Tokyo: Best Cherry Blossom Spots

While Tokyo is more or less a concrete jungle, there are some gorgeous cherry blossom, or sakura, spots check out.  

Here’s a concise list of my favorites that I’d recommend - From really popular spots to ones that crowds haven’t yet begun to flood, and one that is only open for 3 hours a year (yes, you read that right).

Meguro River at Nakameguro

Cherry blossom tunnel in the evening over the Meguro River - [BUY PRINT]

The Naka-Meguro area of the Meguro River is a cherry blossom tunnel made up of about 800 trees that span an almost 2.4 mile (4 km) area. 

Both day and night are really different experiences. The daytime is a bit calmer with people going for a stroll under the flowers. Evenings on the other hand, become somewhat of a light-up festival with pink lanterns, food stands with outdoor eating and drinking, and illuminated trees that are lit until 9PM.

STATION: Naka-Meguro
TRAINS: Hibiya line, Tokyu Toyoko line
MAP

Tokyo Midtown

Cars leave light trails as they pass under illuminated cherry blossoms at Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi.

On the side and in the back of Tokyo Midtown, a multi-purpose, upscale shopping area in Roppongi, is Sakura-dori, a street lined with cherry blossoms.

Evenings are the most popular time to visit as the trees are illuminated to create a peaceful sakura getaway in the middle of Tokyo. The lights are a pink color while the flowers are blooming and become white once they've reached full bloom. 

The area is also heavily visited during the day as crowds wait to enter Midtown at its 11AM opening so they can rush for a balcony seat at Napule [J], an Italian restaurant that sits right above the cherry blossom-lined street.

STATIONS: Roppongi, Nogizaka
TRAINS: Oedo line, Hibiya line, Chiyoda line
MAP

Ark Hills

Illuminated cherry blossoms over a street at Ark Hills

This location is oddly left off a lot of lists on major blogs, websites and YouTube videos for some reason, but it definitely shouldn’t be. For those looking for picturesque cherry blossoms without a crowd, this might be the best spot in Tokyo.

Above Roppongi-itchome station is the Ark Hills business area. During cherry blossom season, they have a little sakura festival in their open space with food and drink stands and the streets around the buildings are lined with about 150 cherry blossom trees.

STATION: Roppongi-itchome
TRAIN: Namboku line
MAP

Nogawa

Illuminated cherry blossoms in Nogawa during their light-up event.

This part of the No River is beautifully lined with cherry blossoms draping over it. While it’s open to the public at all times, the real spectacle is their evening light-up that spans 930 yards (850 meters) - but there’s a catch.

There is no schedule for it. This light-up is only announced 2 days prior to the actual event in places like the Japanese website below (you’ll have to keep checking it and running Google Translate over it) and is held for 3 hours on one evening only.

It’s about a 15-20 minute walk from Kokuryo station on the Keio line.

STATION: Kokuryo
TRAIN: Keio line
http://www.arc-system.co.jp/archive [J]
MAP

Nihonbashi - Kayabacho

A tunnel of cherry blossoms in the Kayabacho area of Nihonbashi, Tokyo - [BUY PRINT]

The Kayabacho area of Nihonbashi is Tokyo’s cherry blossoms in the most natural state for a city. It’s not in a park or garden, it’s not in some development, it simply creates a tunnel in a typical Tokyo neighborhood.

People simply go about their business here. It’s not overcrowded with people, it’s just typical scenes of life in the big city under a few blocks of cherry blossoms.

STATION: Kayabacho, Nihonbashi
TRAINS: Hibiya Line, Tozai Line, Ginza Line, Asakusa Line
MAP

Ueno Park

Cherry blossoms over a main walkway in Ueno Park

One of Tokyo’s biggest parks, Ueno park has cherry blossom trees everywhere - about 800 of them - and during the season, you’ll find a lot of picnickers taking part in “hanami,” or cherry blossom viewing. It's a good place to join in on the fun with a mat and some food and drinks of your own.

There is one main walkway that is fully covered with the sakura trees, as well as around the Shinobazunoike pond [MAP] area a little south of it. You’ll find a lot of park-goers riding foot paddle boats on the lake, enjoying the season as well.

STATION: Ueno
TRAINS: Yamanote line, Ginza line, Hibiya line, Keihin-Tohoku line, Utsunomiya line, Joban line and more
MAP

Chidorigafuchi

A night scene of cherry blossoms lining the moat at Chidorigafuchi

On the northwest corner of the Imperial Palace grounds, the Chidorigafuchi area is full of cherry blossoms lining the moat's banks.

A tunnel of about 260 trees covers a walkway that runs alongside the moat, where people enjoy rowing around the blossoms in small boats during the day.

STATION: Kudanshita
TRAINS: Hanzomon line, Shinjuku line, Tozai line
MAP

Nakano

A train passes through a tunnel of cherry blossoms in Nakano, Tokyo.

2 km of cherry blossoms line the streets of Nakano, making for a nice walk. The area holds a festival on the weekend during the season at Arai Yakushi Park [MAP] which is along the cherry blossom lined Nakano-dori Ave.

This is also a photo spot since the Seibu Shinjuku railway passes through, and its occasional yellow-colored train cars add a nice contrast to the pinkish-white flowers.

STATIONS: JR Nakano, Araiyakushi-Mae
TRAINS: Chuo Line, Sobu Line, Tozai Line, Seibu Shinjuku Line
MAP

Sakuragaokacho, Shibuya

A taxi passes through the tunnel of cherry blossoms at Sakuragaokacho in Shibuya

On the opposite side of central Shibuya is a side street with a tunnel of cherry blossoms. Its name, Sakuragaokacho even references the cherry blossoms or sakura in Japanese, and that name continues to be make perfect sense today.

You can take some nice shots from either on the side of the street itself, or across the intersection at the stairway to the pedestrian overpass.

STATION: Shibuya
TRAINS: Yamanote line, Ginza line, Hanzomon line, Keio-Inokashira line, Saikyo line, Tokyu-Toyoko line, Shonan-Shinjuku line, Tokyo Den-entoshi line and more
MAP

Koishikawa Korakuen

One of three surviving daimyo gardens in Tokyo leftover from the Edo period, Koishikawa Korakuen has been designated as culturally significant by the Japanese government. History aside, it’s a beautiful garden and the flowers during cherry blossom season further emphasizes that.

It’s a private garden, so visitors have to pay 300 yen to get in. You can grab a bento and sit under the trees for lunch, which makes for a pleasant afternoon.

STATIONS: Iidabashi, Korakuen
TRAIN: Chuo line, Chuo-Sobu line, Namboku line, Oedo line, Yurakucho line, Tozai line, Marunouchi line
https://www.tokyo-park.or.jp/
MAP

Shimotakaido

One of the lesser known areas that isn’t so frequently visited for cherry blossoms is Shimotakaido, a local area along the Keio train line. Near Nihon University, there’s an area of the street with a pretty long tunnel of sakura.

In the spring when the blossoms are bloomed, there’s a small cherry blossom festival with food and drink vendors lined along the street.

STATION: Shimotakaido
TRAIN: Keio line
MAP

Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden

In the Shinjuku area is Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, a large 143-acre park with various gardens, lakes and a greenhouse. It’s considered to be one of the most important gardens from the Meiji era.

The park is private, so visitors have to pay 500 yen to get in. Rules are also pretty strictly enforced so there’s no alcohol allowed. It’s a fairly quiet area in the middle of Shinjuku and visitors are generally calmer and reserved than the other cherry blossom areas.

STATIONS: Shinjuku Gyoenmae, Shinjuku Sanchome
TRAIN: Marunouchi line, Shinjuku line
http://www.env.go.jp/garden/shinjukugyoen
MAP

Areas that I’m looking to check for this season for the first time are:

• Yaesu Sakura street - Tokyo Station

• Shin-Yurigaoka

• Inokashira Park

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