Tanabata Festival held annually in early July in Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture. At the event, roughly 3,000 large bamboo ornaments are placed throughout the city of Hiratsuka, with over 80 concentrated at the Shonan Star Mall (formerly Tokaido Boulevard).
In recent years, there have been ornate illuminations that light up the nights as well. Using the “Sendai Hanabata Festival” as a model, the “Shonan Hiratsuka Hanabata Festival” was started in 1951 to promote businesses in Hiratsuka after the city was devastated during World War II.