Obihiro Kachimai Fireworks Festival × Campervan: A Hot Spring and Fireworks Overnight-Parking Plan Based at Tokachigawa Onsen [2026 Edition]

If you’re searching “Tokachigawa fireworks festival,” in most cases what you’re actually looking for is the “Kachimai Fireworks Festival” (Kachimai Hanabi Taikai), held on the banks of the Tokachi River in Obihiro City. Hosted by the Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, it takes place every year on August 13, drawing visitors from both inside and outside Hokkaido as the event that closes out Tokachi’s summer.

This article organizes the schedule, venue, and parking situation for the Kachimai Fireworks Festival based on official information, then covers a campervan-specific way to enjoy it: pairing the fireworks with a stay at Tokachigawa Onsen, known for its moor hot springs. The area around the venue isn’t somewhere you can simply drive up to on the day, so planning your parking and where you’ll spend the night is what makes or breaks the trip.

Schedule and Venue of the Kachimai Fireworks Festival

The Kachimai Fireworks Festival is held every year on August 13. In 2026 it took place on Thursday, August 13, with gates opening at 15:00, fireworks launching at 19:20, and the event scheduled to end at 21:00 (postponed to August 14 in case of severe weather). Details change somewhat from year to year, so check the Kachimai Fireworks Festival official website for the year you plan to visit.

The venue is a special site on the banks of the Tokachi River in Obihiro City, set up about 400 meters downstream from the Tokachi Ohashi bridge — just north of downtown Obihiro, with Otofuke Town on the opposite bank. Viewing options such as the “Tokachi Sheet” seating are listed on the official site, and ticket types, prices, and sales periods are announced there each year.

One point worth clarifying: an event called the “Tokachigawa Fireworks Festival” could not be confirmed as an official event name (checked 2026-08-29). The large-scale fireworks display held on the banks of the Tokachi River is the Kachimai Fireworks Festival; the similarly named “Higashi-Tokachi Fireworks Festival,” held in the town of Honbetsu, is a separate event, so be careful not to confuse the two when checking dates.

Getting to the Venue and the Reservation-Only Special Parking

The Special Parking Lot Requires Advance Reservation

There is no first-come, first-served parking near the venue. If you’re driving, the system requires using a reservation-only special parking lot. For the 2026 event, the official information was as follows (confirmed on the official site for the 2026 event).

• Location: Kita-Aikoku Exchange Plaza (10-1 Aikoku-cho, Obihiro City)
• Fee: ¥3,960 per vehicle (service fee separate)
• Reservations open: from 11:00 on Thursday, June 11, 2026
• Available hours: 12:00–23:00 on the day of the event

Users of the special parking lot can take a free shuttle bus connecting Kita-Aikoku Exchange Plaza with Yotsuba Arena Tokachi. Outbound service runs 13:00–18:30 and return service 21:00–22:00, with a one-way trip taking about 30 minutes — in other words, you park your vehicle first, then take the bus toward the venue.

One thing to watch for if you’re bringing a campervan to the special parking lot is vehicle size. The official traffic information page had no mention of vehicle size restrictions (checked 2026-08-29). A vancon-type campervan is much the same as a passenger car, but if you’re driving a cabcon or a larger vehicle, it’s worth confirming with the organizers at the time of reservation.

Another easy detail to miss is the end of the usage window: you can only stay in the special parking lot until 23:00 on the day. Watching the fireworks and then sleeping in your vehicle right there isn’t an option — you need to plan on moving to that night’s overnight-parking spot after the fireworks end.

Getting There by Public Transport

The official site notes that “there is no shuttle bus from Obihiro Station to the venue; please use regular route buses.” Tokachi Bus and Takushoku Bus routes are available, and in 2026 JR Hokkaido also ran special extra-length trains on the day of the event. If you can secure somewhere to leave your vehicle in Obihiro city, switching to public transport and walking for the final approach to the venue tends to be easier to move around with.

Why Tokachigawa Onsen Is a Good Base for Overnight Parking

If you want to avoid the fireworks-festival crowds while still enjoying a Tokachi night, the top candidate for a base is Tokachigawa Onsen (Otofuke Town), located on the same stretch of the Tokachi River as the venue. It’s about 18km from downtown Obihiro, one of Hokkaido’s leading hot spring towns with ryokan lining the riverside.

Tokachigawa Onsen’s water is known as a “moor hot spring” (モール温泉) — a brownish water containing plant-derived organic matter, welling up from strata formed by ancient plant sediment, a rare spring type found in only a handful of places worldwide. The silky feeling it leaves on your skin afterward is exactly what you’ll want after coming back from an evening of fireworks. Since several facilities offer day-use bathing, you can fully enjoy what the hot spring town has to offer even on a campervan trip where you’re not staying at a ryokan.

A two-night, three-day eastern Hokkaido route combining Tokachigawa Onsen with Lake Shikaribetsu is covered in detail in our guide to touring Lake Shikaribetsu and Tokachigawa Onsen by campervan. If you’re extending the days before or after August 13 to catch the fireworks, working the fireworks into this route is an easy fit.

Overnight-Parking Spots Around Tokachigawa Onsen and How to Fit In a Bath

Tokachi Ecology Park (Campground)

A strong candidate for an overnight-parking spot next to the hot spring town is Tokachi Ecology Park (Minami 18-chome 1, Tokachigawa Onsen, Otofuke Town). The park has a campground; according to the official site, it operates from April 29 to October 30, with private sites priced at ¥1,500 per night and free tent sites at ¥1,000 per tent, plus an admission fee (¥1,200 for junior high school age and up, ¥600 for elementary school age). Check-in runs 13:00–17:00 and check-out 8:00–11:00, and reservations can be made online.

However, whether campervans can drive right onto a site, and whether power hookups are available, were not mentioned on the official site (checked 2026-08-29). If you’re planning to park your vehicle right at your site and sleep there, it’s worth confirming with the management office (0155-32-6780) before booking. The 17:00 check-in cutoff is also worth remembering, since it directly affects how you move on the day of the fireworks.

Michi-no-Eki Garden Spa Tokachigawa Onsen

At the center of the hot spring town is Michi-no-Eki Garden Spa Tokachigawa Onsen (Kita 14-chome 1, Tokachigawa Onsen, Otofuke Town). Parking accommodates 88 regular vehicles and 13 large vehicles, and the building houses a spa and footbath using moor hot spring water, a marche, and restaurants — more than enough as a base for daytime rest, shopping, and bathing.

On the other hand, no official mention of whether overnight parking is allowed could be confirmed (checked 2026-08-29). Business hours also vary by season and day of the week, and the facility closes at night. It’s sound planning to treat this purely as a daytime stop within business hours, and to secure your overnight spot at a campground or lodging instead.

The Option of Staying at a Ryokan Just for the Night of the Fireworks

August 13 is also a day when demand for lodging concentrates in Tokachi. As a counter-intuitive option, within an overnight-parking itinerary you could book a ryokan just for this one night. Doing so removes the need for a late-night drive after the fireworks, and lets you soak in the moor hot spring both morning and evening at leisure. Whether a campervan can fit in a ryokan’s parking lot depends on the vehicle’s size, so confirm by telling them your vehicle’s overall length and height when you book. The Tokachigawa Onsen Tourism Association website is a good starting point for information on the hot spring area as a whole.

How to Move on the Day of the Fireworks (Model Plan)

Given the special parking lot’s usage hours (12:00–23:00), the shuttle bus operating hours, and the campground’s check-in cutoff (17:00), the day tends to fall into roughly the following shape.

1. Morning: Finish shopping for food and drinks in Obihiro city. Traffic in the downtown area gets busier from the evening of the fireworks onward, so shop early.
2. Midday to around 15:00: Lock in your overnight-parking spot first. If you’re staying at Tokachi Ecology Park, finish check-in (13:00–17:00) before heading to the venue. If you’ve booked the special parking lot, enter after 12:00 and take the shuttle bus (outbound 13:00–18:30) toward the venue.
3. 19:20–21:00: Watch the fireworks.
4. From 21:00 on: The return shuttle bus runs 21:00–22:00, and the special parking lot is available until 23:00. From here you’ll be moving to your overnight spot, so plan for a minimal amount of night driving.
5. The next morning: A morning bath at Tokachigawa Onsen. Visit the spa, footbath, and marche at Michi-no-Eki Garden Spa Tokachigawa Onsen before heading to your next destination.

One thing worth being careful about: don’t cram securing your overnight spot and watching the fireworks into the same evening. Because the check-in cutoff and the gate-opening time overlap, breaking from the order of “secure your bed first, fireworks after” is an easy way for the plan to fall apart. Traffic restrictions are also put in place around the venue (a restriction map is posted on the official site), so avoid any route that drives past the venue area during the fireworks time slot.

If you’re visiting with a rental, our comparison of campervan rental options in Obihiro and Tokachi covers the departure bases in the area. Starting from Tokachi-Obihiro Airport, a flow of airport → downtown Obihiro → fireworks → Tokachigawa Onsen can work even as a one-night, two-day trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the Kachimai Fireworks Festival held?

It’s held every year on August 13. In 2026 it took place on Thursday, August 13, with gates opening at 15:00, fireworks launching at 19:20, and the event scheduled to end at 21:00 (postponed to August 14 in case of severe weather). Check the Kachimai Fireworks Festival’s official website for details for the year you’re planning to visit.

Is there an event called the “Tokachigawa Fireworks Festival”?

An event by that name could not be confirmed as an official event (checked 2026-08-29). The large-scale fireworks held on the banks of the Tokachi River is the Kachimai Fireworks Festival, hosted by the Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun newspaper. The similarly named “Higashi-Tokachi Fireworks Festival,” held in Honbetsu Town, is a separate event.

Is there free parking at the venue?

There is no first-come, first-served free parking. If you’re driving, the system requires using a reservation-only special parking lot (Kita-Aikoku Exchange Plaza for 2026, ¥3,960 per vehicle plus service fee). A free shuttle bus for special-parking users runs from the lot.

Can a campervan use the special parking lot?

The official traffic information page had no mention of vehicle size restrictions (checked 2026-08-29). If you’re driving a large vehicle such as a cabcon, it’s recommended you confirm with the organizers at the time of reservation. Note that the parking lot is only available until 23:00 on the day, so you cannot spend the night there.

On the night of the fireworks, is there anywhere for overnight parking around Tokachigawa Onsen?

We could not confirm any parking lot officially designated as allowing overnight parking (checked 2026-08-29). The realistic options are booking a site at the campground at Tokachi Ecology Park, next to the hot spring town (check-in 13:00–17:00; confirm vehicle access in advance), or staying at a ryokan just for that one night. Michi-no-Eki Garden Spa Tokachigawa Onsen has no official mention regarding overnight parking, and the facility closes at night, so it’s best used as a daytime stop.