A Flashback to Sakura Season: Tokyo
After coming to Japan for a homestay four years ago, my dream was to come back to Japan for cherry blossom season. I am so lucky that my study abroad has brought me to Japan for this magical time of the year.
Cherry blossom season in Japan, or Sakura season さくら, is from the end of March to the beginning of April. And it only lasts for about a week 😭 I wish it would last for a long time, but I guess that wouldn’t make it as special as it is.
Because cherry blossom season is so short everyone takes full advantage of the week when it is occurring. Everyone goes to cherry blossom viewing which is called Hanami. Families will go on picnics under the trees, offices take the day off to go to hanami as a way of bonding, friends go to hang out.
The weekends at major parks like; Ueno or Yoyogi will be packed with people sleeping, hanging out, playing games, eating or drinking. It’s a lot of fun and I highly recommend it despite the crowds. There are lots of food stalls around the area so if you didn’t bring your own bento you can buy some yakisoba or grilled corn to fill you up.
The number one spot, in my opinion and based on how many people were there, to see the cherry blossoms is Meguro river, which I’ll do a separate post on because I have so many pictures from there.
This year during cherry blossom season it was so cold. Which I was not expecting with the beautiful spring scenery all around. I actually didn’t bring any winter clothes with me to Japan so I ended up having to buy a light coat. So come prepared if you’re traveling here during this time, because some days are super warm like spring and others were still a bit cold.
If you come to Japan and don’t have time to go to one of the major parks or cherry blossom areas you can still find them throughout Tokyo. Some streets and small waterways have cherry blossoms lining them. The second picture above is at a river near Waseda University where I was studying abroad. So it’s not hard to find these beautiful flowers. If you get the chance to see them I highly recommend it.
