Tsukigase Plum Valley Ume Festival Now ongoing! Thanks to the cold weather, the plum blossoms are likely to last longer✨ The area around Lakeside Village Tsukigase is at its best, too✨ Photo courtesy of yasunori okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now underway! At its peak♪ Please come and visit! This Sunday looks like it will be busy again. Saturday, which we worried about weather-wise, looks fine✨ Photo courtesy of Yasunori Okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now underway! At its peak♪ Please come during a quiet weekday moment! It looks like this Sunday will be crowded again. The weather is a concern, but visitors who come on Saturday will likely be able to enjoy it more leisurely✨ Photo credit: Yasunori Okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now on! At peak bloom♪ Please come during a calm weekday time! On the hill opposite the Plum Museum stands a splendid weeping plum tree✨ Photo courtesy: Yasuki Okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now underway! More areas are coming into full bloom♪ Please come and visit! Photo credit: Yasunori Okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now ongoing! More areas are coming into full bloom♪ Please come and visit! Photo credit::Mr. Yasuki Okamoto

Good morning ☀ This morning in Tsukigase Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival Now on! In full bloom! February 14, 2026 – March 29, 2026 Photo: Yasuki Okamoto

Good morning ☀ #This morning in Tsukigase #Satoyama landscape #Blooming is progressing #A village of flowers, greenery, and water #I want to connect with people who like photography #Nara Prefecture #Nara City #Nara tourism #tsukigase baikei plum festival February 14, 2026 to March 29, 2026 Photograph by Yasuki Okamoto

Good morning ☀ This morning in Tsukigase Tsukigase Plum Valley Ume Festival Now on February 14, 2026 – March 29, 2026 Photo: Yasunori Okamoto

Saiki Foods Co., Ltd.'s Saiki Plum Garden is holding a Plum Festival as follows. We warmly invite you to visit. Saiki Plum Garden 〒799-1108 Ehime Prefecture, Saijo City, Komatsu-cho, 18 Yasui Otsu Plum Viewing Period: February 2, 2026 (Monday) – February 27, 2026 (Friday) Hours: 9:30–16:00 【Events During the Plum Viewing Period】 Dates: February 14, 2026 (Saturday), February 15 (Sunday), February 21 (Saturday), February 22 (Sunday), February 23 (Monday, National Holiday) Hours: 9:30–16:00 Details: ・Sale of various plum products (including an alcoholic beverages corner) Plum udon, curry rice, waffles, pudding, ohagi (sweet rice cakes), fried chicken, French fries, burdock tempura, coffee, vegetables, shiitake mushrooms, honey sales, and more A karaoke corner will also be available ・Lucky draw raffle (every event day 10:00–16:00) ・Performances by amateur bands from Saijo City (February 15, 13:00–14:30) ・Dōzen Taiko (February 14, 11:00–12:00; February 22, 13:00–14:00) SAIKI PLUM GARDEN The Plum Festival is being held as follows. We warmly invite you to visit. Saiki plum garden Address: 18 Yasui Otsu, Komatsu-cho, Saijo City, Ehime 799-1108, Japan Plum Viewing Period: February 2 (Mon) – February 27 (Fri), 2026 Hours: 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. 【Events During the Plum Viewing Period】 Dates: February 14 (Sat), 15 (Sun), 21 (Sat), 22 (Sun), 23 (Mon, National Holiday), 2026 Hours: 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Details: Sale of various plum products (including an alcoholic beverages corner) Plum udon, curry rice, waffles, pudding, ohagi (sweet rice cakes), fried chicken, French fries, burdock tempura, coffee, vegetables, shiitake mushrooms, honey, and more A karaoke corner will also be available Lucky draw raffle (every event day, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) Performance by amateur bands from Saijo City (February 15, 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.) Dōzen Taiko drum performance (February 14, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. / February 22, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.) We hope you will come and enjoy the beautiful plum blossoms and festive atmosphere.

The plum grove within Shimin-no-mori in Fukutake is about half in bloom overall (around 50%) as of February 13, 2026. Some trees are about 80% in bloom. Because the trees do not flower all at once and older trees are mixed in, the distant view is not yet at its best. Still, if you get closer you can enjoy the charming blossoms up close. Visit on a sunny day. Location: 50-9 Fukutake Otsu, Saijo City, Ehime Prefecture 793-0036, Japan

Good morning ☀ #This morning in Tsukigase Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival February 14, 2026 to March 29, 2026

Good morning! The blooms are advancing! What will this week's cold snap do?! Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival February 14, 2026–March 29, 2026

The time has finally come!! Tsukigase’s major event that draws about 200,000 visitors over roughly three weeks!! The Tsukigase Plum Grove Plum Festival!! Tsukigase Plum Grove was designated as Japan’s first nationally recognized Place of Scenic Beauty!! We look forward to welcoming many visitors again this year!!

New Year Greetings Happy New Year. We sincerely thank you for your warm support and cooperation in promoting the charms of Tsukigase over the past year. Tsukigase, which has grown alongside its plum trees, reveals a new face with each season and has nurtured itself as a countryside that quietly soothes the hearts of its visitors. This year as well, we hope it remains a place where nature and people live side by side and calm exchanges flourish. The annual Tsukigase Baikei Plum Festival, which heralds the arrival of spring, will be held again this year. Some 13,000 plum trees paint the mountainside, and with river mist rising in the valleys, a scene like a page from a picture scroll unfolds. During the festival, you can stroll the walking trails and enjoy locally made specialties for sale, savoring peaceful moments close to nature. The gentle scent of plum blossoms swaying in the breeze will quietly restore energy to bodies and minds that have passed through a long winter. This year, the Tsukigase Tourism Association will continue to cherish warm connections with visitors while protecting the region’s attractions. We ask for your continued support, and we sincerely pray that the coming year will be peaceful and fruitful for everyone. With that, we offer our New Year greetings. Chairman: Toshiaki Nishioka Photo credit: Kuraya eto Shuji

Good morning ☀ #This morning in Tsukigase #Satoyama landscape #A village of flowers, greenery, and water #Autumn #I want to connect with people who love photography #Nara Prefecture #Nara City #Nara sightseeing

Good morning ☀ #Tsukigase this morning #Satoyama landscape #A village of flowers, greenery, and water #Autumn #Looking to connect with fellow photography lovers #Nara Prefecture #Nara City #Nara tourism

Good morning ☀ #This morning in Tsukigase #Satoyama landscape #A village of flowers, greenery, and water #Autumn #I want to connect with people who like photography #Nara Prefecture #Nara City #Nara tourism

I went to Ume Plum Blossom in Kawasale. It was a little late, but it was a nice place. Shinshiro City, Aichi Prefecture "Ume Plum Blossom in Kawasale" 2025/3

Good morning ☀ #This morning at Tsukigase #Satoyama landscape #Tsukigase Plum Valley #Nara #Nara sightseeing #Reiwa 7 Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival 2025/2/9–3/30 Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival! The trees are in full bloom! Weekdays are relatively peaceful and calm! Please come and visit♪ Photo: Yasunori Okamoto

A proverb that combines the dying moment of a samurai with the magnificent cherry blossoms in their waning moments. The flowers are cherry blossoms, the people are Samurai. For details on the most popular Hanami plans, please visit Osaka Castle Park 🌸Best time to visit Umegorin (plum grove) ➤ 2/ upper - 3/ middle Cherry blossoms (Someiyoshino) ➤3/15 - 5/up #samuraiarmor #kimono #Sakura #osakacastl

Tsukigase Plum Valley Ume Festival is now underway! Until March 23! The plum blossoms are beautiful with their buds together♪ They will be in full bloom from today through the final day! We look forward to welcoming many visitors!

Special Exhibition "Kamakura, Enoshima, Ooyama Walking the New Board Journey Sugoroku ~From the Early Modern Period to the Present~" Opens in 2025 This exhibit displays a travel sugoroku board (sugoroku) drawn as a roadside ukiyo-e game by Katsushika Hokusai in the late Edo period. Starting at Nihonbashi, the popular destinations of Kamakura, Enoshima, and Ooyama take center stage as the route circles through Shibuya for a roughly 40 ri 11 cho (about 157 km) journey over six nights and seven days. Each scene is explained in detail. Dates and Times: Sundays only from March 2 (Sun) to April 27 (Sun) 10:00–15:00 Free admission Venue: Ugaku Bunko Archive (on the grounds of the Yamaguchi family residence) 862-1 Kamikasuya, Isehara City Also running concurrently through this weekend for your enjoyment♬ *Plum Garden Open Free* Almost in full bloom✨ It's beautiful! Period: Through March 9 (Sun) *Hina doll display: final day only, March 9 (Sun) (10:00–15:00) (Adults ¥300, includes admission to the nationally registered Tangible Cultural Property Yamaguchi family residence)

Photographed on March 1: The ume plum trees at Atami Plum Garden are still in full bloom! Atami Plum Garden Ume Album https://www.ataminews.gr.jp/features/46...

A cold snap hits the Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival! The plum blossoms haven’t opened yet, but a spectacular bloom of snow flowers has appeared ❄️ Photo: Yasuki Okamoto

Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival is now underway! At Romantopia Tsukigase, Yumekko Cafeteria is open♪ At Romantopia Tsukigase, enjoy the proud "irori set" cooked over a sunken hearth: you grill Tsukigase-grown log shiitake mushrooms, homemade konnyaku, and yomogi rice dumplings over charcoal yourself! Cover them generously with our special yuzu miso and enjoy♪ We also recommend our udon dishes, made with carefully prepared dashi broth!! The meat udon features Iga beef plus shiitake, spinach, and thinly sliced mochi for a luxurious bowl! We carry many souvenirs not only from Tsukigase but from neighboring areas as well! A cold snap has arrived, so the plum blossoms still haven't opened much yet... For now, food beats flowers♪ When the blossoms are at their peak, every teahouse gets extremely crowded! Come now for the food while you can♪

The poster for the 2025 Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival is complete!! Each year, we select the gold‑prize photograph from the photo contest held during the festival period for the poster image. We hope many people will visit this year’s plum festival, take lots of photos, and make lasting memories of Tsukigase! From the early‑spring Tsukigase Marathon to the Spring Breeze Plum Village Friendship Festival and sencha tea festival at Romantopia Tsukigase, plus a haiku competition and Nara‑zome textile exhibition, the event lineup is packed with activities!! At the tea houses that open only during the festival, you can enjoy Tsukigase specialties you’ll find nowhere else: Tsukigase hot pot, country udon, wild boar hot pot, plum soft serve, charcoal‑grilled kusa‑mochi, plum roll cakes, and more! May many smiles bloom again this year! All members of the Tsukigase Tourism Association are working hard to prepare and look forward to your visit!

The scent of plum blossoms drifting in the clear winter air. Enjoy a peaceful moment soothed by their delicate forms blooming in the cold in Kanagawa. https://www.kanagawa-kankou.or.jp/theme_list/plum_2024...

Happy New Year. Warm New Year greetings from Tsukigase Plum Valley. Tsukigase Plum Valley lets you take in at a glance the plum blossoms and the gorge, with the plum seen as the harbinger of spring. Designated a Place of Scenic Beauty in 2020 and now marking 100 years, the Tsukigase Tourism Association, together with local residents, works to preserve this wonderful plum gorge so everyone can enjoy it. The “Tsukigase Plum Valley Plum Festival,” starting on February 9, opens with the 40th Tsukigase Plum Valley Early Spring Marathon on its first day and runs through a variety of events up to the Spring Banquet on March 23, with preparations underway to welcome everyone. We ask that you visit Tsukigase Plum Valley, which we have spent a year preparing, and offer this as our New Year greeting. Noriaki Ida, President, Tsukigase Tourism Association

Baikoan Located in Tsukigase, Nara, Baikoan is Japan’s sole maker of karoubai (processed plum) that has preserved a production method passed down there for about seven hundred years without alteration. Karoubai refers to processed ume fruit, introduced to Nara as a medicine some 1,300 years ago by envoys to Sui and Tang China. Around seven hundred years ago, during the Nanbokucho period, it reached Tsukigase as a mordant for safflower dyeing. From the late Edo period through the early Meiji era, karoubai reached its heyday as a mordant for cosmetic red dye, and some 400 karoubai workshops operated, but demand plunged after the invention of chemical dyes. By the early Showa era only a few producers remained; after the war Baikoan became the sole manufacturer and continues to this day. Baikoan cultivates plums, rice, and vegetables and processes food across 30,000 square meters of verdant land and rich nature. Although the plums in Tsukigase were originally planted to make karoubai, the sight of plum trees in full bloom reflected on the valley and river of the Satsukigawa captivated people and made this area Japan’s first officially designated scenic spot. During the plum festival from February through the end of March, our shop offers dining and hanami from scenic box seats filled with the scent of plum. In Reiwa 6 (2024) we built the Nara Beni Workshop. This Japanese-style building incorporates traditional Japanese craftsmanship throughout. Inside the workshop, where you can feel delicate, advanced techniques and Japanese aesthetics, visitors can experience safflower dyeing using karoubai. We hope the experience becomes an opportunity to rediscover the wonders of Japanese culture. Watching the ever-changing colors of nature and the early-morning sea of clouds spreading across the Tsukigase valley can create the illusion of being in a plum paradise. Early spring light, tranquil fresh greens, the bounty of autumn, the scents of winter. We live and work with the seasons in the strict yet warm nature of Tsukigase.