Sound! Euphonium’s Uji Collaboration Starts on September 1

A new Sound! Euphonium travel collaboration begins across Uji, Kyoto, and the Keihan network on September 1, 2026. Here is what international fans can actually visit, when each feature runs, and which details still require an official check before a trip.

Keihan Holdings and Keihan Railway are launching the autumn 2026 edition of their Sound! Euphonium collaboration in Japan on Tuesday, September 1. The program connects the anime’s Uji setting with wrapped trains, character announcements, a digital stamp rally, buses, hotel cafes, a Kyoto Tower event, and limited travel goods. Most of the main program runs through December 20, while the Otsu Line train and the hotel collaboration room continue into 2027.

What Was Announced

Keihan’s official campaign page says the autumn program runs from September 1 through December 20, 2026. It is not one single exhibition with one entrance ticket. Instead, it is a network of related activities spread across the places and transport routes associated with the collaboration.

The most useful starting point for visitors is the stage-location map and digital stamp rally. The printed map becomes available on September 1 at major Keihan stations, the Uji Tourism Center, the Keihan Uji Station Tourist Information Center, and other listed locations. The rally has two courses: an early course from September 1 through October 31, and a later course from November 1 through December 20. The first course includes Uji Bridge and Daikichiyama Observation Deck; the later course shifts to additional Uji-area locations, including the Uji River riverbank and two shrines. Completing the courses provides character photo frames, with a separate prize drawing for fans who complete the full set of checkpoints.

Transportation is part of the attraction. A decorated 13000 Series train runs on the Keihan Line, including the Uji Line, from September 1 through December 20. A separate wrapped 700 Series train runs on the Otsu Line between Ishiyamadera and Sakamoto-Hieizanguchi from September 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027. Character voices are also scheduled for station and onboard announcements on the relevant services through December 20. Four decorated talking vending machines are scheduled to begin operation at Uji, Mimuroto, Obaku, and Rokujizo stations on September 1; the campaign page does not give them an end date.

The partnership also extends beyond rail. Kyoto Keihan Bus will operate a decorated bus mainly around the Uji area and install collaboration bus stops at six locations, including Keihan Uji Station, Uji Bridge West, Uji Culture Center, Taiyo ga Oka, Todoh High School, and Byodoin. A collaboration day pass is priced at 1,650 yen and is sold at the listed Uji-area information counters and bus offices while supplies last.

Two hotel restaurants will run the official collaboration cafe from September 1 through December 20. Hotel Keihan Kyoto Hachijoguchi serves its themed menu from September 1–3 and then on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays through December 20, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Hotel Keihan Kyobashi Grande runs its cafe through December 20, generally from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., with Monday closures except on holidays. The official anime site says the cafes include original food, drinks, desserts, and illustrated dining bonuses.

Why It Matters

Sound! Euphonium has an unusually strong connection to place: Uji is not just a backdrop but the route through which the characters’ school life, friendships, and music culture are experienced. This collaboration makes that relationship practical. A fan can move from a station announcement to a real location on the map, then continue by train or bus to a cafe or viewing spot. That combination gives the tie-in a sense of continuity across the city rather than limiting the experience to a single pop-up shop.

It also shows how anime tourism can be built into ordinary infrastructure. Keihan is using scheduled trains, stations, buses, hotel restaurants, and a tower observatory as separate entry points. The result may be especially meaningful for overseas fans who have encountered the series through streaming or home video but have never had a clear, official route for exploring its real-world setting. The campaign does not promise a new anime episode or an overseas event; its value is the way it turns existing locations into a time-limited fan itinerary.

Context for International Fans

This is a Japan-based campaign, with the listed venues concentrated in Kyoto, Uji, Osaka, and the Otsu Line area. The official pages do not announce an overseas edition, international shipping, or a digital substitute for the physical stamp rally. Overseas availability is therefore not yet confirmed. Fans planning a trip should treat the Japanese campaign page as the controlling source, because train operation days, restaurant schedules, stock, and venue rules can change.

Uji is the core destination. The map can be collected at the locations specified by Keihan, but the page warns that distribution ends when supplies run out. The digital rally divides the route into a September–October course and a November–December course, so a visitor arriving late in the campaign will not see the same checkpoints as someone traveling in September. The locations also include outdoor sites, and the campaign asks visitors to be considerate of nearby residents, particularly at night.

The cafes are not all in Uji: one is at Hotel Keihan Kyoto Hachijoguchi, and the other is at Hotel Keihan Kyobashi Grande in Osaka. The Kyoto Tower Observatory collaboration is also scheduled from September 1 through December 20, with displays, photo spots, and limited goods. A decorated collaboration room at Kyoto Tower Hotel Annex is scheduled for stays from September 14, 2026, through checkout on March 1, 2027, with one room available per day for one or two guests. Those additions make it possible to build a broader Kansai trip, but they also mean fans should check each venue separately rather than assuming that every feature is open every day.

What Happens Next

The first date to watch is September 1, when the stamp-rally map, the Otsu Line wrapped train, the bus program, the station displays, the cafes, and the first course all begin. The Otsu Line free ticket’s first three designs also go on sale at 10 a.m. that day at Biwako-Hamaotsu Station. Fans who want later campaign merchandise should note two additional dates: collaboration goods enter order sales on October 16, and the Keihan Line free ticket starts sales on October 17. The stamp-rally course changes on November 1, and the Kyoto Tower Sand sticker design changes on the same day.

Before traveling, verify the monthly wrapped-train operation schedule, the cafe reservation and holiday information, map distribution status, and any changes to the digital rally on the official Keihan page. The Sound! Euphonium official site is also the best place to watch for franchise-side updates. At the time of checking, the physical campaign schedule is confirmed, but overseas access and any future international fan arrangements are not yet confirmed.

Sources

• Keihan Holdings and Keihan Railway’s official autumn 2026 campaign page — dates, train and bus operations, stamp rally, tickets, vending machines, Kyoto Tower activities, and venue schedules.
• Sound! Euphonium’s official anime-site cafe announcement — official cafe dates, locations, themed menu details, and dining bonuses.

Information was checked on September 1, 2026, at 9:16 a.m. JST.

Editorial note: This report is based on the primary sources linked above. Availability, schedules, and announcements can change; verify the latest details with the official source.