A secondary attraction of Japanese fireworks is the relaxed festival atmosphere that comes with them, people dressed in yukata and streets lined by food and game stalls. The firework shows themselves typically start some time after sunset and last one to two hours. Many of the longer shows are broken up into multiple shorter segments, interrupted by the announcement of titles and sponsors. They often end with a grand finale consisting of hundreds of shells launched simultaneously.
Popular firework shows tend to be very crowded which leads to a few concerns for visitors:
The competition for good viewing spots can be quite strong, and people often show up and reserve the best spots hours in advance, especially in cities where tall buildings limit the number of spots with unobstructed views of the fireworks. Many shows offer paid seating, but tickets are usually not available on the day and are often difficult to get from outside of Japan or without Japanese language skills.