Japan’s first cherry blossoms of 2024 have already arrived, with some peak blooms happening this week. The springtime arrival of sakura (cherry blossom) is such a big deal in the country that the Japan Meteorological Corporation issues weekly forecasts ahead of the season, with daily reports on them on the national news and festivals held in their honour. As soon as the blossoms arrive, family and friends gather beneath the trees for picnics and saké, turning parks and gardens into sites of mass outdoor celebrations — one of the reasons why it creates such national excitement. But depending on where you are in the country, hanami (flower viewing) season can vary significantly. If you want to join in the fun, here are the best places in Japan for cherry blossoms and when they’re predicted to arrive in 2024.
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Expected full bloom dates for cherry blossom in Japan in 2024
• Yoshino, Nara prefecture April 5
• Himeji Castle, Hyogo prefecture April 2
• Fuji Five Lakes, Yamanashi prefecture April 10
• Hirosaki Castle, Aomori prefecture April 25
• Tokyo March 29
• Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture March 31
• Matsumae Park, Hokkaido prefecture May 7
• Kumamoto Castle, Kumamoto prefecture March 27
• Miharu, Fukushima prefecture April 16
When is cherry blossom season in Japan?
Every year is different and there are variations across the country. What’s more, there are multiple sakura varieties, each coming into flower at a slightly different time and lasting for a different period (most stay for around two weeks). The earliest blooms tend to appear in tropical Okinawa in January, the last on the northernmost island of Hokkaido in early May. For peak pink in the main tourist spots, the end of March until early April is a good bet.
When do the cherry blossom festivals start?
The very first festival to coincide with the country’s first blooms — the Motobu Yaedake Cherry Blossom Festival in Okinawa — is normally held sometime around mid-January to early February. Most festivals take place between March and May. It’s hard to predict exactly when they might fall, but a good estimate is to see when they’ve occurred in the past five years and pick an average date from those. Whenever they take place, in addition to picnics and barbecues, you might expect to find live music, food and craft stalls and tea ceremonies beneath the trees.
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What does hanami involve exactly?
Hanami is a huge social event with families, friends and colleagues — all equipped with picnic boxes and blankets — gathering together under the trees to eat, drink and be merry. Popular spots will have stalls set up with snacks and drinks for purchase. In the evening, the act of viewing cherry blossoms is called yozakura, with simple lights and lanterns laced onto the branches so the flowers appear to glow in the dark. The event gets more raucous as the moon comes up and the saké slips down. Visitors are welcome to join the celebrations. Pack a picnic blanket and swing by a supermarket to pick up a spring-themed bento box (ankake meatballs, inari sushi, strawberries, red bean mochi) and some limited-edition hanami-themed goodies, like pink sakura Pepsi, pink KitKats and clear Asahi beer.
Where is the best place to see cherry blossom in Japan?
You’ll have no trouble finding a spot to indulge in the custom of hanami, with sakura found in more than 1,000 locations across the country.
1. Yoshino, Nara prefecture
This is probably Japan’s most famous cherry blossom destination. The bloom of more than 30,000 sakura trees carpets the Kii Mountains that surround the town, with the season tending to start in late March. The star of the show is on Mount Yoshino — a huge cherry tree, whose branches bow towards the ground. It’s illuminated from dusk until midnight.
Predicted full bloom April 5, 2024
2. Himeji Castle, Hyogo prefecture
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The white walls of the 14th-century Unesco-listed Himeji Castle provide the perfect backdrop for the 1,000 cherry trees that burst into life around it. The first blooms normally appear in late March.
Predicted full bloom April 2, 2024
3. Fuji Five Lakes, Yamanashi prefecture
These striking lakes form an arc around the base of Mount Fuji and are a beautiful location for hanami. A popular way to experience the season is to spend the day in an onsen (hot spring) and view the blooms while lolling in the warm waters. The resort town of Lake Kawaguchi is an excellent choice; arrive early in the morning to gaze up through the mist at Mount Fuji framed by glorious blossoms. Early April is usually a good time to visit.
Predicted full bloom April 10, 2024
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4. Hirosaki Castle, Aomori prefecture
One of the prettiest spots for cherry blossom viewing in the country, this ancient three-storey castle is surrounded by a fortified moat and a huge tree-lined park that hosts illuminations in the evenings. Two varieties of cherry trees here mean blossoms can peak at different times. Look to visit from late April.
Predicted full bloom April 25, 2024
5. Tokyo
There’s no shortage of cherry blossom in Tokyo. One of the most popular (and rowdy) spots is Ueno Park, home to 1,000 cherry trees, as well as museums, shrines and ponds. During the two-week season (from late March), a 4km stretch is illuminated from 5pm to 9pm. For a less crowded experience, head to the English Garden in Shinjuku Gyoen, which has rolling lawns perfect for picnicking, or partake in some night-time viewing with a stroll along the banks of the Naka-Meguro canals. Don’t miss the magnificent flowering along the Chidorigafuchi Moat, near the Imperial Palace.
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Predicted full bloom March 29, 2024
6. Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture
The ancient capital of Japan is the epicentre of sakura season, with blossom appearing from the end of March to early April. Try Maruyama Park, where the main event is a tall shidarezakura (“weeping cherry tree”) illuminated at night; the Philsopher’s Path (a canal path lined with hundreds of cherry trees); or the tree-lined Kamo River promenade. Want to beat the crowds? Make for Yamashina, in the southeast of Kyoto, where you’ll find nearly 700 trees lining the canals, and far fewer tourists. In Arashiyama district, east of Kyoto, a really unique way to see the cherry blossoms is to ride the Sagano Scenic Railway, which passes through a tunnel of sakura. Jump aboard from March onwards.
Predicted full bloom March 31, 2024
7. Matsumae Park, Hokkaido prefecture
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Matsumae Park is home to Japan’s northernmost castle and is a lovely spot for the sakura season. Two hundred and fifty varieties, on 10,000 trees, stretch long into the season from about late April, their wooden name tags claiming their time in the spotlight. It’s especially magical at dusk when the castle is illuminated.
Predicted full bloom May 7, 2024
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8. Kumamoto Castle, Kumamoto prefecture
One of Japan’s most southerly islands, Kyushu is a good place to head for a less crowded and thoroughly authentic hanami fix. There’s no more spectacular setting than the grounds of its Kumamoto Castle, where hundreds of trees lead up to its hilltop gates, bursting into bloom around mid-March.
Predicted full bloom March 27, 2024
9. Miharu, Fukushima prefecture
Stay off the beaten track and ahead of the pack by heading to Miharu, about two and a half hours north of the capital by train. With sensational displays until the end of April, the city’s peach, plum and cherry trees all blossom simultaneously (Miharu means “Three Springs”), and it’s the home of the astonishing 1,000-year-old Takizakura, the “waterfall cherry tree”.
Predicted full bloom April 16, 2024
When is the best time to book a holiday to see the cherry blossom?
Sakura season in Japan commands high prices. For the best deals, book as soon as flights go on sale, about 11 months ahead. At other times of the year, independent travel around Japan is pretty straightforward, but cherry blossom season is an exception: hotel rooms can be scarce and prices rise steeply so it is wise to book these at least ten months in advance. If you are set on visiting Kyoto, a major hub of cherry blossom viewing, consider day-tripping from Osaka: trains from Tennoji station reach Kyoto in 55 minutes and there are lots of low-budget hotel options.
Why is cherry blossom season so important in Japan?
Sakura has been the subject of nationwide adoration since the Heian period, more than 1,000 years ago (794–1185). The short, enigmatic emergence of the blooms is seen as more than just a chance to admire some pretty petals; it is a meditation on life, death, renewal and the ephemeral nature of being. You’ll find it celebrated in Japanese literature, poetry and art; scrolled into the swords of samurai; and used as the symbol of fallen soldiers, new beginnings and friendship.
Which books and films will get me in the mood?
The 11th-century masterpiece The Tale of Genji is often referred to as the world’s first novel and references a fictional royal cherry blossom party, with poetry reading and dancing. Immerse yourself in the luminous nature-focused works of Matsuo Basho, one of Japan’s most renowned poets and writers, with a copy of Basho: The Complete Haiku. Or try the 2011 Academy Award-nominated documentary The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom, in which survivors of Japan’s most recent tsunami were interviewed a month after the devastation as they began to rebuild their lives, just as the cherry blossom season started.
Are there any alternatives to Japan’s main cherry blossom holiday season?
Plum blossoms, or ume, are the first important flowers to blossom in the spring, bursting in February and March. Hit the Mito Plum Blossom Festival in Honshu for mountains covered in candy-floss blooms and open-air tea ceremonies. It can be reached in 80 minutes from Tokyo Ueno Station on the Super Hitachi express. Bookending the other side of the cherry blossom season are cascades of wisteria, often formed into tunnels. Go to Ashikaga Flower Park, 80 minutes by shinkansen train from Tokyo Station, for the Great Wisteria Festival, which runs from mid-April until late May, with the full purple haze occurring in early May.
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