Yeah, here in Saitama where I live, the cherry blossoms start blooming from late March to April.
Since Japan stretches a long way from north to south, the blooming season actually varies quite a bit, like about four months from Okinawa all the way up to Hokkaido! Plus, even within the same area, you’ll see differences depending on whether it’s on flat land or in the mountains, how much sun it gets, and the environment where the cherry trees are growing.
The most popular type of cherry blossom in Japan is this variety called Somei Yoshino. Fun fact, they even planted some of these along the Potomac River in the US!
It’s a real shame that they only stay in full bloom for about five days, but man, are they beautiful during that short time.
yozakura
This year, my first ohanami (お花見) was all about the night blossoms, or yozakura (夜桜).
There’s this park near my workplace that’s famous for its cherry trees. They’ve got close to a thousand of ’em planted all over, and on the weekends when they’re in full bloom, it gets super crowded with people.
So, one late night in late March, after I finished work, I happened to pass by this park. And there they were – the cherry blossoms, just about to hit their peak!
Of course, I had to snap some photos of them for you to see.
They call it yozakura, and sometimes people do their ohanami at night. But this time it was pretty late, so there were hardly any other folks around enjoying the blossoms.
I gotta say, it felt kind of special, like I had the whole cherry blossom show all to myself.
1000 Cherry Trees
Near my parents’ place, there’s this famous spot along the riverbank known as “1000 Cherry Trees” (Senbonzakura 千本桜). Seems like ages ago, the locals planted all those trees along the river.
I was staying over at my folks’ place on the first Sunday of April, and I really wanted to see those cherry trees, so I headed out there early in the morning. Unfortunately, they were only about 60% in bloom at that point.
Still, it was pretty cool that I managed to get some drone shots of the areas that were blooming a bit better.
And on my way back, I stopped by a small park in town. Turns out, this was another well-known spot for cherry blossoms, and they were just about to reach their peak. So, of course, I took a bunch of pictures before heading home.
Additional information:
- ***Ohanami (お花見)***: This is the Japanese custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers, most commonly cherry blossoms (sakura). It often involves picnics, parties, and appreciating the blossoms with family and friends.
- ***Yozakura (夜桜)***: This literally translates to “night cherry blossoms.” Many popular cherry blossom viewing spots are illuminated at night, offering a different, often more magical, atmosphere for ohanami.
- ***Senbonzakura (千本桜)***: This literally means “1000 cherry trees.” It’s a common name for places known for having a large number of cherry blossom trees.
