"Local tourism" is about experiencing the nature, food, and culture unique to a region, and reliving the lifestyle rooted in that place. Kokofuru Tohoku is a travel site that offers this kind of local tourism. Through travel experiences, you can connect with people, strengthen your attachment to the region, love the area, and come to think of it as "hometown." We propose a form of travel that is a little different from "tourism."
- 01.Festivals & Traditional Events
- 02.Nature & Food
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Featured 01
Festivals & Traditional Events
Tohoku is home to countless festivals and traditional events. Instead of simply watching from the sidelines, why not immerse yourself in an experience where you can really connect with the local people? It’s a chance to feel less like a tourist and more like a part of the community!
Pickup：Hachinohe Sansha Taisai (UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage) Float Decoration Workshop Tour
Guided by a Hachinohe Sanpo Master, this tour begins at Ogami Shrine, the birthplace of the Hachinohe Sansha Taisai, where a Shinto priest explains the festival’s origins and history. Visitors can then interact with members of a float-making crew and take part in creating some of the decorations first-hand. Hear directly from local people who welcome visitors with open arms!
We want people to experience Sansha Taisai from the inside
＜Kazutoshi Miura, Hachinohe Sanpo Master＞
Through this tour, we hope to spread the word across the country just how incredible the festivals of Hachinohe are. Listening to stories from the people of Ogami Shrine, where the festival began, and actually taking part in float-making activities are rare experiences you normally wouldn’t get the chance to have. So rather than seeing Sansha Taisai from the outside, we want people to have the opportunity to enjoy it from within. Hachinohe’s charm isn’t just that the people are kind—it’s also often said that places to stay, work, and grab a drink are all close together. I hope visitors will experience that uniquely Hachinohe way of enjoying the city as well.
Understanding the shrine’s philosophy changes one’s view of the festival
＜Hiroshi Sakamoto, Ogami Shrine Assistant Priest＞
Beyond the joy and vibrant floats of the festival, we also share the values and spiritual perspective of the shrine—something that has been passed down together with the local community for over 300 years. As such, I hope participants can experience watching the festival while also understanding some of its deeper meaning. By trying on the Sarutahiko costume worn in the procession and walking in tall geta, people can also appreciate just how challenging it is. If this tour inspires someone to visit a shrine or take part in a festival, the way they see these traditions will continue to change. I’d love to keep sharing these kinds of local, in-depth experiences through tours like this.
Experience the unique atmosphere of a production site, normally closed to the public
＜Keiji Yamaguchi & Masato Komukai, Jurokunichimachi Float Group Advisors＞
We believe that by showing people the float production site, which has never been open to the public before, they’ll be able to better understand the festival as a whole. What sets Hachinohe Sansha Taisai apart is that, unlike Nebuta festivals with professional Nebuta artists, there are no professionals making the floats as a job. Everyone involved is an amateur, and that’s part of what makes it so interesting. Another distinctive feature is how strongly it feels like a children’s festival, as we have elementary schoolers playing small taiko, while middle and high school students and older play flutes and larger taiko. Kids even help pull the floats and also sometimes take part in making them. So we hope that seeing the production process really allows people to feel what makes the event so unique.
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Featured 02
Nature & Food
Tohoku is blessed with rich natural landscapes, and great food shaped by its environment. Step away from the noise of the city and the rush of everyday life, and spend some time at a more relaxed pace—meeting warm and welcoming locals, and soothing both mind and body. A unique and refreshing experience, found only in Tohoku, awaits.
Pickup：TENDO CYCLE FRUITRIP, Tea Experience at the Shine Muscat Vineyard
This tour invites visitors to enjoy some tea beneath fully grown Shine Muscat vines. Take the opportunity to interact with local residents, including a hands-on fruit farming experience. Here’s what Kozue Yuki, a local farmer, has to say:
We want to offer new discoveries and moments of surprise around our fruit, and bring people closer to the world of agriculture
＜Kozue Yuki, Marutsune Fruit Farm＞
Believing that vibrant agriculture leads to a vibrant region, we decided to take on the challenge of creating tours centered around farming. We feel there is still a distance between agriculture and consumers, so through our tours we try to share the fruit-growing process, and how farmers are involved at every stage. For example, we show the difference between Shine Muscat grapes that have undergone thinning and those that haven’t, and explain how this affects flavor. Many guests are surprised to learn the secrets behind what makes fruit taste so good. I hope people can enjoy discovering these stories and processes while taking in the gentle breeze, flowers, and trees.
Unchanging landscapes shape Tendo’s unique charm
In my twenties, I felt that life surrounded by nature lacked excitement, so I moved to the city. But after returning to Tendo, the landscapes that had remained unchanged since my childhood suddenly felt incredibly appealing. Tendo is known as an onsen area, but with just a short walk, fruit orchards spread all around, so that closeness and local feel are part of its charm. Food is another highlight. Surrounded by mountains, with dramatic temperature differences and mineral-rich underground water fed by melting snow, Tendo is ideal for growing great seasonal fruit such as cherries, pears, apples, peaches, and grapes. It’s also a major producer of rice, both for regular consumption and sake-brewing, which is why the local Sake is so good. Within these enduring natural landscapes lies the reason behind Tendo’s distinctive great flavors.
Building lasting connections beyond the tour, and expanding the circle of hosts
Some guests who joined our tours end up ordering fruit from us afterwards. We even had the children of a participant come and visit us with their spouse. It’s amazing to see connections continue beyond a one-time encounter, growing from the tour itself, and it made me want to keep offering experiences like this. Going forward, we also hope to collaborate with other fruit farmers to expand our circle of hosts and turn these efforts into something ongoing.
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