Hanami, Cherry Blossom Season in Japan お花見

Hanami: Why and Where to Admire the Cherry Blossoms in Japan?

In Japan, the beginning of spring means hanami - hana 花, "flower", and mi 見, "look". An annual and unaltered tradition where the Japanese flock to parks and gardens to admire the beautiful and fragile cherry blossoms, the famous sakura. 

The Best Hanami Spot of Japan

There are several famous places, mostly parks, to enjoy hanami in Tokyo (between March and April, depending on the year):

Ueno Park

Ueno Park during hanami.

Wikimedia Commons

Meguro

The Meguro district during Hanami

Flickr Toshihiro Gamo

Nearby in Nara, you can stroll among the 30,000 cherry trees on Mount Yoshino, considered one of the best places to experience the sakura in Japan.

In Osaka, the castle park with its the hundred sakura trees is a great location to go for a hanami party.

Similar to Osaka, if you are in Hiroshima during hanami, it is on the side of the park near the castle that it is one of the best hanami spots in the city, or along the river of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park.

Further south, on the island of Kyushu, the park of Kumamoto Castle is considered one of the best "hanami spots".

The cherry blossoms in the park of Osaka Castle

The cherry blossoms in the park of Osaka Castle

hanami

Hanami at Kumamoto Castle

Flickr JoshBerglund19

Hiroshima hanami

Hiroshima hanami

Wikimedia Commons

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