At the Ashikaga Flower Park Cherries, schmerries, everyone crowds in to see the fluffy pink things, but they aren’t the only flower extravaganza to see in Japan! Not only will your friends be green with envy when you show them photos of these beauties, you’ll skip the jostling crowds and high-season prices. • Plum blossomsContinueContinue reading “Flower extravaganzas of Japan: Way beyond cherry blossoms!”
Tag Archives: cherry blossoms
Koshikawa Koraku-en Garden
Koshikawa Koraku-en garden is absolutely beautiful in every season. It’s most famous for its iris garden in late May to early June, but it’s also grand in February for the plum blossoms, late March to mid-April for the cherries, late April to early May for the wisteria, and for its autumn leaves in November. ThisContinueContinue reading “Koshikawa Koraku-en Garden”
Roppongi Area
Roppongi is best known for sketchy nightlife, but it also offers a couple of provocative museums, a must-see art night, cherry blossoms from mid-March to mid-April, a fine display of koi nobori carp flags from mid-April to May 5th, and some of the best winter illuminations in Tokyo from late November through December. Most visitorsContinueContinue reading “Roppongi Area”
Shinjuku Area
Shinjuku is a neighborhood of contrasts, from the neon glow of the Kabukichō red light district on one hand, to the serene treescape and floral wonderland of Shinjuku Gyō-en National Garden on the other. The garden is especially worth a visit in February for the plum blossoms, mid-March through mid-April for every variety of cherryContinueContinue reading “Shinjuku Area”
Great things to do in March
More Plum Blossoms Eyepopping displays of plum blossoms continue to delight through mid-March. Here’s where to see the best plum blossom groves in Tokyo • Girls’ Day (Hina Matsuri) From mid-February through Mar 3 (the actual holiday), sacred doll sets are displayed in households with daughters. The town of Katsuura (an overnight trip from Tokyo)ContinueContinue reading “Great things to do in March”
Sato Sakura Museum
“Sakura River” by Ryo Date This museum doesn’t just collect works painted with powdered gemstones in traditional Japanese nihonga style, they commission new works too! It’s an especially excellent stop in late March to early April, when the cherry blossoms are blooming along the Meguro River outside the door. Situated just a block from theContinueContinue reading “Sato Sakura Museum”
Monzen-Nakachō Area
(Photo courtesy of Narita-san Fukakgawa Fudo temple website) The Monzen-Nakacho area isn’t mentioned on many must-go lists because most visitors don’t know about the neighborhood’s highly entertaining temple, the shrine that’s the birthplace of sumo wrestling, and (in late March to early April) one of the best hidden cherry blossom spots in Tokyo. This isContinueContinue reading “Monzen-Nakachō Area”
Showa Kinen Park
The journey out to Tachikawa Station to see Showa Kinen Park is well worth it, especially if you’ve got kids. There are many huge (and unique!) playgrounds, kilometers of bike paths, boat rentals, swimming pools, a Japanese garden with a bonsai collection, and the biggest flower displays in Tokyo. Especially worth seeing are the cherryContinueContinue reading “Showa Kinen Park”
Rikugi-en Garden
Serene in every season If you’re looking for the most Japanese garden of all time, that garden would be Rikugi-en. It not only has gorgeous views around every turn, it’s huge. Especially good times to visit are March for the weeping cherry tree, April for the azalea mountain, and November for the leaves. Rikugi-en isContinueContinue reading “Rikugi-en Garden”
Jindai Botanical Gardens
This garden isn’t just beautifully designed for strolling, its flower displays in every season rival the cherry blossoms for sheer WOW. It’s most famous for the plum grove that begins to bloom in February, the cherry blossoms in March, its incredible display of azaleas in April, its wisteria in late April to early May, andContinueContinue reading “Jindai Botanical Gardens”
Jonelle Patrick writes about Japan 