The best seasonal events and hidden sites for an unforgettable hanami experience.

There are many beautiful cherry blossom spots in Japan, but with the flowers being so fleeting, it can be hard to choose between them, especially when you’re travelling around Japan. To help you get the best out of sakura season, we’ve compiled a list of nine top cherry blossom sites that you need to know about, ranging from paid events to free off-the-beaten-path sites where you can create memories that will last forever.

9. Seibuen Amusement Park — Saitama Prefecture

This park is well-known for its Godzilla ride but it’s also home to over 500 cherry blossom trees, making it a popular destination during cherry blossom season. This spring, it will be holding its first-ever “Everyone’s Great March! High-colour Parade”, alongside a “Boogie-woogie Festival” where millions of confetti pieces will be strewn, creating a pink scene that looks and feels like a flurry of cherry blossoms.

Event period: 19 March – 6 April
Admission: 4,900 yen (US$33.44) for adults; 3,600 yen for children aged 3 and above
Admission price includes unlimited rides
Website

8. Hoshino Resorts “Hanami Onsen Stay” — Tochigi Prefecture

Hoshino Resorts is a luxury hotel chain with locations around the country, but at Kai Kinugawa in Tochigi Prefecture, guests can enjoy a very special hanami cherry blossom-viewing experience, by relaxing in a hot spring hugged by some 30 sakura trees.

Event period: 28 March-15 April
Price: From 44,000 yen per person per night
Hanami Onsen Stay limited to two rooms per day, with reservations required at least eight days prior to the date of stay Website

7. Sakura Festival Beer Garden — Aichi Prefecture

This is a dream combo for beer lovers, with all-you-can-eat-and-drink deals at two venues — Tsuruma Park (above left), where you can view the cherry blossoms, and Koyoen Beer Garden (top right), an indoor restaurant within the park.

Event period: 20 March – 6 April (Tsuruma Park); 20 March-13 April (Koyoen Beer Garden — Fri, Sat, Sun and Public holidays only)
Price: 5,500 yen-6,000 yen for adults (Tsuruma Park); 5,000 yen for adults (Koyoen Beer Garden)
Prices are cheaper for students and those under 18, children under 3 are free
Website

6. Oku Mikawa Hidden Sakura Festival — Aichi Prefecture

This sakura event is so secret the organisers aren’t even sharing a photograph of the site, describing it as “an unknown hidden area of Okumikawa” in Toyone, which is around 150 minutes by car from Nagoya City. Local sake, specialty products and kitchen cars are planned for the event, but guests are also free to bring in their own food and drink for a hanami picnic experience to remember.

Event period: 12-13 April (cancelled in case of rainy weather)
Price: 20,000 yen per 3×3-metre (9.8×9.8-foot) viewing spot, which seats up to four people
Website

5. Naked Meets Nijo Castle 2025 Sakura — Kyoto Prefecture

This event combines traditional culture with a side of cherry blossoms, with a “Premium Hanami Area” where you can immerse yourself in the “hanamachi” (“pleasure district”) culture, complete with projection mapping, drinks and snacks in your own private quarters, and a chat with a maiko and geisha.

Event period: 14 March-13 April
Price: 16,000 yen
Website

4. Okawa Sakura Cruise — Osaka Prefecture

This 25-minute cruise allows you to relax and enjoy the ride from Tenmabashi to Sakuranomiya while viewing the sakura from the water. You can choose from a number of plans, with some including a bento meal, a full lunch course and a one-hour all-you-can-eat takoyaki plan, which lets you fill up on Osaka’s famous specialty.

Event period: 22 March-6 April
Price: Starting from 3,280 yen
Website

While the events above involve fees, the top three won’t cost you anything, which is why we’ve given them top billing in the list.

3. Hokuto City — Yamanashi Prefecture

This area is filled with fantastic sakura spots, but none is more famous than the Yamataka Jindai Zakura, the oldest and largest cherry blossom tree in Japan, which is estimated to be around 2,000 years old. Other notable sites include Kiyoharu Art Village, Sandaikosha Fureai no Sato, and Saneharasakura Namiki, a 750-metre long “tunnel” of cherry blossom trees, making this a fantastic sakura destination.

2. Okayama Prefecture

If you’d like to combine cherry blossom-viewing with some historical scenery, then you’ll want to take a trip to Okayama, where you can view 280 sakura trees at Okayama Korakuen, one of the three great gardens in Japan. There’s also the Tsuyama Sakura Festival, the Okayama Sakura Carnival, and the Gaisen Cherry Blossom Festival (pictured above).

▼ The Tsuyama Sakura Festival attracts thousands of visitors every year.

Websites: Okayama Korakuen, Daigo Zakura, Okayama Sakura Carnival, Tsuyama Sakura Festival, Gaisen Sakura Festival 2025

1. Shiga Prefecture


At the top of our list is Shiga Prefecture, which has a lot of out-of-the-way sites that are ideal for people visiting by car. Some of the most impressive spots can be found at temples Saikyo-ji and Mii-dera, the latter of which has over 1,000 sakura trees, including weeping varieties. Lake Biwa, with its the 800-metre-long cherry blossoms, is another must-visit site that’ll blow you away with its beauty.

So whether you’re looking for a fun event with a festival-like atmosphere or a quiet site for contemplation, the places on this list will give you the quintessential Japanese experience you’ve been yearning for. And if you can time your visit to coincide with full bloom, you’ll be in for an even more magical experience!

Featured image: PR Times
Insert images: PR Times (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8), @Press
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