On Saturday, August 29, 2026, Kagoshima holds the Kinko Bay Summer Night Fireworks Exhibition, one of the largest displays in Kyushu. About 15,000 shells rise over the bay from the waterfront, set against the active volcano Sakurajima – a backdrop few fireworks shows in Japan can match.
The Show
Begun around the turn of the millennium, the display has become a fixture of the Kagoshima summer; 2026 marks the 24th edition. The evening opens at 19:20, with fireworks from about 19:30 until roughly 20:30. The programme builds to a pair of 60-cm shells fired simultaneously, a fixture of the show. In bad weather, the organizer posts go/no-go updates on its official site and X account.
How to Attend
There are free viewing areas along the waterfront, as well as paid seating. Paid seats run from 1,500 yen for unreserved seating up to 14,000 yen for a four-person box, with a 165 yen booking fee per ticket; children of primary-school age and above need a ticket. Tickets are currently available, and some categories have already sold out.
There is no event parking, so come by public transport. Gates to the paid areas open at 16:30.
- Date: Saturday, August 29, 2026
- Time: From 19:20 (fireworks approx. 19:30-20:30); paid areas open 16:30
- Venue: Kagoshima Port (Honko district) waterfront
- Scale: About 15,000 shells
- Admission: Paid seats 1,500-14,000 yen (+165 yen per ticket booking fee) or free viewing areas
- Tickets: In Japanese via CN Playguide or FamilyMart. Sold until stock runs out
- Parking: None – please use public transport
- Access: From Kagoshima-Chuo Station: 5 min by JR to Kagoshima Station, then 15 min on foot; or 10 min by tram to “Asahi-dori,” then 10 min on foot. From Kagoshima Airport: 50 min by limousine bus to Tenmonkan, then 15 min on foot
- Enquiries: Sun-Sun Call Kagoshima +81 99-808-3333
- Official Info: hanabi-kankou-kagoshima.jp
Planning Your Visit
Kagoshima is the southern end of the Kyushu Shinkansen, about 1 hour 20 minutes from Hakata. The fireworks pair naturally with a ferry across to Sakurajima itself, the Sengan-en garden, and the city’s hot springs. Arrive early – the waterfront fills well before the first shell.
Source: Kagoshima City | hanabi-kankou-kagoshima.jp Photo: Kagoshima City