Nio Dragon Festival is a traditional event held every August in Nio Town in Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture. It originates in a dragon parade to pray for rain about 200 years ago. Blocked by the mountains in the southern side, the area had been suffered from little rain and water shortage since the ancient times.

In 1799, taking an advice from a priest of a nearby temple, the villagers made a huge straw dragon with bamboo frames and walked through the village in hope for rain. The event was discontinued for some time but revived by the hands of local volunteers in 1988 and has been held every year since then.

This huge dragon, about 35 meters in length and over 3 tons in weight, is carried by 150 men. With participants chanting, “So-re, tatsu ni mizu abuse! (Heave ho! Shower the dragon with water!),” the dragon goes through the town, soaked with water thrown by people along the street.