KOBE Luminarie

If you don’t know what Luminarie is, you might have seen some photos or movies about Luminarie. Like this.

Luminarie is a lighting-up festival in KOBE. This event is held every December since 1995. Luminarie was originally for the victims of the Great Hanshin Earthquake struck KOBE on January 17, 1995. Now we commemorate them, pass the story down to the next generation and wish a great future. This light is a symbol of hope, recovery and renovation in KOBE. In 2016 from December 2 to 11, Luminarie is taken place at Sannomiya, KOBE.

MAP&Route

The venue is around Highashi Yuenchi (East Amusement Park) near Sannomiya Station. However, you have to walk from Motomachi Station, because there is a traffic regulation and a fixed route to Luminarie. You cannot go back to the route from opposite.

If you want to see the moment of lighting up, you might be better to wait for more than an hour. The time of lighting is around 6pm on weekday and around 5pm on weekends. The time might be much earlier, according to how crowded there is.

If you don’t have a great interest in the main gate, it’s OK to go directly to Higashi Yuenchi before lighting up. There are many food stalls.

After walking through the shining arches and the circular illumination at Higashi Yuenchi, you’d be better to visit Lighting Fountain. There are a music live, food stalls, a fountain show, and a great illumination. Another good spot is an observatory deck in KOBE City Hall. You can see the fantastic night view of KOBE city from 24th floor of the building.

Information

Official Website
Period： 2016.12.2(Fri)-11(Sun)　10days
Venue：around Higashi Yuenchi (East Amusement Park)
Lighting Time：
Mon-Thu 18:00-21:30
Fri 18:00-22:00
Sat 17:00-22:00
Sun 17:00-21:30