Alternative Hanami

Note: I wrote this for SunnyPages (article seen here) but I'm running it here in slightly modified form with my own pictures. Hope you find it useful!

Tokyo has no shortage of good places to see sakura (cherry blossoms), but for some reason there are a few famous parks that get recommended over and over again. Not that there’s anything wrong with the well-known hanami (cherry blossom viewing) spots, but I feel it’s time that some of the less famous places got their due as well. So below is my list of famous hanami venues along with some lesser-known places to try instead.

A lot of the alternative spots are a bit off the beaten track, but if you’re up for a little train travel then consider this a good chance to get to see more of the city. Most places have at least a few yatai (food stalls) but prices can be high and lines can be long, so you may be better off packing a hanami bento (cherry viewing lunch box) or picking one up at a depachika (department store food hall) or convenience store on the way. Most spots also allow sit-down picnics and alcohol unless otherwise noted below, but rules vary between parks and are subject to change, and I recommend checking beforehand to make sure.

So read on to discover some new places to celebrate the spring, and have a happy hanami!

Why Ueno Koen is popular: The top hanami spot in Tokyo for 400 years running, people come to Ueno as much for the boisterous crowds as for the 1200 cherry trees; it also helps that Ueno is a centre of history and culture, with historic statues and shrines and a half dozen museums.
Why you might want to avoid it: Massive crowds; annoying drunks; the general shabby and run-down feeling of Ueno.
Where to try instead: For a similar carnival-like atmosphere, these three amusement parks hold festivals to celebrate their cherry blossoms: Toshimaen, Seibuen Yuenchi, and Yomiuri Land. If it’s culture you’re after, try Koganei Koen. It’s bigger than Ueno and has 1800 cherry trees, with fewer and friendlier people; the park also contains the Edo-Tokyo Tatemono-en (Edo Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum), home to 27 relocated and reconstructed historic buildings; visitors can enter the buildings and view rooms filled with period furnishings.

Why Yasukuni Jinja is popular: The shrine holds a large and lively festival with about 200 yatai set up under 600 cherry trees. It also enshrines the souls of nearly 2.5 million people who died in World War II and other wars; the shrine’s cherry blossoms are symbolic of those short and glorious lives.
Why you might want to avoid it: Among the venerable war dead are over 1000 war criminals, a fact that continues to cause friction with Japan’s Asian neighbors.
Where to try instead: Aoyama Reien (Aoyama Cemetery, also called Aoyama Bochi), where you can honor a different kind of hero: the cemetery was founded in the Meiji Era and contains the graves of many of the people, both foreign and Japanese, who helped modernize Japan.

Why Chidorigafuchi Koen is popular: Some 260 trees line this section of the the Imperial palace moat and their reflection on the water makes a beautiful sight; boats can be rented on the moat for a different view of the flowers. At night the cherry trees are lit up and the view is spectacular.
Why you might want to avoid it: With no alcohol or sitting down permitted, only a walk-by hanami is possible here. And that’s a very slow walk-by, since Chidorigafuchi gets extremely crowded.
Where to try instead: Zenpukuji Koen has 200 sakura trees, a pond with boats for rent, and you can actually have a sit-down hanami.

Why Inokashira Koen is popular: 500 trees gracefully overhand a pond with boats for rent; the funky neighborhood of Kichijoji is nearby.
Why you might want to avoid it: Extremely crowded; the resident goddess Benzaiten is said to have put a curse on the pond that dooms visiting couples to a quick break up; those cheesy swan boats really spoil the view.
Where to try instead: Shakujii Koen and Senzoku-ike are a bit smaller and lack the hip location, but they have similar ponds with boats and are curse-free to boot.

Why Roppongi Hills is popular: The striking juxtaposition of the Mori Tower and other ultra-modern buildings behind the cherry blossoms; the trees are lit up at night to dramatic effect; shopping, dining and nightlife options abound nearby.
Why you might want to avoid it: The crowds; there’s no real place to do sit-down hanami.
Where to try instead: There’s also plenty to do around Yokohama's Kamonyama Koen; and the nearby Landmark Tower and other buildings can be seen behind the park's 2000 cherry trees, offering a contrast no less impressive than in Roppongi.

Why Shinjuku Gyoen is popular: Considered by many to be Tokyo’s best park, with sprawling lawns dotted with over 1300 sakura trees.
Why you might want to avoid it: the 200 yen admission fee; alcohol is not permitted; the park closes at 4:30pm.
Where to try instead: Kinuta Koen and Hikarigaoka Koen are similarly large but are free and won't kick you out before sundown.

Why Rikugien is popular: This traditional Japanese garden contains a single shidare-zakura (weeping cherry tree) that is gorgeous during the day and spectacular at night when it is lit up.
Why you might want to avoid it: Ridiculously long lines to enter the park; forget about getting a good picture because the immense crowds will block your view.
Where to try instead: Hamarikyu Onshi Teien and Koishikawa Korakuen are similar landscape gardens, and though they don’t light their sakura up at night the thinner crowds make both parks worth a visit.

Why Meguro Gawa is popular: 800 cherry trees line the Meguro River centering on the trendy neighborhood of Naka Meguro; lanterns strung on either side of the river illuminate the flowers at night; yatai and special events abound.
Why you might want to avoid it: The crowds; insufferably hip locals; the fact that the river is actually more of a canal, completely encased in concrete.
Where to try instead: Nomigawa Ryokudo and Zenpukuji River are similarly sakura-lined canals with views that are just as pretty and fewer people, especially at Zenpukuji.

Why Yoyogi Koen is popular: It’s a big park with wide-open spaces and lots going on nearby; dogs enjoy frolicking in the dog run, one of the few places in the city dogs can shed their leashes.
Why you might want to avoid it: The park doesn’t actually have that many cherry trees.
Where to try instead: Kokuei Showa Kinen Koen is an enormous park in Tachikawa with 1500 cherry trees and a huge variety of other plant life; there’s lots to do for humans and dogs get plenty of space as well, with two runs each for large and small dogs.

Why Sumida Koen is popular: 680 trees line the Sumidagawa River near Asakusa station; street lamps and hanging pink lanterns make them especially beautiful at night when seen from the opposite riverbank.
Why you might want to avoid it: No special reason, except that the cherry blossoms look nicer from the river than on land.
Where to try instead: A cruise on the Sumidagawa River. If you’re lucky you can snag a reservation for a yakatabune (traditional pleasure boat), most of which have all-you-can-eat and drink plans, but a ride on the Suijo Bus’s Sumida River Line is more affordable, starting at 760 yen. For a slightly higher fee Suijo Bus offers night cruises to see the yozakura (cherry blossoms at night); 2500 yen gets you a package that includes a drink, snacks and a performance by a troupe of furisode-san (geisha-like entertainers).

So what are you waiting for? Get out there, see the cherry blossoms, and discover a new part of Tokyo.

JapanSoc it!

Comments

[Wendy]

I always love your hanami pictures. Thanks for sharing them!

[Vanessa]

Wow... Sunnypages should have used a few of your pictures! I especially love the one of the petals scattered on the ground, and the street lined with sakura trees. There are so many sakura trees (and similar flowering trees) in the town I live that if some of the streets were narrower it would look like that in spring. Also, the boats underneath the trees makes me want to visit a park like that!

[kagami]

Hello Amy!

Thanks for sharing info on off-the-beaten-track hanami locations! I wish I could do hanami, even in the crowded popular parks. I have not discovered such places in England yet. Maybe I should try and plant a sakura in the garden, and hope I'll still be around to see it in 100 years time when it becomes a true Sakura :)
And thanks for the beautiful photos! I especially like Nos.3,4,8 and 9.

All the best and good luck with everything!

[Tony]

This is lovely! Very nice shots. Just a question. Did you use a tripod for that night shot of the street lamps?

[zee]

Yo Amy ! I think your pictures are a lot more beautiful than the ones in the SunnyPages articles. Thank for sharing the info.

[Hao]

Lovely pictures, they all look so great T__T loved the Roppongi Hills one, modern contrast common in Japan =)

[Dave]

You've got props.

http://www.japansoc.com/Sightseeing/blue-lotus-alternative-hanami/

[Aspasia]

I am in awe of your photography skills. You always rocked everything creative, though!

[Mari L'Esperance]

Sadly, we are missing the sakura this spring, but your stunning photos are ample compensation. We'll visit Japan for 2+ weeks in May, so will enjoy later blooms, whatever they will be. Perhaps you'll feature them here! Thanks for your lovely posts, as always.

[Amy]

Thanks for the comments!

Tony, that's a really old picture, taken long before I even had a tripod.

Aspasia, I may have been a bit creative in my youth, but was never able to actually harness that creativity into anything good. I guess that's why I love taking pictures: the camera does all the work!

Mari, there'll be plenty of flowers for you! Probably azaleas and wisteria will be in bloom, and if you can make it to the country there will be wildflowers galore.