Cherry blossom season in Japan, city by city
Cherry blossom season in Japan starts in late March in Kyushu and moves north, reaching Hokkaido in May. Pick a city and your travel dates to compare them with the Japan Meteorological Agency’s average dates for the first flowers and full bloom, and with the last six springs.
Will the cherries be out on my dates?
Example valuesTurn on JavaScript to check your dates, or read the table below.
First flowers: the day the Meteorological Agency’s sample tree in the city has five or six open flowers. Full bloom: about 80% of its buds are open.
Averages are for 1991–2020. Any spring can run a week or more early or late: the recent years show by how much.
Forecasts for the coming spring appear early in the year; JNTO publishes them.
When is cherry blossom season in Japan?
The cherry blossom front moves north through Japan over about two months. The Japan Meteorological Agency’s 30-year averages describe it like this: the Somei-yoshino cherries open in late March in Kyushu, Chugoku, Shikoku, Kinki, Tokai and Kanto, which covers Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya and Tokyo. By April 10 they reach Hokuriku and southern Tohoku. Then the front climbs through northern Tohoku and reaches the north of Hokkaido in mid-May.
Full bloom follows the same path a few days behind: from the end of March in northern Kyushu and parts of Kanto, to most of western and central Japan by April 10, southern Tohoku by April 20, and eastern Hokkaido in mid-May.
Average bloom dates by city
| City | First flowers (average) | Full bloom (average) | First flowers, 2021–2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naha (Okinawa) | Jan 16 | Feb 4 | Jan 4 – Jan 18 |
| Fukuoka | Mar 22 | Mar 31 | Mar 12 – Mar 27 |
| Kumamoto | Mar 22 | Apr 1 | Mar 17 – Mar 26 |
| Kochi | Mar 22 | Mar 30 | Mar 15 – Mar 23 |
| Nagasaki | Mar 23 | Apr 2 | Mar 14 – Mar 27 |
| Tokyo | Mar 24 | Mar 31 | Mar 14 – Mar 29 |
| Nagoya | Mar 24 | Apr 2 | Mar 17 – Mar 28 |
| Matsuyama | Mar 24 | Apr 3 | Mar 15 – Mar 27 |
| Yokohama | Mar 25 | Apr 1 | Mar 15 – Apr 1 |
| Hiroshima | Mar 25 | Apr 3 | Mar 11 – Mar 26 |
| Kyoto | Mar 26 | Apr 4 | Mar 16 – Mar 29 |
| Kagoshima | Mar 26 | Apr 5 | Mar 17 – Mar 29 |
| Osaka | Mar 27 | Apr 4 | Mar 19 – Mar 30 |
| Kobe | Mar 27 | Apr 5 | Mar 24 – Apr 1 |
| Takamatsu | Mar 27 | Apr 4 | Mar 15 – Mar 29 |
| Nara | Mar 28 | Apr 4 | Mar 20 – Mar 31 |
| Okayama | Mar 28 | Apr 4 | Mar 20 – Mar 30 |
| Kanazawa | Apr 3 | Apr 8 | Mar 23 – Apr 1 |
| Niigata | Apr 8 | Apr 13 | Mar 27 – Apr 8 |
| Sendai | Apr 8 | Apr 13 | Mar 26 – Apr 8 |
| Nagano | Apr 11 | Apr 16 | Mar 28 – Apr 9 |
| Akita | Apr 17 | Apr 22 | Apr 4 – Apr 15 |
| Morioka | Apr 18 | Apr 24 | Apr 3 – Apr 16 |
| Aomori | Apr 22 | Apr 26 | Apr 7 – Apr 17 |
| Hakodate | Apr 28 | May 2 | Apr 14 – Apr 23 |
| Sapporo | May 1 | May 6 | Apr 15 – Apr 23 |
1991–2020 normals and observed dates from the Japan Meteorological Agency website; cities selected and names translated by TimeForViews. Naha watches Taiwan cherry, which blooms in winter.
From first flowers to full bloom
On average, full bloom comes 4 to 10 days after the first flowers: about a week in Tokyo and Nara, 9 days in Kyoto, Kobe and Fukuoka, but only 4 or 5 days in Aomori, Hakodate and Sapporo. The blossoms look their fullest around the day of full bloom, so that is the date to aim for.
Recent springs have come early
Compared with the 1991–2020 averages, the last six springs have mostly been early. In Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka the first flowers opened before the average date in four of the six years. In Sapporo, Aomori, Kanazawa and Nagano they did so in all six. Tokyo’s earliest recent start was March 14, in 2021 and again in 2023.
So when you plan far ahead, the average dates are a fair guide, and a few days earlier is the safer bet. The checker above shows each city’s recent dates so you can see the spread.
Which cherries the dates are for
The dates are for Somei-yoshino, Japan’s most widely planted cherry and a cross of Edo-higan and Oshima-zakura, planted from Kyushu to the Ishikari Plain in Hokkaido. Where it doesn’t grow, the agency watches other cherries instead: Taiwan cherry (hikanzakura) in Okinawa and Amami, which starts to bloom in mid-January, and Sargent’s cherry (ezo-yamazakura) in eastern and northern Hokkaido.
For other seasons, the Nature Calendar lists blooms and festivals month by month.
Questions
When is cherry blossom season in Japan?
The Somei-yoshino cherries, the most common kind, start to open in late March in Kyushu, Shikoku and the big cities of Honshu, reach southern Tohoku around April 10, and reach the north of Hokkaido in mid-May, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency’s 1991–2020 averages. In Okinawa a different cherry blooms in January.
When do cherry blossoms bloom in Tokyo?
On average the first flowers open on March 24 and full bloom comes on March 31 (Japan Meteorological Agency, 1991–2020). Recent years have run early: from 2021 to 2026 the first flowers opened between March 14 and March 29.
When do cherry blossoms bloom in Kyoto?
On average the first flowers open on March 26 and full bloom comes on April 4. From 2021 to 2026 the first flowers opened between March 16 and March 29.
Is April too late for cherry blossoms in Japan?
Not at all in the north: Sendai, Aomori, Hakodate and Sapporo bloom in April and May. In Tokyo and Kyoto, early April is around full bloom in an average year, but in early years like 2021 and 2023 full bloom came in late March.