Akita 秋田

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Akita (pop. 312,000), capital of the prefecture of the same name, is the second largest city of the Tohoku region after Sendai.

It is a bustling industrial city without much touristical interest, except for its annual Kanto Matsuri (竿燈祭り), one of Japan's most famous. Its main rivals in Tohoku are Aomori and Hirosaki's Nebuta and Neputa Matsuri, and Sendai's Tanabata or Aoba Matsuri.

The festival is held from 4 to 7 August each year. Hundreds of participants balance some 10 to 15m tall poles with plenty of lanterns hanging in rows through the streets. The effect is particularily impressive at night when the lanterns are illuminated.

How to get there Akita is easily accessible by train as it is on the Shinkansen Komachi line. The journey from Tokyo (￥9,560) takes 4 hours without any change of train required.

Coming from Aomori, the JR Limite Express Inaho takes 2 hours 40 minutes (￥3,260).

By air, Akita airport is 50 minutes by bus from the city (￥890). There are flights to and from Sapporo (Chitose), Tokyo (Haneda), Nagoya and Osaka (Itami and Kansai).