akippa to Operate Official Parking for "The 79th Hita River Opening Tourism Festival"

akippa Inc. (CEO: Genki Kanaya), which operates the smart parking app "akippa," has announced that it will be responsible for operating the official parking lots at "The 79th Hita River Opening Tourism Festival," to be held in Hita City, Oita Prefecture, on Saturday, May 23, and Sunday, May 24, 2026. This marks the first time that akippa will introduce a pre-booked parking system for this event.

By making parking "paid and reservation-only," this initiative will serve as a demonstration experiment to suppress aimless driving and traffic congestion caused by searching for parking on the day of the event, thereby creating a safe and secure access environment for both visitors and local residents. Additionally, it will help cover a portion of the increasing event operating costs due to rising prices, securing a stable financial source to pass on the tradition to future generations.

Reservations for official parking lots are scheduled to begin with a citizen pre-sale on Friday, April 10, followed by general sales on Tuesday, April 21.

The 79th Hita River Opening Tourism Festival akippa special site▼ https://www.akippa.com/event/hita-kankousai

The Hita River Opening Tourism Festival is a major event featuring various attractions throughout the city, including a spectacular fireworks display with approximately 10,000 fireworks lighting up the night sky over two days, as well as the Hangiri Genpei Battle and music parades. While the festival traditionally attracts many visitors, challenges include "establishing a sustainable operational system" and "alleviating congestion on surrounding roads" to ensure the festival's future.

By operating the official parking lots, which were previously "free and first-come, first-served," as "paid and pre-booked" through akippa, the introduction of a reservation system will distribute access times to parking, leading to a reduction in congestion caused by waiting to enter parking lots on surrounding roads. Furthermore, by eliminating drivers' anxiety about "not knowing if there's an empty space until they get there," it will reduce "aimless driving" in search of parking, making it possible to access destinations smoothly and without hassle.

Moreover, the newly generated revenue can be utilized as part of the event's operating funds. As a result, this will alleviate the operational burden associated with rising prices and contribute to securing a stable financial source for passing on the festival to future generations.

In Oita Prefecture, akippa has been responsible for operating official parking lots since the first "Jigok Rock" large-scale festival (※1), and also has a track record of operating official parking for the "ONE OK ROCK DETOX JAPAN TOUR 2025" Oita performance in 2025 (※2).

Leveraging the operational know-how cultivated to date, akippa will continue to support the smooth operation of "The Hita River Opening Tourism Festival."

Moving forward, akippa aims to realize sustainable event operations that are considerate of both people and the environment, not only by allowing visitors nationwide to enjoy events without stress but also by working to alleviate overall congestion in local areas.

About Official Parking Reservation Sales In addition to parking for standard passenger cars, reservations for dedicated camping car parking spaces are also available.

[Citizen Pre-sale] Period: Friday, April 10, 2026, 10:00 AM - Monday, April 20, 6:00 PM Fees: Standard passenger car parking / 1,000 yen (tax included), Camping car dedicated parking / 7,000 yen (tax included)

[General Sale] Period: Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 10:00 AM - until the day of the event Fees: Standard passenger car parking / 2,000 yen (tax included), Camping car dedicated parking / 8,000 yen (tax included)

*Parking reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis. *Payment is only accepted via online pre-payment. *A separate service fee will apply.

Click here for The 79th Hita River Opening Tourism Festival akippa special site▼ https://www.akippa.com/event/hita-kankousai

The 79th Hita River Opening Tourism Festival Overview Date: Saturday, May 23, 2026, and Sunday, May 24, 2026, 10:00 AM - 10:00 PM

Location: Throughout Hita City, Oita Prefecture (Fireworks display: Around Mikuma River)

Organizer: Hita Festival Promotion Association

Official HP https://kankousai.oidehita.com/

※1 akippa to operate official parking for "Jigok Rock 2026 supported by Nikaso" for the third consecutive year! ~General acceptance of parking tickets begins today~ https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000576.000016205.html

※2 akippa to operate official parking for "ONE OK ROCK DETOX JAPAN TOUR 2025" Oita performance https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000524.000016205.html

What is akippa? https://www.akippa.com/ A parking sharing service. It allows users to easily rent out unused spaces such as uncontracted monthly parking lots, private garages, vacant lots, and commercial facilities as hourly parking via smartphone. Drivers can reserve and pay in advance via the web or app. Listing a space and registering as a member are free. akippa secures over 55,000 reservable parking spaces nationwide at all times (average active listings as of December 2025) and is used for various car travel purposes such as sports viewing, events, commuting, returning home, and travel. To date, it has partnered with over 50 local governments and sports clubs to address issues such as traffic congestion and parking shortages. Sharing parking also contributes to SDGs by utilizing idle assets and reducing exhaust gas emissions. The current cumulative number of members is 5.1 million (as of the end of December 2025, excluding space owners).

akippa Inc. Headquarters: Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture (Tokyo Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) Representative: Genki Kanaya, Representative Director and CEO Established: February 2, 2009 Capital: 2 billion yen (including capital reserve) Business: Operation of the parking reservation app "akippa" HP: https://akippa.co.jp/

[Contact for this press release] akippa Inc. Public Relations (Contact: Morimura) Tokyo Office: KANDA SQUARE WeWork, 2-2-1 Kanda Nishikicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0054 Osaka Office: Namba Parks Tower 14F, 2-10-70 Nambanaka, Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka 556-0011 Tel: 03-6450-6090 Email: pr@akippa.co.jp URL: https://akippa.co.jp