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Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival 2027: Tokyo's Monster Cat Parade
Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival 2027 — Quick Facts
The next Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival is scheduled for Sunday, October 10, 2027. Here is what is known so far, along with information from 2026 to help you plan.
Date: Sunday, October 10, 2027 (scheduled)
Long weekend: Monday, October 11, 2027 is Sports Day, a Japanese national holiday
Time and parade schedule: To be announced (2026 event hours: 10:00 AM–5:00 PM)
Location: Kagurazaka, Tokyo (2026 venues included Kagurazaka's main street and Shirogane Park)
Admission: To be announced (watching was free in 2026)
Parade participation fees: To be announced
Costumes: Cat-themed clothing and makeup have been welcomed in previous years
Access: Kagurazaka Station (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line) or Iidabashi Station (JR and Tokyo Metro lines), a few minutes' walk from the festival area
The detailed 2027 program has not yet been released. We will update this guide as new information becomes available. For official updates, see the Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival website.
What Is the Bakeneko Festival?
Bakeneko (化け猫, also written "bake-neko") means "monster cat" or "shape-shifting cat" — a supernatural cat from Japanese folklore. Once a year, the Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival fills one of Tokyo's remaining geisha districts with monster cats, as people in cat costumes and makeup parade through its stone-paved streets.
The festival began in 2010 as a small cat-themed costume event — according to the organizers, with around ten "stray cats." It is often introduced abroad as Tokyo's "Cat Halloween" or "Monster Cat Festival," and in 2026 it drew about 15,000 visitors from around the world.
Why Cats — and Why Kagurazaka?
A cat festival may look like a modern novelty, but its theme draws on two older stories: Edo-period folklore and Kagurazaka's literary history.
Why Edo-period people imagined monster cats. Cats lived closely alongside people in Edo-period Japan, valued for protecting homes and food stores from rodents. Their quiet, watchful nighttime behavior also inspired supernatural stories. One well-known explanation involves the andon, the paper-shaded oil lamp of the period. Lamps were often fueled with inexpensive fish oil, and according to popular lore, cats drawn by its smell would stand on their hind legs to lick it — casting shadows that could look almost human. Whether or not such scenes gave rise to specific legends, they show how everyday Edo life and the supernatural imagination were closely intertwined.
Why Natsume Sōseki completes the picture. The novelist Natsume Sōseki was not just a visitor to Kagurazaka — he briefly lived here. From January 24 to March 3, 1903, he stayed at the Nakane family residence in Kagurazaka, where his wife Kyōko was living at the time. He frequented Waradana-tei, a local yose storytelling theater, and bought manuscript paper at the stationery shop Sōmaya. Kagurazaka also appears in several of his literary works. His home in his later years, Sōseki Sanbō — today the Sōseki Sanbō Memorial Museum — is about a 15-minute walk from Kagurazaka. His most famous novel, I Am a Cat, views human society through the eyes of a sharp-witted cat — the literary heart of the festival's theme.
How to Join the Cat Parade in 2027
Want to become a cat for a day? You don't need an elaborate costume. In previous years, visitors joined in everything from full cat costumes to simple cat ears and painted whiskers.
The 2027 participation rules and fees have not yet been announced. For reference, the 2026 festival offered:
Neko-machi Passport Badges: Three participation tiers — Citizen Cat (¥500), Noble Cat (¥1,000) and Royal Cat (¥5,000).
Professional cat makeup: On-site makeup artists help visitors transform into their feline alter egos. In past years, makeup tickets were handed out in the morning.
Kimono cats: A same-day kimono rental and dressing service with only about 12 spots, booked online in advance. In 2025, it was fully booked before the festival.
These details are from previous editions and may change in 2027. Check the official festival website before making plans.
A Peaceful "Cat Halloween"
Unlike the large Halloween crowds associated with Shibuya, the Bakeneko Festival has a welcoming, community-oriented atmosphere. In the years we have attended, we have seen families with small children, seniors and international visitors parading side by side, with no rowdiness and almost no visible security presence. Even in 2026, with around 15,000 visitors, the organizers reported that the festival ran without major trouble.
That calm reflects the character of Kagurazaka itself — an iki (refined) neighborhood where centuries-old traditions still set the tone of the street.
Planning Your Trip for October 2027
Book accommodation early. Because October 10, 2027 falls on a three-day weekend, Tokyo hotels and Kagurazaka restaurants are likely to be busier than on an ordinary Sunday.
Make it more than a day. The Bakeneko Festival is one of the highlights of the Kagurazaka Machi Tobi Festa, the neighborhood's annual autumn arts and culture festival. In recent years it has run for more than three weeks until November 3 (October 10–November 3 in 2026), with dozens of programs hosted by local shops, temples and artisans. We will add the 2027 program once it is announced.
Stay for dinner in Kagurazaka. Many festival-goers head straight back to their hotels after the last parade — and miss half of what makes Kagurazaka special. The neighborhood is one of Tokyo's great dining districts, and some restaurants, such as the yakitori spot Kushi Kobo, welcome guests who are still in costume. The festival borrows Kagurazaka's streets for a day; enjoying a meal here afterward is a wonderful way to give something back to the community that makes it possible. Consider it every good bakeneko's final duty of the day. Because the festival falls on a holiday weekend, booking dinner in advance is a good idea.
Go deeper into the culture behind the cats. If the festival leaves you curious about Kagurazaka's geisha, tea and Edo culture, you can explore it further with us:
SHOGUN Cultural Experience — a live kokyu performance by Daisuke Kiba, wagashi and tea with Tokyo Meister Takeshi Inoue, and a walk through historic Kagurazaka
"Noh Experience" at Yarai Noh Theater — a historic Noh stage a two-minute walk from Kagurazaka Station
Kagurazaka Geisha — a traditional ozashiki evening at a Kagurazaka ryotei. Ozashiki is normally not held on Sundays; if you are visiting for the festival weekend, contact us about other dates.
Past Festivals
2026 — The Largest Bakeneko Festival Yet
The 2026 festival took place on Sunday, October 11. According to the organizers, it drew about 15,000 visitors and a cumulative total of 3,000 parade participants — the largest edition yet in both the number of venues and the number of programs. For an event that began with around ten "stray cats," it was a remarkable milestone.
With venues spread across a wider area, the new cat-themed Goshuin Stamp Rally sent participants all the way from Iidabashi's Lamula building to the festival headquarters, and many completed it. Other new features included the three-tier Neko-machi Passport Badges and a Ninja Shuriken Dojo, where visitors learned throwing technique from a ninja performer.
The special guest performance was Oni Kenbai, a powerful sword-and-fan folk dance from the Kitakami area of Iwate Prefecture. It is designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan and is inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list as part of Furyu-odori.
The organizers reported more visitors from overseas this year and said they believe many of them became interested through the film Rental Family. Special Rental Family stickers ran out, and Shannon Mahina Gorman, who plays Mia in the film, joined the festival in person and carried the lead banner in the final parade. (Organizers' 2026 report on X)
One of my favorite memories of 2026 came not from the parade but from a restaurant. At Kushi Kobo, a yakitori restaurant in Kagurazaka, the owner and staff were grilling skewers while wearing cat masks — on festival day, even the cooks had become bakeneko.
2025 — Japan's Oldest Folk Song Meets the Cat Parade
The 2025 festival was held on Sunday, October 12. A highlight was the stage by performers from Gokayama in Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture — a UNESCO World Heritage area with historical ties to Kagurazaka — who presented a cat-themed rendition of Kokiriko-bushi, affectionately known as "Neko-kiriko." Kokiriko-bushi is regarded as one of Japan's oldest folk songs.
2024 — The Year I Became a Cat
In 2024, I joined the parade myself with professional cat makeup — and many people didn't recognize me. The parade ran four times that afternoon, each led by different music, and the program also included the Garçon Race, in which waiters from Kagurazaka's many restaurants raced while carrying trays of glasses.
Kagurazaka on the Global Stage: Rental Family
The film Rental Family, starring Academy Award® winner Brendan Fraser, includes a heartwarming scene at the Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival, in which Fraser's character wanders the festival streets with a young girl, both wearing cat ears and painted whiskers. The film introduced the festival to a wider international audience, and the organizers believe many of the overseas visitors at the 2026 festival first became interested through it.
Another Kagurazaka Tradition of Transformation: Setsubun Obake
Dressing up is not new in Kagurazaka. Around February 3 each year, during Setsubun, Kagurazaka's geisha themselves appear in unusual and humorous costumes — a custom called Setsubun Obake, said to have begun as a way to drive away demons and bad luck by becoming someone else.
If you fall in love with Kagurazaka at the Bakeneko Festival, Setsubun Obake shows you the older, more intimate side of the same spirit. Read more: Setsubun Obake in Kagurazaka
FAQ
When is the Kagurazaka Bakeneko Festival 2027? It is scheduled for Sunday, October 10, 2027. The following Monday is a national holiday.
Do I need a costume to watch? No. Watching was free in 2026. To join the parade, participants were asked to dress as cats — or simply have the spirit of a cat — and to agree to being photographed. A Neko-machi Passport Badge was also required. The 2027 rules have not yet been announced.
How much does it cost to join? The 2027 fees have not yet been announced. For reference, the 2026 festival offered three Neko-machi Passport Badge options priced at ¥500, ¥1,000 and ¥5,000.
What happens if it rains? The event may be modified or cancelled in bad weather. Check the official website on the day.
Is it suitable for children? Yes. Families with children are among the most enthusiastic participants every year.
About the Author
Shinya Yamada is the founder and Representative Director of EDO KAGURA, a cultural experience company based in Kagurazaka, Tokyo — a neighborhood he has called home for over 25 years. Deeply embedded in Kagurazaka's hanamachi (geisha district) community, he maintains direct relationships with its geisha, ryotei owners and traditional artisans, who often turn to him for guidance on welcoming international guests.
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