[A festival to express gratitude for seafood and pray for a good catch! The 61st Ise Ebi Festival will be held in Hamajima-ShimaCity Mie Prefecture on Saturday, June 1, 2024!]

Article production / Mie Travel Ambassador Takuya Kiriyama

▼Table of contents

• What is the Ise Lobster Festival?
• History of the Ise Lobster Festival
• Highlights of the Ise Lobster Festival
• Highlight 1: Ceremony (Thanksgiving)
• Highlight ②: Lobster soup for longevity, Shima specialties market
• Highlight 3: Jakope Dance
• Highlight 4: Nighttime Ise-ebi Festival (all-party dance, fireworks)
• Ise Lobster Festival Schedule (When is it held? What time does it start?)
• Access to and parking at the Ise-ebi Festival
• How was it?
• Surrounding spot information
• Bindama Road
• Ise lobster king statue
• Cape Isofue Observation Deck (Tsubasu Bell)
• ShimaCity Hamajimaiso Experience Facility “UmiHozuki”

*Please follow good manners and enjoy your sightseeing so that everyone will want to visit again.

*The photos in this article are from before 2023.

▼What is the Ise Lobster Festival?

"Ise lobster" is one of the seafood representatives of Mie Prefecture. The Ise Lobster Festival isheld on the first Saturday of June every year in Hamajima-cho ShimaCity Mie Prefecture, to express gratitude for the seafood, including Ise lobster, and to pray for a good catch and safety.

During the festival, a large "Ise lobster mikoshi" appears toliven up the atmosphere, and the parade of the "Jakoppe dance" performed to the lively Ise lobster music is a spectacular sight!

The spirited shouts of "Enyasa! Yoiyasa!" enhance the dance, making it so enjoyable that even spectatorscan't help but move their bodies.

The venue also sees many local food stalls set up, including one selling the famous Ise shrimp longevity soup, and is bustling with visitors.

The Ise Lobster Festival is a grand festival that colors Shima's early summer.

▼The History of the Ise Lobster Festival

The Ise Lobster Festival began in 1961 (Showa 36) in Hamajima-cho, Shima-gun, Mie Prefecture (now ShimaCity cho, Shima City) as a way of expressing gratitude to the Ise lobster, a representative seafood product, and praying for a good catch.

Originally, the festival was held at Kurosaki Beach in Hamajima, Hamajima Town, but in 1991 (Heisei 3),the main venue was moved to yanohama in Hamajima Seaside Park, and in 1992 (Heisei 4), the "Jakoppe Dance", which is now the highlight of the festival, was launched.

We hold Jakope Dance Contests and participate in the IseJingu Kanname Festival.Thanks to the enthusiasm and efforts of the townspeople, various ideas were put into the event, and it has grown with each passing year.The Ise Lobster Festival isIt has now grown into a festival that represents Mie Prefecture and is a dance festival famous throughout the country.

The festival was canceled in 2020 and 2021due to the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic, and in 2022 it will be held in October for the first time in three and a half years on a scaled-down basis. However, the2023 Ise Lobster Festival was again postponed due to its timing coinciding with the G7 Transport Ministers' Meeting held in ShimaCity.

This year, 2024,the Ise Lobster Festival will return, livening up early summer in Shima for the first time in a year and a half!

Highlights of the Ise Lobster Festival

Many events are held at the Ise Lobster Festival, including ceremonies and product markets.

We will introduce some highlights, along with photos from the 60th Ise Lobster Festival, which will be held in 2022.

Highlight 1: Ceremony (Thanksgiving)

The theme of the 60th event in 2022 will be "Peace," taking into account the current situation in the world.

The Ise Lobster Festival begins with a ceremony.

Prayers and dances are performed solemnly to express gratitude for the seafood and to pray for a good catch and safety.

Highlight ②: Lobster soup for longevity, Shima specialties market

Ise shrimp longevity soup. The delicious flavor of the Ise shrimp stock fills your mouth, making this a very delicious miso soup.

It is a local specialty of Hamajima Town, known as the town of spiny lobster, andis so popular that long lines form before it goes on sale, making it an indispensable specialty dish at the spiny lobster festival.

There will also be many other stalls set up and a product market selling Shima specialties will be held.

Another attraction is that you can enjoy shopping while looking around for seafood dishes and local specialties.

The writer had his favorite dish, "sea urchin rice" (lol).

Highlight 3: Jakope Dance

The Jakoppe Dance isthe biggest event of the Ise Lobster Festival and the highlight of the festival.

"Jakoppe" is a local Ise-Shima word that means baby spiny lobster, and the "Jakoppe Dance" was choreographed to resemble the lively jumping around of a baby spiny lobster.

The dance, set to the lively rhythm of the "Ise Ebi Bayashi" music, is so enjoyable that even spectators can't help but move their bodies and dance along.

In the Jakoppe Dance, teams called "ren" dress up in gorgeous costumes and perform the dance.

Many people from inside and outside the prefecture participate in the parade, with over 30 Jakoppe groups dancing along the way. It's a must-see! It's well worth a look!

*The Road Dance is normally held along National Route 260, but last time, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was scaled down and held inside Hamajima Seaside Park.

There are many different dances at festivals all over the country, butthe Jakoppe Danceis my favorite, so I would definitely recommend that you come and see it!

Also, each group (team) dancing the Jakoppe Dance has their own unique costumes and props, so it's even more fun when you find your favorite group or see the group you're cheering for pass by in front of you!!

Highlight 4: Nighttime Ise-ebi Festival (all-party dance, fireworks)

Once the Dochu Odori (parade) is over, the Jakoppe Ren will gather in front of the main stage.

By this time, the sun has set and the Ise Lobster Festival transitions into a nighttime event, with the excitement building towards the finale.

There was a lot of excitement surrounding the Ise lobster mikoshi!

The main stage was also at its peak!

The musicians and brass band will also liven up the event!

The stage at night is lit up with brilliant light and looks absolutely stunning!

The climax of the event will be when the entire venue will erupt in a series of Jakoppe dances along with the Ise lobster mikoshi!

And for the finale, fireworks will light up the Shima night sky!!

Why not enjoy the spectacular Ise Lobster Festival and the Jakoppe Dance Festival in Shima's early summer?

▼Ise Lobster Festival Schedule (When is it held? What time does it start?)

The 61stIse Lobster Festival will be held in Hamashimacho, ShimaCity Prefecture on Saturday, June 1st, 2024 (in case of rain, it will be held the following day, Sunday, June 2nd).

The main venue will be yanohama Beach in Hamajima Seaside Park, and the main schedule is scheduled as follows:

10:00～ Shima specialty products sales market

14:00~ Ceremony (Thanksgiving)

From 16:00: Lobster longevity soup (charge applies)

17:30～ Jakoppe Dance

20:00～ Fireworks

Please refer to the website of the organizer, the Ise Lobster Festival Preservation Society, for further details which will be updated from time to time.

Ise-ebi Festival Preservation Society Homepage

▼Access to and parking at the Ise Lobster Festival

Access by public transportation:

Access by car:

・Approximately 35 km from Tamaki IC on the Ise Expressway, approximately 50 km via Sunny RoadMinutes

*Parking is not available at the Ise Lobster Festival site. Please use the temporary parking lots in the vicinity.

　P1: Former Hamashima Elementary School Location informationhere

P2: UmiHozukilocation informationis here

P3: Hamajima B&G Marine Centerlocation informationis here

P4: Mie Prefectural Fisheries Research Institute Location information ishere

P5: Fish Market (Hamashima Port) Location information ishere

P6: Former Hamashima Branch Office Location information ishere

P7: Former Hamashima Clinic Location information ishere

P8:Reclaimed land behind Hamashima B&G Marine Center Location information ishere

P9:Hamashima Disaster Prevention Storehouse Location information ishere

How was it?

In this article,we introduced the 61st Ise-Ebi Festival, including photos from the previous festival. The previous festival was held on a smaller scale due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the festival will be back with restrictions fully lifted!!

On Saturday, June 1st, the Ise-ebi Festival, a dance festival that will be revived with excitement and emotion in the town of Ise-ebi, Hamajima-cho, will take place.If you are interested, please come along.

Surrounding spot information

Finally, we will introduce some spots around Hamajima Seaside Park, so please use this as reference when visiting Hamajima ShimaCity Mie Prefecture.

Bindama Road

A charming promenade decorated with bottle-ball ornaments. It runs along the coast from yanohama Beach for about 1 km.

Ise lobster king statue

This is the symbolic character of Hamajima, a town of Ise lobster, located along National Route 260.

He has been appointed as a guide ambassador for Bottle Tama Road.

Cape Isofue Observation Deck (Tsubasu Bell)

Along with a bell that is said to bring success and good fortune when rung, there are rows of votive plaques made of hiogigai shells with wishes written on them.

This place, which is home to the legendary love story between a female diver and a fisherman, is also certified as one of Japan's 100 best sunsets.

ShimaCity Hamajimaiso Experience Facility “UmiHozuki”

This is a rare facility that recreates the natural coastline, offering shallow reef and fishing experiences, and is unique in Japan. You can learn about and experience the life, culture, and fishing of Shima's fishing villages. It also serves as a temporary parking lot during the Ise Lobster Festival.