The purpose is agricultural and the method is noise: drums, carried through a mountain town in the middle of January.
Overview
Torioi – bird-chasing – is a koshogatsu custom of the farming year, performed around the small new year in mid-January to drive birds away from the coming crop. Nakanojo, in the Agatsuma valley of northern Gunma, keeps its own version, with drumming at its centre and a drum gallery presented alongside it.
It is a local rite rather than a tourist event, which is exactly its appeal: a small town, deep winter, and a custom that has outlived the farming economy that produced it.
When and where
The 2027 festival is listed by the Nakanojo Tourism Association for 14 January 2027. The bird-chasing drum gallery runs alongside it.
Confirm timings with the tourism association before travelling, as the programme is set locally each year.
Getting there
Nakanojo Station is about 2 hours 20 minutes from Ueno on the Kusatsu-Shima limited express, or reachable from Takasaki on the JR Agatsuma line. The town is the gateway to Shima and Sawatari onsen, so most visitors combine the festival with a night at a hot spring.
Winter roads in the valley can be snowy; the train is the reliable option.
What to expect
Small in scale, strongly local in feel.
- A small-new-year rite performed to protect the coming harvest
- Drumming as the central element, with a drum display alongside
- Held in the middle of January, when the Agatsuma valley is under snow
- Shima Onsen, known for its Taisho-era bathhouse architecture, half an hour away
- Sawatari Onsen and the Nakanojo Gardens nearby for the rest of a trip
Tickets and admission
Free to watch. This is a community event with no facilities for large crowds, so keep out of the way of participants and follow local direction.
Tips for visitors
Pair the trip with an onsen stay – Shima or Sawatari – because there is little reason to rush back after an evening event in the mountains. Dress for standing outside in snow. If you read no Japanese, ask the tourism association for the day’s timings when you arrive; they are used to visitors.
Access and map
| Dates | 14 January 2027 |
|---|---|
| Venue | Nakanojo town, Gunma |
| Access | JR Nakanojo station on the Agatsuma line |
| Admission | Free |
| Official site | Nakanojo Tourism Association |
Source: Nakanojo Tourism Association
Image: Photo: Kentaro Ohno from Tokyo, Japan / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
