In Japan, the cherry blossoms are among the best things to see in March and April.
But depending on when you are visiting Japan and what location makes a huge difference.
If you are in Southern Japan (which experiences warmer weather0, early March is when you want to go. If in Northern Japan (which experiences colder weather), late April is when you want to go, while in Hokkaido, it’s the first week of May.
Of course, it all depends on how weather has been in the past few months prior. More cold? More warmer weather?
But assuming you are going to be in Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, the end of March and first two weeks of April is when you will definitely want to go.
There is sometimes misleading information from people in Japan in February to mid-March that they saw cherry blossoms but what they actually saw are plum blossoms. Plum blossoms have round petals, cherry blossoms are oval.Also, plum blossom leaves can be red/purple, while cherry blossoms can have green leaves.
But back to the subject of cherry blossoms, here is an example at Meguro River in Tokyo on March 22nd. The sakura trees are starting to bloom, but still to early.
I returned five days later on March 27th and some of the trees are in full bloom:
While others still needed a few more days…
Another on March 22nd, this one at Zozoji Temple near Tokyo Tower:
So, you can see a big difference!
The same at Yoyogi Park and other parks…
Here is a photo of the trees while I was at a Hanami party which I attended on March 29th:
The next week on April 6th, you see the cherry blossoms a lot more…
By April 13th, they were gone….
If you had to ask me when are the best days to visit Tokyo or Kyoto to see the cherry blossoms, I would have to say the one week between April 1-April 7th is ideal, a few days after the 10th is pushing it as if there is high winds or a storm, the petals are literally gone in a few days.
But for those who are leaving a week before April 1st or arriving a week after April 7th, you may still get a chance to see cherry blossoms at a park.
Here is Chidorigafuchi on April 2nd:
Here is Inokashira Park on April 4th:
Here is Shinjukugyoen on April 5th:
In Kyoto on April 10th:
But for the most part, if cherry blossoms are your priority, for those going to Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto, go at the final days of March through April 10th.
Going south, then definitely in March, going up northern Japan, then the mid-to-end of April is when you would want to go!
With that being said, just two things I want to emphasize:
As you are interested in seeing the cherry blossoms, so are thousands of travelers. Book your hotel and flight in advance and expect large crowds!
If you are planning to ride the shinkansen via JR Pass, reserve your shinkansen tickets as soon as you arrive. It’s a very busy time and even for myself, going in March/April 2019, JR booths were so busy that I had to go at 5:30 a.m. in order to reserve my shinkansen seats in advance.
