Japanese Festival

Labor Day Weekend

9 am - 5 pm (last entry at 4:30 pm)

Experience the thunderous pounding rhythms of the taiko drums, sumo wrestling, and more at this three-day cultural adventure right here at the Garden

For more than 40 years, the Missouri Botanical Garden has produced the annual Japanese Festival in conjunction with the Japanese Activities Committee, a coalition of several Japanese-American organizations that provide art, dance, food and entertainment for thousands of visitors each year

Teahouse Island Tours

Tours depart hourly on the hour from  10 am-4 pm on Monday

Japanese Festival is your rare opportunity to visit the enchanting Teahouse Island in the heart of the Japanese Garden lake These intimate guided tours will lead you to the secluded island home of an authentic soan, or farm hut-style teahouse, gifted to the Garden by Missouri's sister state of Nagano, Japan

Schedule:

10am - 4pm: Origami Display at Sachs Museum 1st Floor, Teahouse Island Tours at hourly

10am - 5pm: Children’s Activities at Spink, Calligraphy Display at Spink, Balloon Art at Kemper Center

for Home Gardening, Ikebana and Bonsai Display at Farr Auditorium

10am - 10:45am: Shodo Demonstration at Bayer Event Center

10am - 11am: Bonsai Demonstration at Jack C Taylor Visitor Center Meeting Rooms

10:15am - 11:15am: Eisa Yui at Cohen Amphitheater

10:30am - 11:30am: Rakuugo Featured Performer at Plant Lab

11am - 11:30am: Yasu at Yagura Stage

11am - 12:30pm: Cooking Demonstration at Kemper Kitchen

11:15am - 12pm: Wagashi Demonstration at Bayer Event Center

12pm - 1pm: Koryu Bugei at Yagura Stage, Sumo at Cohen Amphitheater

12:30pm - 1pm: Storytelling at Plant Lab

12:30pm - 1:30pm: Rakuugo Featured Performer at Bayer Event Center

1pm - 1:30pm: Wagashi Workshop at Jack C Taylor Visitor Center Meeting Rooms

1pm - 2pm: Eisa Yui at Yagura Stage

1:30pm - 2pm: Ice Sculpture at Cohen Amphitheater

1:30pm - 2:30pm: Judo at Bottlebrush East

1:30pm - 3pm: Cooking Demonstration at Kemper Kitchen

2pm - 2:30pm: Introduction to Zen at Plant Lab, Dashi Procession at Spink Pavillion

2pm - 3pm: Niji Choral at Bayer Event Center, Ikebana Demonstration & Hands On Experience

(Jack C Taylor Visitor Center Meeting Rooms

2:30pm - 3pm: Omikoshi Procession at Spink Pavillion

2:30pm - 3:30pm: St. Louis Osuwa Taiko at Cohen Amphitheater

3:30pm - 4pm: Yasu at Bayer Event Center, Wagashi Workshop at Jack C Taylor Visitor Center

Meeting Rooms, Dashi Procession at Spink Pavillion

4pm - 5pm: Sumo at Cohen Amphitheater, Gaku Traditional at Plant Lab

4:30pm - 5pm: Yasu at Bayer Event Center