There are four national holidays during this period: Showa Day (April 29), Constitution Memorial Day (May 3), Greenery Day (May 4), and Children`s Day (May 5). This is a very busy travel season in Japan and most tourist destinations are extremely crowded. Many Japanese offices close for about a week to 10 days, depending on the calendar with many people taking a vacation, travelling abroad or to a tourist attraction in Japan. Airports and train stations are usually overflowing with people during this time and it can be very hard to get reservations for accommodation and transportation during Golden Week.
The first national holiday during Golden Week is April 29 and is the birthday of the former emperor Showa, and is called showa-no-hi (Showa Day). The second holiday on May 3 is kenpou-kinenbi (Constitution Memorial Day). The new Japanese constitution was put into effect on May 3, 1947. May 4 is called midori-no-hi (Greenery Day) during which we show appreciation for the environment and nature. The last holiday is kodomo-no-hi (Children`s Day) on May 5. It`s a Japanese Boy`s festival and is a day to pray for healthy growth of boys. It`s a Japanese tradition for families with boys to hang up carp streamers (koinobori) outside their houses around this holiday. Carps are believed to symbolize successes in children`s lives. Also, samurai dolls called gogatsu ningyo (May Dolls) are displayed in their houses.
May is a great time to travel in Japan and I would advise planning a trip to Japan after the Golden Week travel rush has ended. The travel peak is anticipated for around May 3 this year.
This is my submission to the May 2012 J-Festa Japan in May
Gracias por la información, no conocia esta fiesta...Un beso
ReplyDeleteThanks Maria, You are very welcome :)
DeleteThe best thing to do during Golden Week is to stay home and read good books and nice blogs like this one! ^^
ReplyDeleteThanks Rurousha, That is probably the best plan as it is crazy busy to travel during this time. I hope you can stop by my blog during Golden Week :)
DeleteTraveling during Golden Week when the rest of Japan are also traveling would be a nightmare!
ReplyDeleteThanks Lina, I tried it once, but never again! It was just so busy that we didn't really enjoy the trip. Probably best to relax at home and take it easy :)
DeleteI'm not going anywhere this Golden Week because of the crowds. I'm gonna lay around my apartment and watch DVDs :D
ReplyDeleteThanks Sarah, That sounds like a great plan. Not the best time to travel in Japan unless you enjoy crowds :)
DeleteAhh great. I should have read this before I booked another holiday to Japan :p I will be there from April 22 to May 4th 2013. I'll be in Tokyo from 22-28 and then rest of the time based in Kyoto and doing day trips. How busy do you think it will be?
ReplyDeleteHi Beau, Unfortunately late April - early May (Golden Week) is one of the peak times for travel in Japan. Each year the national holidays fall on a different day of the week, so not sure when the anticipated peak day will be in 2013! More info to come in early 2013.
DeleteJohn