At last, tomorrow, September 29 (Sun), the pedestrian paradise event will be held at Koshienguchi Honwaka Shopping Street!
What in the world is this?!
“Is this really Nishinomiya?!” “Are we in Tokushima Prefecture?!” That’s the kind of incredible, high-impact crowd you’ll see at the “Awa Odori” performance held during the Honwaka Shopping Street pedestrian paradise. This year marks the 39th edition.
(Photos from when Nishi2 visited the 2023 event)
The Honwaka Shopping Street, which is about 720m (according to Nishi2 research) in total length, fills up with all kinds of stalls, including festival games. It’s one of Nishinomiya’s biggest shopping street festivals! In this article, we’ll share this year’s pedestrian paradise schedule, what kinds of stalls were there last year, and more.
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A closer look at the 39th Honwaka Shopping Street Pedestrian Paradise
First, here’s the schedule for this year’s “Honwaka Shopping Street Pedestrian Paradise.”
When is it?
September 29 (Sun) 10:30〜19:00
(Held in light rain)If canceled, an announcement will be posted on the official website at 6:30 a.m.
Where is it?
JR Koshienguchi Honwaka Shopping Street
It will be held at the green shopping street shown on the map.
What will be happening?
There will be 17 events, including performances to watch and hands-on activities. The viewing events are packed with variety, mainly featuring local performers, including parades, music, dance, talk shows, and more!
List of viewing events
- 10:30〜11:15 Opening Parade (Kam Koshien Junior High School Brass Band, Nishinomiya City Fire Corps)
- 11:15〜11:40 Erina Ballet Studio
- 11:45〜12:05 Orchestra Club, Mukogawa Women’s University Junior High School
- 12:10〜12:30 Ryukyu Koku Matsuri Daiko
- 12:30〜13:00 Guest greetings and Community Development Award Ceremony
- 13:00〜13:25 KIZ ANGEL
- 13:30〜14:10 Naruo Wind Orchestra
- 14:15〜14:45 KDT Dance Factory
- 14:50〜15:20 Athena Cheer Dance Club SCARLETS
- 15:25〜15:55 Mellow Float
- 16:00〜16:30 THE NATURAL KILLERS
- 16:35〜17:05 Orange at noon (keiichiro solo)
- 17:00〜18:30 Awa Odori (Osaka Tensuiren and others)
- 18:30〜19:00 Talk show with former Orix player Tomoyuki Kaida (currently manager of the Himeji Egreters)
Kam Koshien Junior High School Brass Band and others
The Opening Parade and Awa Odori, which start near the station and move south toward Center Street, are spectacular. If it’s your first time seeing them, you’ll probably think, “Wait, Nishinomiya has a parade this big?!”
List of hands-on events
- 11:00〜15:00 Koshienguchi District Community Development Council event
- 12:00〜14:00 Station-front fire truck event (photo service and water fire extinguisher experience)
Scenes from last year - 12:00〜15:00 Bicycle simulator experience (cards handed out to the first 150 people, with prizes available)
- 10:30〜18:30 Self-Defense Forces vehicle display
This is what it looked like last year!
List of stalls from last year
We can’t say for sure the same stalls will be there this year, but this should at least give you an idea of what might show up. Take a look!
Lots of festival games for kids
Last time, there were at least 14 types or more of festival games. We probably missed some, so there were likely even more
- Super ball scooping 🎱
- Goldfish scooping 🐟
- Puyo-puyo scooping 🧩
- Sparkly toy scooping ✨
- Floating toy scooping 🧸
- Yo-yo fishing 🎈
- Smart Ball 🎯
- Shooting gallery 🎯
- Fishing game 🎣
- Prize lottery 🎟️
- Garapon lottery 🎰
- Face painting 🎨
- Balloons 🎈
- Self-Defense Forces dress-up corner 🪖
So many foods you’ll want to try
Last time, we confirmed there were 22 or more kinds of food available.
- Kushikatsu set 🍢
- Beef tendon curry 🍛
- Kebab 🥙
- Domestic beef skirt steak skewers 🥩
- Chicken thigh steak skewers 🍖
- Yakisoba 🍜
- Frankfurters 🌭
50 yen is insanely cheap〜〜〜〜 - Karaage fried chicken 🍗
- Fried rice 🍚
- Gyoza 🥟
- Doteyaki 🍢
- Squid tentacles 🦑
- Takoyaki 🐙
- Croquettes 🥔
