About Hinamatsuri (Doll Festival)
Hinamatsuri, Japan's Doll Festival or Girls' Day, falls on March 3 and is a day to pray for the health and happiness of young girls. Also called Momo no Sekku, the Peach Festival, it coincides with the early-spring peach blossom. This live Hinamatsuri countdown shows exactly how many days, hours and minutes remain until the next March 3 in your timezone, so you can count down to one of Japan's most charming seasonal celebrations.
Families with daughters display a set of hina-ningyo — ornamental dolls dressed in the elaborate court robes of the Heian period — arranged on a tiered, red-cloth stand. At the top sit the Emperor and Empress, with attendants, musicians and miniature furniture below. Seasonal treats mark the day too: diamond-shaped hishi-mochi rice cakes, sweet hina-arare crackers and shirozake, a mild rice drink.
Hinamatsuri is held on March 3 every year, so this countdown rolls over to the next one as soon as the day passes. By tradition the dolls are packed away promptly afterwards. Bookmark the live Hinamatsuri countdown, or add it to your own countdown page to follow the wait for Japan's springtime Doll Festival.
Upcoming dates
| 2027 | Wednesday, March 3, 2027next |
| 2028 | Friday, March 3, 2028 |
| 2029 | Saturday, March 3, 2029 |
| 2030 | Sunday, March 3, 2030 |
| 2031 | Monday, March 3, 2031 |
FAQ
When is Hinamatsuri?
Hinamatsuri, the Doll Festival, is celebrated on March 3 every year in Japan. The countdown above shows the days, hours and minutes until the next March 3.
Why is Hinamatsuri celebrated?
It is a day to pray for the health, happiness and good future of young girls, with roots in old purification customs that transferred misfortune to dolls.
How is Hinamatsuri celebrated?
Families display tiered sets of hina dolls representing the imperial court, and enjoy seasonal foods such as hishi-mochi rice cakes, hina-arare and chirashi-zushi.
Why are the dolls put away quickly?
A popular superstition holds that leaving the hina dolls on display too long after March 3 will delay a daughter's marriage, so families pack them away soon after.