Holiday in Sendai

About Sendai

Sendai is the city of trees — a green metropolis in northeastern Japan that serves as the gateway to the spectacular Tohoku region. With around 1.1 million inhabitants, Sendai is the largest city north of Tokyo, blending urban modernity with a deeply rooted samurai history: the legendary feudal lord Date Masamune founded the city in 1601, shaping it with his preference for elegance and culture. The wide boulevards lined with Zelkova trees have earned Sendai the nickname Mori no Miyako — City of the Forest. The Jozenji-dori Avenue in the city center forms a closed canopy in summer, under which jazz musicians and street performers perform. In December, the avenue transforms into a sea of millions of LED lights during the Sendai Pageant of Starlight. The Tanabata Festival in early August is Sendai's most famous tradition and one of Japan's three major summer festivals: thousands of colorful paper decorations (Kusudama) hang in the shopping arcades of the city center, and over two million visitors flock through the festively decorated streets. The three-day festival is based on a legend that is over 400 years old. The Zuihoden Mausoleum, the magnificent burial site of Date Masamune, is nestled in a dense cedar forest on Kyogamine Hill. The richly decorated architecture in the Momoyama style with gold ornaments and carvings was destroyed in World War II and has been faithfully rebuilt. The ruins of Aoba Castle (Aoba-jo) on the hill of the same name offer a panorama over the entire city to the Pacific Ocean. Matsushima Bay, just 30 minutes by train, is one of Japan's Three Most Scenic Views (Nihon Sankei): over 260 pine-covered islands rise from the emerald green water, a sight that left the poet Matsuo Basho speechless in 1689.