Maps and predicated peak color dates to help you plan your autumn journey to see Japan’s natural beauty.

There are a lot of reasons why fall is a great time of year to travel in Japan, such as sunny weather, not-too-hot, not-too-cold temperatures, and smaller crowds. The absolute best reason for an autumn trip, though, is to see the beautiful fall colors.

In particular, Japan’s maple and ginkgo trees, or kaede and icho if you’re using their Japanese names, are what turn many of the country’s forests, gardens, and temples into a patchwork of vivid reds and yellows every autumn. Of course, there’s a timing element involved in seeing fall foliage. Head out to see it too early, and the leaves will still be in their summer-green state, but go too late, and you run the risk of the leaves being brown and withered, or maybe even having fallen off, leaving you looking at bunches of barren branches.

So to help travelers coordinate their travel plans with Mother Nature’s, Japan Meteorological Corporation has prepared a fall foliage forecast. Generally speaking, the fall colors sweep across Japan in the opposite direction that the cherry blossoms do, starting in the north, where cooler weather sets in earlier, and then moving down to east Japan, followed by the western part of the country. There’s an additional wrinkle, though, in that high-altitude areas, typically further inland from the coastline, also tend to see their leaves change color earlier than lower-lying areas.

First, let’s take a look at the forecast maps showing when the leaves are predicted to be at their most breathtakingly bright shades of red and yellow.

▼ Peak maple color forecast map showing Sapporo (札幌), Sendai (仙台), Tokyo (東京), Nagoya (名古屋), Osaka (大阪), and Fukuoka (福岡)

▼ Peak ginkgo color forecast, also with Sapporo (札幌), Sendai (仙台), Tokyo (東京), Nagoya (名古屋), Osaka (大阪), and Fukuoka (福岡)

Compared to an average year, JMC is predicting that east Japan will turn crimson later than usual, and northern Japan’s yellow leaves will be arriving later as well. In addition to the above maps, they’ve also put together a list of the peak color dates by city.

● Predicted peak color for maple/ginkgo trees
Sapporo: November 7/November 6
Aomori: November 13/November 6
Sendai: November 25/November 29
Tokyo: November 29//November 26
Kanazawa: November 30/November 10
Nagano: November 20//November 14
Nagoya: December 2//November 17
Kyoto: December 11/November 27
Osaka: December 4/November 24
Wakayama: December 11/November 26
Hiroshima: November 28//November 20
Kochi: December 9/November 16
Fukuoka: December 7/November 27
Kagoshima: December 10/November 27

As we can see from the predicted dates, gingko trees usually reach their peak color before maples, so does this mean you’ll have to pick between seeing one or the other? Not necessarily. Unlike the cherry blossoms, which appear for only a bittersweetly short time, the fall colors can be enjoyed for a longer period. Sure, it can be tricky to time a trip to see both the maples and gingko at their absolute prettiest condition at the same place at the same time, but there’s enough overlap so that if one of the leaf types is looking its best, the other is probably very photogenic too. JMC is predicting this year’s overall fall color season to be:

● North Japan
Maple: Early October to mid-November in mountains, mid-October to late November in flatlands
Ginkgo: Early November to late November in flatlands
● East Japan
Maple: Late October to early December in mountains, late November to mid-December in flatlands
Ginkgo: Early November to early December in flatlands
● West Japan
Maple: Late October to early December in mountains, late November to mid-December in flatlands
Ginkgo: Mid-November to early December in flatlands

As we’re still at least a month away from the first signs of fall color, JMC will be updating its predictions as we get deeper into fall, but for now the forecast is enough to start forming plans from. And if you just can’t wait that long for your fall trip, Japan Railways has a new unlimited-ride train pass that can be activated from early October.

Source: Japan Meteorological Corporation, PR Times
Top image: Pakutaso
Insert images: Pakutaso, PR Times, Pakutaso (2)
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