Tokyo sakura report: Why Shinjuku Gyoen beats Ueno Park for hanami cherry blossom viewing

Escape the tourist crowds at this famous garden in the middle of Tokyo.

With the long-awaited cherry blossoms starting to unfurl their petals in Tokyo, locals and tourists are now heading out to see them, leading many to ask the question: Where are the best places to view sakura in the city?

Most people will likely think of Ueno Park in response to this question, but on many counts, that would be incorrect. The popularity of this park, and the close density of trees within it, leads to overcrowding during cherry blossom season, and right now, even when the flowers are yet to truly bloom, there are large crowds at the site every day.

For many locals, a much better sakura destination is Shinjuku Gyoen, a national garden in the centre of the city that’s known as a “mecca” for hanami (cherry blossom viewing). Unlike Ueno, the trees at this park are spread out, giving visitors a more relaxing hanami experience, and with more varieties of sakura planted on the grounds, the season is much longer, so people have ample time to enjoy them.

On 24 March, Shinjuku Gyoen declared that its Somei Yoshino sakura trees had started blooming, so we decided to pay a visit to the park the following day to assess the crowd situation. The first thing we noticed at the gates was a sign alerting the public that admission between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays during the season was by prior online reservation only, which is important to note.

▼ Online bookings are required on 22, 23, 29 and 30 March, as well as 5 and 6 April.

Shinjuku Gyoen is a vast site, so there are three gates — Shinjuku-mon, Ookido-mon and Sendagaya-mon (“mon” means “gate”). On the weekday when we visited, the main Shinjuku-mon was empty, despite the barriers that were in place to direct crowds.

The Sendagaya-mon, and the Ookido-mon near Shinjuku Gyoen Station, were even emptier so if you’d like smoother access when you visit, we recommend heading to these gates.

The big question when visiting the park is always related to the state of the blossoms, so what was the flowering status on 25 March? Well, with commercial photography prohibited on park grounds, we weren’t actually able to share images of what we saw, but the photos above and below provide a picture of what the flowers were like.

The most ubiquitous Somei Yoshino variety (above) was “nibunzaki“, a Japanese term that describes the state of the flowers being 20 percent in bloom, while the darker, early-blooming varieties (like the one below) were already at full bloom.

The wide variety of pink hues on the landscape within the park are especially beautiful, so if variety is what you’re after, Shinjuku Gyoen is definitely the place for you. As for the vibe within the park, it was much more laid-back and relaxed than Ueno, with people on tarps dotting the lawn with plenty of room between them.

Surprisingly, there weren’t many foreign tourists when we visited, which leads us to think they were either following the well-worn tourist path at Ueno Park or perhaps put off by the paid entry system. Shinjuku Gyoen previously had some awkward encounters with tourists over the paid entry requirements, but with around 70 varieties of cherry blossoms and roughly 900 trees on site, we reckon the 500-yen (US$3.31) fee for adult entry is worth it.

▼ The entry fee helps to prevent overcrowding, so visitors leave the park with relaxed smiles on their faces rather than stressed-out energy from an overstimulated environment.

If you’re looking for a relaxed place to soak up the beauty of the cherry blossoms, Shinjuku Gyoen is definitely a site worth visiting. To get the most out of your visit, though, we have the following recommendations:

• Aim for weekdays
• Enter through one of the less-crowded gates
• Download the map in advance so you can head straight to the cherry blossom trees
• Avoid peak times (immediately after 9 a.m. or 4 p.m. are the least crowded times)
• Aim to enjoy early-blooming sakura in March and yaezakura (double-flowered sakura) in April

▼ The park maps for sakura season (in English) can be downloaded here.

The most important thing to remember is that online reservations are required if you’re planning to visit on weekends during hanami season. Though that might initially seem like a hassle, it actually makes for a better visitor experience in the long run, so if weekends are your only option, then head over here to make your reservation. Alternatively, you can pay at the gate on a weekday and enjoy one of the best sakura sites in Tokyo…away from the crowds at Ueno, which tend to start gathering from 8 a.m.

Photos©SoraNews24
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