Sakura · Seasons

Etiquette: the rules behind the rituals

Japanese seasonal traditions come with unwritten rules that everyone quietly follows. None of them are hard — most come down to consideration for the people, places and even trees around you. Here are the three situations you are most likely to meet.

At a hanami picnic

The blossoms are the guest of honor. A good hanami is relaxed, tidy and considerate of the hundred other picnics around you.

Do

  • Arrive early — or send one person ahead with a ground sheet to hold the spot. A sheet with a name on it is respected.
  • Take off shoes before stepping on the picnic sheet, as you would entering a home.
  • Bring bags for your trash and carry everything out; park bins overflow in blossom week.
  • Keep music low and conversations at a picnic volume, especially at evening yozakura.
  • Share — offering snacks to a neighboring group is a classic way a hanami turns into friendships.

Don't

  • Never shake branches, pick blossoms or climb the trees — old sakura are fragile and some are centuries old.
  • Don't claim more ground than your group needs while others stand waiting.
  • Don't leave a spot unattended for hours — holding is fine, ghost camps are not.
  • Don't barbecue where open flame is banned; most blossom parks forbid it.
Checklist: ground sheet, shoes-off space, bento and snacks, warm layer for the evening, trash bags, a camera — and a plan B park in case your first choice is full.

At a shrine — hatsumode and Shichi-Go-San

Shrine visits anchor the New Year, Shichi-Go-San and many matsuri. The sequence below is the standard, polite way to pay respects.

  1. Bow at the torii gate

    A small bow before entering, then walk along the edge of the path — the center line is traditionally reserved for the deity.

  2. Purify at the temizuya basin

    Ladle water over your left hand, then right hand, then pour a little into your left palm to rinse your mouth. Never drink from the ladle.

  3. Offer a coin

    Toss a coin gently into the offering box — a five-yen coin is considered lucky because its name sounds like "good fortune".

  4. Two bows, two claps, one bow

    Bow deeply twice, clap twice, make your silent wish or thanks, then bow once more. That's the whole ritual.

  5. Fortunes and charms

    Draw an omikuji fortune if you like — tie a bad one to the shrine's rack to leave the luck behind, and take a good one home.

Avoid

  • Loud phone calls, eating or smoking on the shrine grounds.
  • Photographing worshippers up close, ceremonies, or families at Shichi-Go-San without clear invitation.
  • Entering roped-off or sacred areas marked with shimenawa rope.

At a summer festival — matsuri nights

Food stalls, dancing, fireworks and portable shrines: a matsuri is joyful chaos with a few firm rules.

Do

  • Wear a yukata if you have one — festival crowds are the one place everyone does, and locals appreciate the effort.
  • Give way to the mikoshi (portable shrine) procession; it has the right of way, always.
  • Join the bon odori by watching one full loop of the circle, then stepping in at the back and copying the hands.
  • Eat beside the stall you bought from, or in a designated area — walking while eating is frowned on in crowds.
  • At fireworks, lay your sheet early and keep it small; stand only at the back rows.

Don't

  • Don't touch a mikoshi or step into the bearers' path for a photo — it is a sacred object in motion, not a parade float.
  • Don't haggle at yatai stalls; prices are fixed and posted.
  • Don't block the dance circle's flow or film dancers at arm's length.
  • Don't leave sheets, skewers or bottles behind — pack out what you brought.
With children: agree on a meeting point near a named stall — festival crowds separate families fast — and bring coins: many games and treats are cash-only.