remote areas and islands can take much longer.
- Highlights and activities
- Last updated
- 2026/11/13
The Yukiai Festival is a traditional religious rite held every 33 years, in which a travels from Suga Shrine in Kotsubo, Zushi City, to Moriyama-sha in Isshiki, Hayama Town.
About Yukiai Festival
The Yukiai Festival is a grand festival jointly held by Suga Shrine in Kotsubo, Zushi City, and Moriyama-sha in Isshiki, Hayama Town.
The rite is passed down as one in which Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the deity of Suga Shrine, travels by mikoshi to the side of Kushinada-hime-no-Mikoto, the deity of Moriyama Shrine, and stays there.
The two deities are regarded as a divine couple, and the festival is based on a legend that they meet this way every 33 years.
It is designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Hayama Town.
Festival highlights
The highlight is the series of religious rites in which a mikoshi bearing Susanoo-no-Mikoto travels from Kotsubo to Hayama and is enshrined at Moriyama Shrine beside Kushinada-hime-no-Mikoto.
Accounts describe of Moriyama Shrine carrying the mikoshi and welcoming it into the shrine.
The festival is distinctive in its depiction of the divine couple’s reunion, expressed through the Yukiai, or “meeting.”
It is said that since the Meiji period, the deity’s stay has been shortened from 7 days to 3 days.
Once every 33 years, a mikoshi brings a divine couple together from Kotsubo to Hayama
What to expect
The event unfolds with a mikoshi bearing Susanoo-no-Mikoto departing from Suga Shrine in Kotsubo and making its way to Moriyama Shrine in Hayama.
At Moriyama Shrine, ujiko carry the mikoshi and enshrine it in the ; after religious rites and other proceedings, it is returned to the people of Kotsubo.
The movement, enshrinement, and return of the mikoshi shape the flow of a festival that links two shrines.
It is said that the deity’s stay once lasted 7 days, but has been 3 days since the Meiji period.
Location and access
- Venue and address
Moriyama-sha (Moriyama Shrine), 2165 Isshiki, Hayama Town, Miura District, Kanagawa Prefecture
- Train and bus
From the bus terminal in front of the east exit ticket gates at JR Zushi Station, take a Keikyu bus for about 20 minutes and get off at “Kyū Yakuba-mae” / Bus stop 2: Zushi 2, Zushi 4, Zushi 5, Zushi 6, Zushi 7
Address 2165 Isshiki, Hayama Town, Miura District, Kanagawa Prefecture
Dates and season
The next Yukiai Festival is announced for 2028.
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Origins and History of Yukiai Festival
Records state that the Yukiai Festival has continued since the Nara period as a religious rite held once every 33 years.
The chronology of Moriyama Shrine lists the festival in 748 as its first, followed by records of events in later eras.
It is said that Susanoo-no-Mikoto once stayed for 7 days, but that this was reduced to 3 days after the Meiji period.
Following the 40th Yukiai Festival in 1996, it was designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Hayama Town.
Official information
The official Moriyama-sha (Moriyama Shrine) website provides an overview of the Yukiai Festival and a chronology of past events.
The same website also provides the venue’s address and directions.
Yukiai Festival at a Glance
The Yukiai Festival is a grand festival held every 33 years, linking Suga Shrine in Kotsubo, Zushi City, with Moriyama-sha in Isshiki, Hayama Town.
The mikoshi bearing Susanoo-no-Mikoto travels to Moriyama Shrine, where the deity stays beside Kushinada-hime-no-Mikoto. The festival is passed down as a rite of the divine couple.
Records document its continuation from the Nara period, and it is also designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Hayama Town.
The 41st festival is announced for 2028.
Sources and references
Japanese Festivals.jp Editorial Team
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Article updated: 2026/11/13
