Cherry blossoms blanket many destinations in Japan, but a series of fallen trees in Tokyo has raised concerns among tourists about this year's cherry blossom viewing season.
This year's cherry blossom season in Japan is considered spectacular and bustling. In Kyoto, tourists flocked to capture the moment the blossoms were in full bloom. On March 28th, many visitors wore kimonos and posed under the trees covered in pink. Photo: Manami Yamada/Reuters.
Natsume Kimoto, a young boy preparing to start first grade in April, sits on his father's shoulders admiring cherry blossoms in Tokyo on March 29. Photo: Yuki Kohara.
A cruise boat glides past banks lined with blossoming cherry trees along the Meguro River in Tokyo, March 30. Photo: Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters.
A visitor reaches out to touch early-blooming cherry blossoms at Ueno Park in Tokyo, Japan, on March 17. Photo: Issei Kato/Reuters.
Cherry blossoms bloomed profusely at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, during a practice session ahead of the Japanese Formula 1 Grand Prix on March 28. Photo: Kyodo.
On Mount Yoshino in Nara Prefecture, the mountain slopes are covered in a blanket of blossoms on April 2nd. Photo: Kyodo.
Meanwhile, about a thousand cherry trees were illuminated at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in a test event on March 26, the day before the start of a special spring night cherry blossom viewing program that runs until April 5. Photo: Kyodo.
However, behind the beauty of the cherry blossom season lies a growing concern for safety. From fiscal years 2021 to 2024, Japan recorded 931 incidents of cherry trees falling or branches breaking in parks, including 77 that resulted in injuries; Tokyo alone accounted for 179 incidents, the highest in the country. This year, Tokyo also experienced a series of cherry tree falls. Following these incidents, Tokyo authorities have restricted access to areas around trees under monitoring in major parks. Photo: Akira Kobayashi.
According to Akira Kobayashi, director of the Japan Association of Tree Doctors, this risk mainly stems from the widespread aging of urban trees. Reports related to the tree collapse in Kinuta Park show that the tree's roots were rotted by fungus, while heavy rains in early March softened the soil, causing the tree to be uprooted. Despite regular inspections, predicting tree falls in many cases remains very difficult. Photo: FNN.
The cherry blossom season in Japan in 2026 will begin in mid-March in the south and last until early May in Hokkaido. According to official forecasts from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), some notable early blooming dates include Kochi on March 16th, Nagoya on March 17th, Tokyo on March 19th, Osaka on March 22nd, and Sapporo on April 26th. This year, many locations are predicted to bloom earlier than the multi-year average.
Based on the growth rate in early 2026 and the 3.497 million international visitors recorded in March 2025, the 2026 cherry blossom season is expected to remain one of the biggest peak seasons for Japanese tourism, with an estimated reference size of around 3.5 million international visitors.
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