Saijo Sake Matsuri

The biggest sake festival in Hiroshima returns to the sake brewing center of Saijo in Higashi-Hiroshima, which is also one of the best in Japan.

As well as events around the town and brewery openings the Sake Hiroba, an enclosed space where visitors can sample 833 different kinds of sake from all around Japan.

Admission to the Sake Hiroba is by ticket only (advance purchase is necessary) for designated time slots each day. Limits on the number of sakes you can “sample” have been lifted this year, so we advise making good use of the “yawaragi-mizu” (water to drink between sake samples to take the edge off) that are supplied.

Admission to the Sake Hiroba is by ticket and is limited to one of five 2.5-hour sessions over the two days of the Sake Matsuri.

Advance tickets are ¥3,300 (incl tax) and are available from 7-11 ticket machines Ticketopia [P-code：654-048]. On the day, you can buy tickets for ¥3,800 (incl tax) from 9:30 am at the venue.

Tickets Include

• Unlimited sake samples!
• Snack tickets
• Yawaragi-mizu bottle of water (see above)
• Ceramic o-chokko sake cup
• Sake brewery list (Japanese)

Additional sake tickets can be bought on-site for ¥1,000 (10 tickets)

If this all too much hassle, there should be quite a lot going on in the streets between Saijo Station and the Sake Hiroba. Most of it centers on sake (of course) and you can pop into the breweries and sample some of their products, browse the food stalls and watch parades and performances. Although alcohol is very much at the center of this event, many families do attend.

Access:

Saijo is 40 minutes east of Hiroshima on the JR Sanyo Honsen Line. One-way tickets are ¥580 for adults. It’s worth buying your return ticket when you arrive, as lines to buy tickets can be long in the evening.

Read more about the 2023 Sake Matsuri here.