Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Japan in Cherry Blossom Season

Join Caitlin and two of her best friends as they tick off a bucket list item – visiting Japan at the beginning of April to see the cherry blossoms.

Quick Overview

We visited Japan for ten days, staying mainly on the east coast and travelling from Tokyo down to Itsukushima/Miyajima Island. We briefly saw Hiroshima before staying in Kyoto and flying home from Tokyo.

Cherry Blossom Season in Japan Facts

Best time to visit: The first two weeks of April
Duration: The first flowers appear in late March and some are still in bloom in mid-April
Best city to see blossoms: Kyoto

About Cherry Blossom Season

Heralding the arrival of springtime, the flowering season typically lasts from the end of March until the middle of April. Why is it different from other countries? Unlike anywhere else in the world, the trees and beautiful flowers are far more dense across the whole of Japan. 

Every region in Japan has dedicated festivals to celebrate local blossoms, but they all celebrate ‘Golden Week’ too. It falls on the last few days in April and the first few in May and is marked by four consecutive Japanese public holidays. This is the busiest time for travel in Japan because not only are the tourists flocking to see blossoms, but the locals are too! No other country knows how to celebrate these flowers quite like Japan does.

The History of Cherry Blossoms in Japan

Sakura is the Japanese word for cherry blossom, and more than just being gloriously stunning flowers, they’re iconic natural symbols of Japanese culture, with strong ties to history, literature, poetry, art, and identity. For locals, the blooming of the trees symbolises the ephemeral beauty of human life.

Families and friends gather for special flower viewing parties. Bigger flower viewing celebrations are called hanami. These picnics, with plenty of food and drinks, are held under the trees and have been linked with cherry blossoms since the Heian Period (794–1185).

Blooms and bubbles in one event – yes please!

How To Get to the Best Cherry Blossoms in Japan

This is a very simple one word answer – trains. The shinkansen or bullet trains are the highly effective and speedy method of transport across the whole of Japan. Speeds can reach 300km/h which makes it incredibly easy to take advantage of everything that Japan has to offer when you’re short on time. There are nine lines that interlink all major cities. For our trip, we used them to travel from Tokyo to Hiroshima, then Hiroshima to Kyoto. 

You simply cannot do a trip to Japan without going on the shinkansen. Japanese Rail Passes start at $500 for seven days of unlimited access to all Japan Rail National trains, bus services, ferry services, and airport transfers. 

When we travelled inland to Takayama, it was via a separate train line, plus a bus to get into the mountains.

Where to Stay During Cherry Blossom Season

We travelled during the busy tourist season and didn’t find it difficult to find good accommodation.

If you do one thing while you’re there, make sure you stay in a ryokan (a traditional Japanese hotel/inn)! It’s seriously the best experience, with many facilitating their own private onsens (hot springs) and breakfast spreads that are like nothing else. 

As an added bonus, hotels are cheaper in Japan compared to prices in most European cities. There are plenty of budget options for around $80pp a night. The rooms we chose were a little bit more, with the average being about $120pp a night.

Places We Stayed

• Miyajima, Aki Grand Hotel & Spa
• Kyoto, Stay SAKURA Kyoto Shijo Karasuma
• Takayama, Ryoka Gizan
• Tokyo, The Centurion Classic Akasaka

Hiroshima blossoms in full bloom

What are the best sakura festival foods?

• In March and April, Starbucks and fast food outlets make sakura themed desserts and special meal deals
• Futomaki is a traditional meal enjoyed during the hanami festival. It’s a thick sushi roll filled with vegetables and sometimes cooked fish like unagi
• Cherry blossom/sakura flavoured mochi and milk puddings. Melt-in-your-mouth desserts!
• Hanami Dango is a tricolour rice flour dumpling that matches the colours of the sky, flowers, and leaves
• Cherry blossom cookies are crispy and buttery, best enjoyed with salt-pickled cherry blossoms!
• Every other Japanese delicacy you can think of also deserves to be on this list: okonomiyaki, takoyaki, sushi, ramen, fluffy pancakes the size of your head…

Every city has different specialities so make sure you keep an eye out and try something different!

Things To Do in Japan During Cherry Blossom Season

The first thing you’ll want to do is look for blossoms! These are the best places we found:

• Itsukushima/Miyajima Island
• Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park
• Kyoto, Arashiyama Park
• Kyoto Gosho/Gyoen Imperial Palace
• Kyoto, The Philosopher’s Path
• Tokyo, Chiyoda River Cruises

Arashiyama Park in Kyoto should definitely be high on your list of places to find great blossoms

Other Japan Highlights

• Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome and Peace Memorial Museum
• Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Kyoto
• Fushimi-Inari-Taisha Shrine and hike, Kyoto 
• Harajuku/Omotesando vintage shopping, Tokyo
• Disneyland, Tokyo
• teamLabs Planets, (an incredible immersive art experience), Tokyo

What It’s Like to Visit Japan in Cherry Blossom Season

Before we left for our trip to Japan we did a lot of research to ensure our days would be full, with the best chance of finding as many blossoms as possible.

A few of the key places were easy to find on the internet, but some of the best things we saw, and activities we did, were unplanned. As with any holiday, make space in your schedule for exploring unguided. Those were the times that we found some of the best flowers.

Day 1 to 3: Tokyo – Itsukushima/Miyajima Island – Hiroshima

We flew into Tokyo, arriving late in the evening and immediately headed south for Hiroshima. Tokyo to Hiroshima was just under four hours by bullet train/shinkansen, and our plan was to start in the south and wind our way back up to the capital city to ensure we saw the best blooms Hiroshima had on show. 

This meant sacrificing the best of the blossoms in Tokyo, as by the time we returned for our flight home, they were falling off the trees. 

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park was filled with blossoms and we were lucky to have a sunny day. The natural symbolism of renewal, hope, and beauty is very poignant despite the very sad, destructive history of this place. The story of rebuilding adds even more beauty, showcasing the strength of the Japanese people. 

So much history and beauty in one place makes this a great stop, particularly if you’re not just here for the blooms

On Miyajima Island, only half an hour from Hiroshima by train, we visited the Itsukushima Shrine. We walked around and found deer wandering the streets and mingling with tourists. As we climbed up the mountain, we discovered it was by far the best place we saw cherry blossoms on the whole trip.

In full bloom in glorious white, it looked like the sunset sky was filled with cotton candy. I’ve never seen so many flowers. 

We spent a full day in Miyajima exploring and chasing more flower spots before going to Kyoto for four days.

Day 4 – 7: Kyoto

Kyoto is only an hour and a half north of Miyajima on the fast trains. At the top of our list was visiting the Kyoto Imperial Palace and park and Arashiyama near the famous bamboo forest. These were the first places that we saw pink blossoms.

And they were breathtaking.

You couldn’t walk for 50m without needing to stop for another photo

There’s a park by the river where we saw many crowds partaking in hanami picnics. The trees were covered with flowers with people gathering and enjoying the sunshine underneath them. We packed a lot into the time we were there, checking our maps and guides and looking for all the blossoms we could find.

The last place we saw in Kyoto was the Philosopher’s Path. Once again we were graced with glorious weather and we followed the little stream, taking photos, and trying not to bump into people because it was a popular spot.

Every street corner has a different tree to enjoy, which is great but very distracting! Trying to navigate around a new city with so many incredible photo spots is a slow process. 

We didn’t find enlightenment on the Philosopher’s Path, but we did find plenty of blossoms!

Day 8: Takayama

One tip for your Japan trip – get out of the touristy places and pick one spot you’ve never heard of. We knew from our planning that we were mostly sticking to the bigger cities and popular tourist destinations, but for just one day we ventured four hours inland to a city in the Gifu Prefecture called Takayama. 

The contrast between angular buildings and delicate, fluffy blooms was gorgeous

From Takayama, it was another hour on a bus into the mountains to where we stayed, a place called Ryokan Gizan in Okuhida Onsengo Hitoegane. Our ryokan (a beautiful traditional Japanese inn) was an enchanting historical place. We got to experience a full Japanese breakfast and an onsen experience that’s still the most relaxing thing I’ve ever done. 

Away from the metropolitan crowds, we still found the flowers dotted through the city in gardens and along the rivers. So put your finger randomly on your map of the region, and take a chance by visiting somewhere unknown. More than likely the travel time to get there will be worth it AND there’ll be hundreds of cherry blossoms too. You can’t lose. 

Best of all, we didn’t have to fight anyone for photos and space. We got to have the beautiful sights all to ourselves. Waking up in the mountains greeted by flowers is a glorious way to start your day. 

Day 9 – 11: Tokyo

The last three days of our trip were back in the capital. The trees still had flowers on them but there was a thin pink carpet of them on the ground too. We made the most of it with spontaneous sunset photoshoots with the last of the flowers along the Chiyoda River. 

Because how could we not?

Staying a few more days here at the beginning of your trip would mean you get to see Tokyo’s blossoms for longer, but you could also miss a different, maybe more plentiful opportunity somewhere else. Make sure you check the blossom forecast so you can make the most of planning your time.

All up, cherry blossom season lasts less than a month. That’s the transient nature of the flowers, but that’s also what makes it truly special. There’s certainly an art to organising, chasing, and discovering the best places for blooms. We’ll never forget our trip to Japan to see them.

There’s so much to see in this country throughout the year, from fantastic winter skiing, to hot summers, and autumnal colour changes, but visiting in springtime means you get to enjoy the cherry blossoms (if you time it right!). Hopefully I’ll be back!

Tips for Visiting Japan To See the Cherry Blossoms

• You have very limited time to catch the blossoms in bloom. Our trip was April 1st-11th and the timing was perfect. If you book any later than the first week of April you may be disappointed, and we don’t want that! But again, please do your research and check the blossom forecasts so you don’t miss out
• Take your best friends. This girls’ trip was an absolute holiday of a lifetime for me, plus it’s an experience best shared
• If you prefer to relax on your holidays, it might be best if you stayed in one place instead of trying to rush around to see all the different varieties. If you’re travelling with kids this is also going to be an easier option
• Stay in a rural town off the beaten tourist track. We loved our time in Takayama, and we researched that well and can recommend it

Hiroshima certainly isn’t the first place you’d think to go looking for blossoms – prior research for the win!

FAQs Cherry Blossom Season in Japan

What month is cherry blossom season in Japan?

Cherry blossom season varies every year, but it reliably falls between March and May. If you’re hedging your bets then April is normally a good time to go.

What’s the weather like during cherry blossom season?

If you’re headed to Tokyo, you can expect relatively mild weather with temperatures averaging around 21°C. If you plan to go north you’ll need to bring more layers. Sapporo, for example, ranges between 2-10°C during April.

Is Japan expensive to visit during cherry blossom season?

Cherry blossom season falls during spring and is one of the peak tourist times to visit Japan. Ultimately that means prices will be higher than other times of the year.

How many different types of cherry blossoms are in Japan?

There are over 200 different types of cherry blossoms in Japan. Blooms are typically white or varying shades of pink but there are also some yellow varieties.