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Illustration of the Kure waterfront on a clear summer evening, warships visible at anchor in the bay, harbour lights reflected on calm water, the pier and festival grounds quiet — no crowds, no fireworks. Editorial watercolor in dusk blues and amber.

The last fireworks over Kure harbour went up in 2025 and nobody announced at the time that they were the last. About 100,000 people watched roughly 2,000 shells burst above the JMSDF base that August, with destroyers and submarines illuminated on the water below — the scene that set Kure's festival apart from any other fireworks show in the region. Then the Kure Festival Association board met, ran the numbers, and voted to end it.

If you searched for "Kure fireworks 2026" because you are planning a summer trip to western Japan, this article exists for one reason: several major English travel sites still describe the festival as an annual event. That is wrong. The festival is over, no replacement has been confirmed, and finding out on the day you arrive would be a bad start to your trip.

Here is exactly what happened, where things stand, and what to do instead.

Is the Kure Sea Fireworks Festival happening in 2026?

No.

The Kure Sea Fireworks Festival (呉海上花火大会) has been discontinued. The Kure Festival Association (呉まつり協会) — the body that organised the event — voted to end it. The 2025 edition was the 48th and the last.

This is not a one-year postponement. The formal decision by the Association board was to end the event in its existing form.

Why was it cancelled?

The Association cited rising material costs and labour costs that made the traditional large-scale format impossible to sustain financially.

The Kure Sea Fireworks Festival was not a small local event. The final edition in 2025 launched about 2,000 fireworks over Kure Bay and drew roughly 100,000 spectators. Running an event at that scale has become significantly more expensive in Japan over the past few years, and Kure is not alone — fireworks festivals at other Japanese cities have faced similar pressures.

The element that made Kure's festival genuinely distinctive was its setting: JMSDF vessels moored in the base would be lit up and clearly visible during the show, so the fireworks burst directly above warships on the water. You were not watching fireworks with a harbour in the background. The harbour was the foreground.

That combination is gone, at least for now.

Will there be a replacement event?

Possibly. There is no confirmed replacement yet.

Kure City formed a citizens' review committee to explore a new, differently-formatted fireworks event. The committee held its first meeting on April 24, 2026, and was expected to deliver an initial proposal for a new event by early June 2026.

As of June 8, 2026, no replacement event name, date, or format has been publicly announced.

We will update this article when there is something concrete to report. In the meantime, the place to check for official announcements is the Kure tourism site at kure-trip.jp and the Chugoku Shimbun (中国新聞), which has been covering the story.

Do not rely on English-language aggregators for this — most still show the old festival as active. Go to the source.

What is there to do in Kure in summer?

Kure is worth visiting in summer regardless of the fireworks. The city's appeal is not seasonal.

Illustration of a Kure harbour-front promenade on a sunny summer morning, a few visitors walking along the open waterside plaza, large modern museum architecture and a retired submarine displayed on land in the background. Editorial watercolor in bright coastal tones.

Here are the options that do run through summer:

Yamato Museum — The 1:10 scale model of battleship Yamato (26.3 metres long, built from original construction plans) returned after a 14-month renovation in April 2026. Open 09:00–18:00, closed Tuesdays. Adult admission ¥1,000. About a 5-minute walk from JR Kure Station. Free English-language guided tours run Sunday mornings between 09:00 and 12:00.

JMSDF Kure Museum (Tetsu no Kujira) — Free entry, across the plaza from the Yamato Museum. You walk through a real 76-metre submarine. Open 10:00–18:00, closed Tuesdays. Most visitors spend 60–90 minutes.

Kure Harbour Warship Cruise — A 40-minute boat circuit past active JMSDF submarines and destroyers at the Kure base, departing from the Chuo Sanbashi terminal (one minute from the Yamato Museum). Adults ¥2,200, children ¥800. Runs through summer, no Tuesdays.

JMSDF Open-Ship Days — The programme that lets you board an active JMSDF warship continues on its regular schedule (1st, 3rd, and 5th Sundays; 2nd and 4th Saturdays). Entry is free but requires advance lottery registration by email. Note: the boarding venue is about 2 km from the museums — it is a separate trip, not a walk-up.

Miyajima–Kure Blue Line Ferry — A high-speed ferry connecting Kure and Miyajima runs on weekends and public holidays from April through late November. Regular season fare is ¥2,500 for adults. Reservation required by phone by 16:00 the day before.

For a structured plan covering all of the above, see our one-day Kure itinerary.

Getting to Kure from Hiroshima is straightforward: the JR Kure Line rapid train takes about 35 minutes for roughly ¥510 each way. Full transport options are in our Hiroshima to Kure day trip guide.

FAQ

Is the Kure fireworks festival cancelled for 2026?

Yes. The Kure Sea Fireworks Festival (呉海上花火大会) is permanently discontinued. The Kure Festival Association board voted to end the event. The 48th edition held in 2025 was the last one.

Why was the Kure fireworks festival cancelled?

Rising material and labour costs made the traditional large-scale format unsustainable. The Kure Festival Association, which organised the event, determined it could no longer support the scale of the 48th edition (roughly 2,000 fireworks, about 100,000 spectators).

Will there be a replacement fireworks event in Kure?

A replacement is under discussion but nothing has been confirmed. Kure City formed a citizens' review committee that held its first meeting on April 24, 2026, and was expected to receive a proposal for a new event format by early June. As of June 8, 2026, no replacement event name, date, or format has been publicly announced. Check kure-trip.jp for any updates.

What was special about the Kure fireworks festival?

The Kure Sea Fireworks Festival was held over Kure Bay, with active JMSDF warships and submarines visible from the viewing areas during the show. Vessels were lit up, and the fireworks reflected on the water directly above them. It was one of the few Japanese fireworks festivals with a live naval backdrop at that scale.

What is there to do in Kure in summer if not the fireworks?

The main attractions run year-round and are all reachable on a day trip from Hiroshima. The Yamato Museum (¥1,000, open after its 2026 reopening) and the JMSDF Kure Museum (free) are both about a 5-minute walk from JR Kure Station. The harbour warship cruise (¥2,200) departs from the same waterfront. JMSDF open-ship days run on a twice-monthly schedule requiring advance lottery registration. The Miyajima–Kure Blue Line ferry runs on weekends through late November.

How do I get to Kure from Hiroshima?

The JR Kure Line rapid train from Hiroshima Station to Kure Station takes about 35 minutes and costs roughly ¥510 each way on an IC card. Trains run every 20–30 minutes during the day. Full transport options including bus and ferry are covered in our Hiroshima to Kure day trip guide.

Build the Kure day, then check kure-trip.jp before you commit.

Summer in Kure is quieter without the festival, which makes it a better time to spend an unhurried few hours at the museums and on the water. If you are building a western Japan itinerary, these are the bookings that matter most for the Kure leg.

GetYourGuide Kure day tour Klook Japan eSIM Japan Rail Pass Booking.com Kure hotels

More in our Kure and Hiroshima series:

Last visited: 2026-06 | Author: Masayuki Ogasahara | Illustration generated with AI (Gemini) using real reference photographs. This article does not contain affiliate links to products directly related to the fireworks festival. Links to GetYourGuide, JRPass.com, Klook, and Booking.com in the planning section are for Kure visit logistics. We may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Cancellation information was verified against Chugoku Shimbun reporting and facts.json (kure-sea-fireworks-cancelled-2026, kure-fireworks-replacement-status-2026) in June 2026; please check kure-trip.jp for any replacement event announcement as the situation may change.