Hatori Jinja Shrine is located to the east of Masumida Jinja Shrine’s main hall, from where Ichinomiya's name (literally meaning "Primary Shrine") originated, and Hatori Jinja Shrine's god of textiles is the mother of the god enshrined in Masumida Jinja Shrine, Ame no Hoakari no Mikoto.
This festival started in 1956, and is held for four days starting from Thursday and ending on the last Sunday of July. Based on the legendary characters of Orihime and Hikoboshi from the Tanabata Festival legend, who are often associated with textiles, the whole city joins in on this "Textile Thanksgiving" Ichinomiya Tanabata Star Festival, the largest summer festival in the city. With traditional streamer decorations fluttering in the shopping streets, and gorgeous decorations made by the local people, the festival is praised as one of the three major star festivals in Japan along with the Sendai Tanabata Star Festival and Shonan Hiratsuka Tanabata Star Festival, and welcomes over one million visitors every year.
During the festival, there are all sorts of stage events, special stages, and event booths all around Masumida Jinja Shrine, Hon-machi Shopping Arcade, and Owari-Ichinomiya Ekimae Building (i-Buil). There are many events involving the participation of local citizens, such as the bon dance, etc.
Every year, the festival invites special guests for talk shows and live performances to spice up the atmosphere.
◆Takuro Tatsumi special "Ichinomiya's Seasonal Vegetables and Japanese Wine" talk show◆ (Held in Japanese)
Date and time: 5:00 pm, Sun, Jul 30, 2023
Venue: i-Buil's 7th floor Civic Hall (3-1-2 Sakae, Ichinomiya-shi, Aichi)
Capacity: 300 guests (Raffle held if more than 300 guests apply.) / Admission free of charge
Program:
Part 1 - 5:00 pm - "If Fish is White and Meat is Red, What Are Vegetables?" lecture by Takuro Tatsumi
Part 2 - 5:40 pm - Special "Ichinomiya's Seasonal Vegetables and Japanese Wine" talk show by Takuro Tatsumi and Mayor Nakano
Notes:
• Eight applicants to Part 2 will be able to participate in tasting wine and dishes made with seasonal vegetables! (Raffle held if more than eight guests apply.)
◆Star Festival Tanabata Dance Contest◆
Date: Sat, Jul 29, 2023
Venue: i-Buil's 3rd-floor Civic Terrace (3-1-2 Sakae, Ichinomiya-shi, Aichi)
◆Tanabata "Supobun" Sports and Culture Stage◆
Date and time: 10:00 am–7:30 pm; Sat, Jul 29 and Sun, Jul 30, 2023
Participation free of charge.
◆Wassho Ichinomiya Dance◆
Date and time: 6:45 pm–7:45 pm, Fri, Jul 28, 2023
Course: Hon-machi Shopping Arcade (Near 3 Hon-machi, Ichinomiya-shi, Aichi)
Participation free of charge.
◆Bon dance◆
Date and time: 7:00 pm–8:30 pm, Thu, Jul 27–Sun, Jul 30, 2023 (Held until 8:15 pm on Sun, Jul 30; the final day.)
Venue: Around the special bon dance tower, set up on Ginza-dori Street
Participation free of charge with no limit to number of participants.
◆Cosplay Parade 2023◆
Date and time: 4:00 pm–5:00 pm, Sun, Jul 30, 2023
Parade course: Around Honmachi 4-chome Intersection→Hon-machi Shopping Arcade→JR Owari-Ichinomiya Station→Hon-machi Shopping Arcade→Hon-machi 1-chome district
Fee: Both spectating and participating free of charge.