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Updated: February 21, 2024

Cherry blossom season in Tokyo

From late March to early April, Tokyo transforms as cherry blossom fever grips the city. We introduce the latest 2024 forecast and the best spots to enjoy these beautiful symbols of spring.

Cherry blossom – or sakura - season in Tokyo is truly a magical experience. Thousands of trees burst into bloom, dousing the streets with stunning shades of pink. The flowers are a national obsession and people flock to parks to hold hanami parties and picnics to view and photograph them. Stores will stock their shelves with sakura-themed or flavored items, such as sakura bento lunch boxes and even serve pink sakura drinks. As if shaking off the winter, a bright and optimistic atmosphere fills the city.

Cherry blossom
hanami parties

 

2024 cherry blossom forecast

At the beginning of each year, the cherry blossom forecast is eagerly awaited. Broadcast on national television, viewers will anticipate when best to hold their hanami flower viewing parties.
The 2024 cherry blossom season in Tokyo is forecast to begin on March 20. It normally takes about one week to 10 days from flowering to full bloom.
Note: Forecast is according to data from the Japan Weather Association, February 20, 2024.

Best sakura festivals and cherry blossom viewing spots in Tokyo

Tokyo is full of well-known as well as hidden spots for viewing blossoms. However, for the full hanami experience, soak up the vibrant atmosphere of a festival. We've selected seven popular events where you can admire the flowers' ephemeral beauty and join Tokyoites in having fun and welcoming the spring.
 

Nakameguro Sakura-matsuri Festival

The hip yet laid-back neighborhood of Nakameguro is full of trendy coffee shops and cafes. Its typically quiet canal comes to life during the Nakameguro Sakura-matsuri Festival. Lanterns line the avenues and food stalls set up shop, selling drinks and snacks to the crowds of visitors. The draw is some 800 trees lining a 3.8-km stretch and forming a pale pink arch over the river. Viewable from bridges over the water, the reflections shimmer like magic and make for pictures so stunning it's hard to believe they are real.

Sakura trees and petals on the Meguro river
Meguro river sakura and lanterns at night

 

Rikugien Gardens

There is a word in Japanese known as "yozakura" and it is definitely something worth experiencing. Literally, "night sakura," the blossoms are lit up in night creating an otherworldly ethereal scene that is hauntingly beautiful. One of the best examples is the weeping cherry at Rikugien. The gardens were constructed in 1702 by Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, a feudal lord and vassal to the shogun (military commander), who was inspired by the picturesque scenes in waka poetry. Walking past the front gate within the gardens brings into view an impressive 70-year-old shidarezakura (weeping cherry blossom) tree. Even today, its branches are covered in pale pink flowers during cherry blossom season, cascading downwards like a waterfall. The "Rikugien Gardens: Special Nighttime Viewing in Spring" event allows visitors to enter the park at night, when it's usually closed, to enjoy the sakura.

Weeping cherry blossoms in Rikugien Gardens
Gate and cherry blossoms in Rikugien Gardens

 

Sakura Fes Nihonbashi 2024

Nihonbashi was a former commercial center in the Edo period (1603 – 1868) and is now known for its upscale retail, as well as large financial institutions. City center it may be, it knows how to celebrate cherry blossoms and does so in all sorts of creative and innovative ways. At the Sakura Fes Nihonbashi 2024, restaurants and shops all over the Nihonbashi area will be offering a special "Sakura Menu" featuring spring and cherry blossom-themed items. A wide range of sweets, snacks, bento lunch boxes, and products will be available. Also, don't miss the pink-colored illuminated buildings along Edo Sakura Dori and Chuo Dori.

SAKURA FES NIHONBASHIPhotos for illustrative purposes only.
SAKURA FES NIHONBASHIFrom Sakura Fes Nihonbashi 2023

 

Bokutei Sakura-matsuri Festival

You may have noticed that cherry blossoms often line the moats of castles and canals, their reflections amplifying the spectacle. Sumida River in the east of Tokyo is no exception. During the Edo period, Yoshimune, the eighth Tokugawa shogun (military commander), ordered the planting of sakura along both banks, forming a kilometer-long sakura boulevard running from Azumabashi Bridge to Sakurabashi Bridge. This has attracted large crowds for centuries. During the Bokutei Sakura-matsuri Festival, local councils, businesses, and tourism associations set up stalls and bring a festive atmosphere to the area. At night, the blossoms are lit up with the added bonus of TOKYO SKYTREE in the background.

Bokutei Sakura-matsuri Festival

 

Sakura Festival in Chiyoda

Just north of the Imperial Palace, the Chidorigafuchi Green Way provides a peaceful path away from the bustle of the city and, in spring, it becomes a 700-meter-long cherry tree tunnel. During the Sakura Festival in Chiyoda, held annually from late March to early April, around 260 trees of the Somei-yoshino and Oshima varieties are illuminated at dusk. The Chidorigafuchi boating area is also open late during the festival so that visitors can view this magical sight from the water. Many neighboring shops and local organizations also hold sakura-themed events, adding to the spring festival atmosphere.

Sakura Festival in Chiyoda

 

Ueno Sakura Matsuri

Ueno Park is one of Tokyo's most popular leisure spaces, housing a variety of museums, the charming Shinobazu Pond and even a zoo. Its avenue of cherry trees along the main path is famous across Japan, even earning recognition in a haiku by the renowned poet Matsuo Basho. The park's annual Ueno Sakura Matsuri always attracts large crowds.

Ueno Sakura Matsuri

 

Koganei Cherry Blossom Festival

The Koganei Cherry Blossom Festival really has it all. Not only does it take place in the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum, which makes for a visit that is both historical and fun, but the park is home to more than 1,700 cherry trees of around 50 different varieties. On stage, there will be music, dancing, hayashi (musical accompaniment for traditional stage performances), and taiko drums. You can also experience tea ceremony and flower arrangement. Sample some local and regional dishes at food stands and enjoy the special sakura light-up at night.

Cherry blossom
hanami parties

 

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