Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival) heralds spring in Sado. Hina Matsuri is an annual festival held on the third of March. Families display hina dolls at home to pray for the happiness and health of their daughters. You can see displays of hina dolls steeped in the history of Sado, varying from simple clay dolls to ornate dolls passed down through generations since the Edo Period (the 17 - 19 centuries). Flowers come into full bloom all over Sado during the long-awaited spring. When mountain climbing season starts in late April, the Japanese wood poppy [Glaucidium palmatum] (Shiraneaoi) and dogtooth violets (Katakuri) growing in clusters, await visitors on the Osado Mountain Range.
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Event
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2023.9.31 Traditional art Bonfire (takigi) Noh Performances
Kusakari Shrine Evening Noh Theatre
At an autumn festival of Otsu Matsuri in the Hamochi area, an …
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2023.6.16 Traditional art Ondeko (Demon Drumming) Lion Dance Ryotsu Jinku (folk song)
Ryotsu Ebisu Festival
Ryotsu Ebisu Festival is held on the 15th and 16th of June eve…
Feature
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Sado Guide Interpreter Search
This website features a system to search various guide-interpreters in Sado City. You can search and directly contact available guides by selecting the type of guide you require, and the guide's specialty.
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Visit this beautiful island’s Noh theatre!
Nurtured by Zeami, Noh culture in Sado blossomed in the Edo Period. June is the "Month of Noh" in Sado! Come and see a variety of Noh programs performed on Noh stages throughout the island.
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Sado’s Spring, Beckoned by Oni, Shinto Deities
On Sado Island, April is the best season for Ondeko (Deity mask dance). On April 15th especially, to mark the official start of Sado's sightseeing season, Ondeko troupes give performances in about forty communities. Please do visit Sado in spring, when the Oni, Shinto Deities, dance and the sounds of drums reverberate.
FUN! SADO
How to enjoy Sado Island
Sado Island is rich in seasonal changes.
In fact, it is about 1.5 times the size of Tokyo's 23 wards and Awaji Island
It is the largest island on the Sea of Japan side.
Suggested Itineraries
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Royal Route for first timers on Sado Island: Minami-Sado
If this is your first trip to Sado, this is the standard course you must see. Feel the history of Sado and be healed by the nature of the Minami Sado area.
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HistoryShrine
Kuninaka Area's Historic Sites and Romantic Past
Enhance your Sado Island sightseeing experience with the truly ancient and medieval sites of the Mano area. These essential spots, combined with the stories of the exiles who created Sado's unique culture, have the makings of an utterly romantic historical novel.
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Gold mineGeosite
A gold rush town and the beauty of the coast with its huge and uniquely formed rocks
This is a course to enjoy Aikawa, the "town of gold mines" and the magnificent beauty of the coast, which is a staple of Sado sightseeing. You will visit representative spots such as the historical site "Sado Gold Mine" and "Onogame."
Four seasons
Four Seasons on Sado Island


SUMMER
Summer
Summer is an action-packed season with a wide array of events. "Yoi-no-mai" Dance Parade is a dancing procession performed on Kyomachi Street, in the dim light of lanterns, to the music of Aikawa Ondo folk music. "Sado Ogi Taraibune and Sazae Matsuri (tub boat & turban shellfish festival)" is another popular summer event. Sado's three major festivals also take place in summer. Marine sports such as sea bathing, diving and sea kayaking in the crystal clear waters are popular activities. Campers and hikers, too, throng to Sado to visit natural cedar trees tucked away in forests full of wonders.

AUTUMN
Autumn
Autumn is the season of the harvest. Sado rice, grown in harmony with the quintessentially Sado toki-friendly environment, is renowned as one of Niigata's top, brand-name rice provenances, both outside and inside Niigata Prefecture. The view of rice paddy fields glowing in gold before the harvest are well worth a visit. Leaves turn bright red and yellow. Osado Skyline and Momijiyama Park are two of the best spots to see autumn leaves in Sado.

WINTER
Winter
Winter brings the most excellent seafood delights in Sado. "Nami-no-Hana" (flowers of the waves) are a feature of the season and flutter in the winter sky. Rough waves in Mano Bay, and on the coast of Sotokaifu, turn into white foam, and the fluttering "flowers" resemble fluffy petals in the air. Niigata Prefecture has a lot of snow, but on Sado, there is less snow and the temperature is comparatively higher than mainland Niigata, so it is rare that the flatland is completely covered with snow. The view of snow-capped shrines and temples in the winter chill, by contrast, is stunning.