Sarahama Festival Calendar on Irabu Island

In Sarahama, a village on Irabu Island, the whole atmosphere shifts for a few days every autumn by the lunar calendar. This is the period of Myaakuzutsu, a traditional festival that rarely appears in guidebooks but is considered one of the most important events of the year by local residents.

To be honest, I only learned about it myself through a casual conversation with the owner of a small eatery in Sarahama. "Watch out, the roads get busy around festival time," she told me, and that was the first I heard there was any festival at all. Because so little information exists for visitors, showing up unaware can be confusing, but knowing about it turns your trip into a rare chance to touch the island's living culture.

This guide focuses on Myaakuzutsu while covering the full calendar of annual festivals held on Irabu Island and in Sarahama, complete with their approximate dates. It also explains, as honestly as I could confirm, how far visitors can observe these events and what etiquette to keep in mind.

The annual festival calendar of Irabu Island and Sarahama
What Myaakuzutsu is, and its shared roots between Sarahama and Ikema Island
Visitor etiquette and how much you can observe
Other festivals, including the Old 16th Day Festival and Harii

The Annual Festival Calendar of Irabu Island and Sarahama

Here are the main festivals passed down in Irabu Island and Sarahama, listed in order of the year. All of them follow the lunar calendar, so their Gregorian dates shift from year to year. Treat the dates below as a rough guide and always confirm the latest information before you visit.

Festival	Timing (Lunar Calendar)	Approximate Gregorian Date	Visitor Access
Old 16th Day Festival (Jurukunitsu)	16th day of the 1st lunar month	Around February to March (March 4, 2026)	Not open (a private family observance)
Harii (Sea God Festival)	4th day of the 5th lunar month (Yukkanuhii)	Around June (June 18, 2026)	Open to the public (Sarahama Fishing Port is the largest venue on Miyako Island)
Old Bon Festival	13th to 15th day of the 7th lunar month	Around August (August 25-27, 2026)	Varies by village
Myaakuzutsu	Four days starting from the Kinoe-Uma day in the 8th or 9th lunar month	Around September (began September 22 in 2025)	Partially open (a sacred rite requiring respectful conduct)

Note: the Gregorian dates of these lunar festivals change every year. For accurate dates from 2026 onward, check with the Miyako Island Tourism Association or local visitor information before your trip.

You might wonder why the Gregorian dates never stay fixed. Most traditional festivals in Okinawa and the Miyako Islands follow the lunisolar calendar, which drifts against the modern Gregorian calendar every year. Assuming "it happened in September last year, so it will be in September again this year" is risky. When planning your trip, it is worth the extra step of looking up that specific year's exact dates.

What Is Myaakuzutsu: The Men's Festival of Miyako, Shared by Sarahama and Ikema Island

Myaakuzutsu is a traditional rite held over four days starting from the Kinoe-Uma day in the 8th or 9th month of the lunar calendar, centered on sacred sites called mutu. It prays for a bountiful harvest and the prosperity of future generations. Designated as a cultural property of Miyako City, the festival is carried on in three areas: Sarahama, Ikema Island, and Hirara-Nishihara. On Irabu Island, Sarahama is the community that keeps this tradition alive.

Two origin stories are passed down. One says that a lord of Ikema in Nakabuya granted the festival as a reward after the community paid off its poll tax in full. The other tells of parents who lost their only child and, moved by the impermanence of life, began the festival as a way to embrace joy in this world. The first version is generally considered the more likely one.

The festival unfolds over four days, each with its own name: Arabi on the first day, Nnakanuhii on the second, Atonuhii on the third, and Buutoibii on the final day. Throughout this period, the people of Sarahama gather at the mutu as a community to offer prayers and dance.

A dance called kuicha is another hallmark of the festival. Originally performed to pray for rain or a good harvest, it is danced mainly by men during Myaakuzutsu, which is why the event is also known as the "men's festival of Miyako." Unlike any city tourist event, it gives visitors a rare look at the bonds that hold a community together.

As I wrote in the guide to Sarahama Port, this is a fishing town that thrived on skipjack tuna fishing. I think it is precisely because this community has always lived alongside the sea that a rite like this is still carefully passed down today. For a deeper look at the island's history, the article on the history of Irabu Island is also worth reading.

Sarahama Port: A Historic Bonito Fishing Town

Sarahama Port on Irabu Island is a working bonito fishing town. Fresh seafood at Insha-no-Eki, colourful hillside streets and the Harii festival.

Irabu Island History: 700 Years to the Bridge

The 700-year history of Irabu Island: 14th-century migrants, the Ryukyu era, the 1720 move to Sarahama, the Meiwa tsunami and the 2015 bridge.

Visitor Etiquette: What You Can and Cannot See

This is the most important part. Myaakuzutsu is not a tourist event; it is a sacred religious rite. If you observe it, do so respectfully and follow any instructions from local residents. Photography may be restricted in certain moments.

Miyako City's cultural property page describes the origins and structure of Sarahama's Myaakuzutsu in detail, but it does not specify whether visitors are permitted to watch or take part. In other words, this is not an official event open freely to anyone; the right approach is to quietly and respectfully step into a community rite as a guest.

Here are the specific points to keep in mind.

Do not enter sacred sites without permission: stay out of mutu and other places of worship
Avoid loud voices and flashy clothing: remember this is a place of prayer for the local community
Always ask before taking photos: assume some moments are off-limits and never photograph without checking first
Watch for traffic congestion: village roads can get crowded during the festival period
Follow local instructions without argument: if someone tells you "that's far enough for today," turn back right there

Honestly, while researching this article, I kept feeling that this is not something to casually promote as a tourist attraction. That is exactly why I want to approach it not out of curiosity, but as a visitor who quietly respects it as part of the community's way of life.

This is not the kind of event that gets folded into a travel agency's package tour, and I think the fact that it is not treated that way says a lot about how deeply rooted it is in the community.

Old 16th Day Festival: When the Village Falls Quiet for New Year in the Afterlife

The Old 16th Day Festival (Jurukunitsu) falls on the 16th day of the 1st lunar month and is known on Miyako Island as "New Year in the afterlife." The idea is simple: if the 1st day of the lunar new year belongs to the living, the 16th day belongs to deceased ancestors.

On this day, extended families gather at their monchu baka, or clan tombs, and lay out boxed food, fruit, sweets, and awamori as offerings. The typical routine is to burn uchikabi, or paper money, to send funds to the ancestors and to offer incense. Family members living off-island often return home just for this day, and some say the homecoming rate on Jurukunitsu even exceeds that of Obon or New Year.

This is not an event visitors can take part in directly. Because it is a private family observance, some restaurants and shops close for the day. Please avoid photographing near cemeteries. If you plan to be on Irabu Island around this time, it is worth building some slack into your itinerary for closed shops.

The most widely accepted origin story tells of a retainer serving the Ryukyu Kingdom who worked at Shuri Castle from New Year's Day until the 15th, only to return home on the 16th and find that his parents had already passed away. Knowing the festival is thought to have begun with people who could not spend New Year with their living family, wanting to at least share the afterlife's New Year with their ancestors, gives it a quietly bittersweet weight.

Old Bon, Harii, and Other Festivals

Harii (Sea God Festival): Sarahama Fishing Port Is the Largest Venue on Miyako Island

Harii, the Sea God Festival, takes place at fishing ports across the islands on the 4th day of the 5th lunar month, a day known as Yukkanuhii. This traditional event prays for safe voyages and a good catch throughout the year, centered on races in which crews row sabani, traditional Okinawan wooden boats, using human power alone. With no engines involved, these straight-line races kick up spray and deliver real spectacle.

More than a dozen fishing ports across Miyako hold their races simultaneously, but Sarahama Fishing Port on Irabu Island is considered the largest venue in the entire Miyako area. Watching Sarahama's fishermen, known for their skipjack pole-and-line fishing, row all-out is genuinely thrilling. Fishermen's teams, company teams, women's associations, and even a children's division all take part, turning it into a village-wide competition.

Unlike Myaakuzutsu or the Old 16th Day Festival, this is an event visitors can easily watch. Because the races happen in the open space of a fishing port, you can feel free to join in the cheering.

Old Bon: Three Days of Welcoming and Sending Off Ancestors

Old Bon is observed across Okinawa from the 13th to the 15th day of the 7th lunar month. Over these three days, families welcome the spirits of their ancestors on the first day, mark a middle day, and send the spirits off on the last. On the main island of Okinawa, Old Bon is closely associated with eisa dance parades, but exactly how it is observed on Miyako and Irabu Island varies from village to village.

If you visit Irabu Island during Old Bon, it helps to keep in mind, just as with the Old 16th Day Festival, that many families put their local observances first. Planning a sightseeing itinerary while staying flexible enough to move with the island's own rhythm of life will make the trip itself feel richer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. When can I observe Myaakuzutsu?

A. It runs for four days starting from the Kinoe-Uma day in the 8th or 9th lunar month. The Gregorian date changes every year; in 2025 it began on September 22. If you are planning to visit, check that year's exact dates in advance.

Q. Can tourists observe Myaakuzutsu?

A. Some parts can be observed, but remember this is a sacred rite and follow local residents' instructions respectfully. Photography may be restricted in certain moments. Understand that this is not an event actively promoted to tourists, and approach it with a quiet, watchful attitude.

Q. Is it okay to visit Irabu Island during the Old 16th Day Festival?

A. Visiting itself is fine, but be aware that some restaurants and shops may be closed for the day. Since this is a private family observance, avoid watching or photographing near cemeteries.

Q. Can visitors enjoy watching Harii?

A. Yes. Sarahama Fishing Port in particular is the largest Harii venue on Miyako Island, and you can watch the sabani boat races up close. Unlike the deeply religious Myaakuzutsu or the Old 16th Day Festival, this is an event you can enjoy casually, cheering along with everyone else.

Q. Where can I learn more about the annual festivals of Irabu Island?

A. Miyako City's cultural property pages and the official website of the Miyako Island Tourism Association both carry detailed information on each festival. Always confirm the latest dates just before your visit.

Walking Through Festivals and Village Memory: Sarahama and Shimoji Island

A lane through the village of Sarahama, Irabu Island

Festivals like Myaakuzutsu and Harii did not spring up overnight; they rest on layers of local history. Sarahama is said to have been founded by settlers who originally came from Ikema Island, and the fact that Myaakuzutsu is observed in Ikema Island, Sarahama, and Hirara-Nishihara alike reflects that shared lineage.

Even outside festival season, simply walking through the village lets you feel something of this history. The article on walking the villages of Irabu Island introduces the atmosphere of the lanes and sacred sites in and around Sarahama. Strolling quiet alleys and imagining the years layered into them, even outside the festival season, is one way to enjoy Irabu Island.

Irabu Island Village Walk: Sarahama Alleys Guide

A walking guide to Sarahama village on Irabu Island: maze-like alleys, colourful fishermen houses, local shops to browse and manners for photographing homes.

Neighboring Shimoji Island carries its own layered history too. Sarahama, on the Irabu Island side, is the community that carries the festivals forward, but Irabu Island and Shimoji Island have grown together as one area, joined by a single bridge. Reading the article on the history of Shimoji Island alongside this one gives you a fuller picture of how the whole area came to be.

In Closing: Knowing the Festival Calendar Changes How You See the Island

One more time, here is a summary of the annual festivals of Irabu Island and Sarahama.

Old 16th Day Festival (16th day of the 1st lunar month): New Year in the afterlife. Not open to visitor participation; watch for closed shops
Harii (4th day of the 5th lunar month): Sarahama Fishing Port is the largest venue on Miyako Island. Visitors can enjoy watching too
Old Bon (13th to 15th day of the 7th lunar month): Customs vary by village
Myaakuzutsu (four days from the Kinoe-Uma day in the 8th or 9th lunar month): A sacred rite. Observe with respect

This might be information that rarely makes it into the standard guidebooks, but simply knowing when these festivals fall changes how you see Irabu Island. Beyond the beaches and the scenery, you get a glimpse of the rhythm of life for the people who actually live there, and I believe that is part of what makes this island worth visiting.