I took this in front of my home garden! Henbit and Cardamine hirsuta were in full bloom, making the scene adorably full of spring!

"Spring River, Boats Drifting" Fushimi, Kyoto — a tributary of the Uji River. As cherry trees bloom to cover the water with a canopy of blossoms, a jukkoku-bune (traditional flat-bottomed boat) glides slowly along. On the banks, people savor spring in their own ways, and lantern-lit boats sway as they slip quietly into a tunnel of flowers.

“Cherry Blossoms and Rapeseed Flowers: A Spring Duel” Fushimi in Kyoto, the Uji River branch. Full-bloom cherry trees arch overhead while bright yellow rapeseed flowers flourish at your feet, their colors competing vividly. Beyond the clear blue canal, the boarding point for the Jukkoku-bune boats sits quietly, and the tunnel of cherry blossoms continued into the spring light.

“A raft of blossoms carries spring downstream.” Uji River branch in Fushimi, Kyoto. Petals blanket the water where the traditional Jukkoku-bune boats glide. On the banks, kimono-clad figures watch the flower rafts, while a tunnel of cherry blossoms takes on a soft glow. On this riverside afternoon, spring’s height and ending meet quietly.

"A Sanctuary Perfumed with Plum Blossoms" Kitano Tenmangu, Kyoto. Amid the moss‑covered branches of an ancient plum tree, red and white flowers vie for attention as shrine priests in white robes move quietly through the grounds. The plum trees loved by Sugawara no Michizane, the kami of scholarship, once again color the precincts this year, standing dignified and fragrant even under a cloudy sky.

Rinyoji Temple dyed in spring crimson This temple is home to a weeping cherry tree that is about 200 years old. A limited-time light-up of the tree is popular. ※Those who visit are asked to consider donating to the Cherry Blossom Fund 🙏 Rinyoji Temple, Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture

【🌸 Gokase Cherry Blossom Viewing 2026 🌸】 From Friday, March 20th to Sunday, May 10th! The cherry buds are growing darker and larger, and we eagerly await the blooms😊 Please follow the Gokase Tourism Association Instagram account (https://www.instagram.com/gokase_kanko/)... and post photos of flowers taken in Gokase Town with the two hashtags #GokaseHanami2026 and #PhotoDate (e.g., #March20) 🤳❤️‍🔥 Every day during the event one person will win a specialty product from Gokasecho🎁✨ Outstanding entries will receive a gift set of Gokasecho specialty products🤩👏 Following last year, there is also the "Gokase Sakura Project Award" chosen by members of the student-led Gokase Sakura Project from Gokase Secondary School✨ ⚠️This award applies to the weeping cherry at Kijiya🌸 Entries posted with the hashtags may be featured on the social media of the Gokase Tourism Association and the Gokase Sakura Project💡 [Period] From Friday, March 20th, 2026 to Sunday, May 10th, 2026 ⚠️Other terms and conditions are posted on the Gokase Tourism Association website. Please be sure to read them before applying. https://www.town.gokase.miyazaki.jp/kanko/index.html... ⚠️Please take great care to avoid accidents while photographing. ------------------------------------------ In Gokasecho, which at last welcomes spring, you can enjoy many flowers besides the weeping cherry, including rhododendrons and akebono azaleas🌸 Why not take a leisurely flower tour around Gokasecho while soaking up the warm sunshine🤗? We sincerely look forward to your participation✨

There’s a Pokémon manhole cover in front of the entrance to Ayame Park! Come and see it!!

🌸 Hike the highest peak of Shimoshima Island, Amakusa, and enjoy a spectacular azalea walk! 🌸 On Sunday, April 19, join the “Spring Tenjiku Azalea Walk for Health”✨ The setting is Tenjiku, the highest peak on Shimoshima Island, Amakusa, located in Reihoku. At this time of year, the summit greets visitors with azaleas in full bloom. The contrast between fresh green leaves and the azaleas creates a truly breathtaking view! Would you like to walk an out-and-back course of about 11 km while feeling the pleasant spring breeze? After descending, a tasty onigiri boxed lunch included in the participation fee will be waiting for you🍙 This event is limited to the first 100 people. Bring your family and friends and enjoy spring in Amakusa together! 🎁 This event qualifies for Kumamoto Health Points (20 points). 📅 Event Details 〇 Date: Sunday, April 19, 2026 [Registration] 8:30 AM – [Departure ceremony] 9:30 AM ※Held in light rain; canceled in heavy rain 〇 Meeting place: Amakusa Kiba no Mori Nature School (site of Kiba Elementary School) 📍 Search Google Maps for “Amakusa Kiba no Mori Nature School” 〇 Course: Approx. 11.0 km round trip 〇 Participation fee (includes onigiri boxed lunch and insurance) ・Elementary school age and older: 1,000 yen ・Preschool children: Free (boxed lunch can be ordered separately for 500 yen) 〇 Capacity: First 100 applicants 〇 Registration deadline: Tuesday, April 14, 2026, by 5:00 PM 👉 How to apply Please apply through the application form on the homepage linked in the profile URL. We look forward to your participation!

This is Suigo Sawara Ayame Park. Enjoy wisteria, irises, and lotus blossoms from spring through summer. We look forward to your visit.

Aerial footage over Kasamatsu Kawazu-zakura Road Kasamatsu Kawazu-zakura Road, Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture March 2026 ※Model has given permission ※Confirmed with the management office ※Comprehensive unmanned aircraft flight permission obtained from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism ※Notification of the flight plan and creation of a flight log

A radiant morning on the Kasamatsu Kawazu-zakura Road. It was delicious 😋 Kasamatsu Kawazu-zakura Road, Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture Shot on iPHONE 11 PRO March 3, 2026

Wandering Traveler🚙 Mie Prefecture is full of wonderful places🥰 Inabe City Plum Grove Park This view 🤩 perfect for spring 🌸 a lovely spot You can experience a magical, delightful world here. It was a magnificent plum garden🥰 Photo taken on 2026.03.09

Mirai Towers and Kawazu cherry blossoms I photographed Mirai Towers (formerly the TV Tower) together with Kawazu cherry blossoms in Central Park in Sakae, Nagoya. March 2026

Welcome to the Kikuchi Cherry Blossom Festival 2026 🌸 Kikuchi City will hold the Kikuchi Cherry Blossom Festival at Shimin Hiroba to coincide with the cherry blossoms. Please enjoy the spring scenes of cherry trees spreading through the town on the breeze. 【A red carpet will be installed on the Kikuchi Shrine Sando】 Event period: March 20 – mid-April (scheduled) 【Kikuchi Sakura Marche】 Date and time: Sunday, March 29, 10:00 AM–4:00 PM The venue will feature local gourmet food, the Kikuchi Sakura Marche, workshops, and stage performances with a spring feel. There will also be family-friendly activities such as hands-on experiences for children, appearances by local mascots, and a small mobility test-ride event. 【Kikuchi Sakura Marathon Marche】 Date and time: Monday, March 22, 9:30 AM–2:00 PM A gourmet market will gather at Shimin Hiroba, the marathon’s starting point, bringing together Kikuchi’s local foods. Additionally, the KUMAMOTO FURUGI CARAVAN is scheduled for March 28 and 29. Please note that details may be announced on the day or subject to change. Mornings tend to be relatively less crowded, so a morning stroll is recommended. Please consider adding it to your plans! Contact Kikuchi Cherry Blossom Festival Executive Committee TEL 080-9106-7416 Executive Committee Chair Sato #Kikuchi Cherry Blossom Festival #Cherry Blossoms #Kikuchi City, Kumamoto Prefecture

Dinner in Gokase 🍴 Today I’m sharing a dinner that a tourism association staff member recently enjoyed ✨ Starting with the dinner 🍴 Top photo: roasted venison 🥩 Look at that shine… 🤩 (Ah… this is very much the staff member’s personal impression) This was a shocking dish that made me think, I’ve never had venison this delicious before… 💡 After tasting this roasted venison, all my previous assumptions about game meat were turned upside down! The vegetables were mainly local, seasoned so you could eat them endlessly 😊 The wild boar stew left no trace in the pot—scooped up with bread— the chicken was tender and juicy, and the venison Bolognese was neatly finished off 😋 Even the dessert, a kettle-roasted tea brownie, made this a hugely satisfying dinner 👏 This time I had a non-alcoholic cocktail, and it was thoroughly satisfying ✨ …I’m really frustrated I couldn’t drink alcohol… 😭 (saying it out loud) This dinner was at: Guesthouse & Bar EL CAMPO 📍872-1 Kuraoka, Gokasecho, Nishiusuki District, Miyazaki Prefecture Note: The venue normally opens Friday through Sunday, but will open on weekdays by reservation. Note: Course meals are available with a reservation at least one day in advance.

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

Himeji

Okayama

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

Photographed on March 4 The early winter cherry trees near Ginza Street, at the Sakimicho curve, are now in full bloom and catching the eyes of passersby. Of the three trees, the one at the top is called the "Sakamachi Temple Cherry". It is said to be one of the trees planted in the grounds of Iou-ji Temple, which once stood here in the early Meiji period. The tree is over a hundred years old. It survived the Honcho great fire of 1944 and the Atami great fire of 1950, making it a precious cherry tree. Sakamachi Temple Cherry — Address: Sakimicho, Atami City (opposite Hotel Kan-ichi) About 20 early winter cherry trees in Shinsui Park are also continuing to bloom, so please visit if you are in the neighborhood. Shinsui Park — Address: Nagisacho, Atami City (Shinsui Park Daiichi Kouku to Shinsui Park Second Section)

Setsubunso in Shobara City, Hiroshima Prefecture is now in full bloom! 🌼💛 Setsubunso, a wildflower that heralds spring in Soryo town, Shobara City. It is said to be named because it begins to bloom around Setsubun, which corresponds to the lunar calendar’s New Year’s Eve.✨ Its small white blooms look charming, and it gives off a citrus-like fragrance. That sweet, refreshing scent is even called the "scent of first love"! 📌The public viewing period for the natural habitat runs until Sunday, March 8. For more details, see below🔽 https://www.shobara-info.com/event/5451... Please come and visit Shobara City, Hiroshima Prefecture✨ (Fukujusou, seribaouren and other flowers are also in bloom)

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

Expo '70 Commemorative Park Myakumyaku Senri Banpaku Park, Suita City, Osaka Prefecture Two Myakumyaku monuments, the official mascot of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, have been relocated to Expo '70 Commemorative Park and are now on display. 📍 Exhibition Location and Period Location Inside Expo '70 Commemorative Park, near the Tower of the Sun Two figures named "Irasshai" and "Wakuwaku" (literally "Welcome" and "Excitement") Period From February 21 to the end of May 2026

This is a spring scene viewed from Motohakone in Kanagawa Prefecture. The combination of Mount Fuji, Lake Ashi, fresh green foliage, and a torii (shrine gate) looks like a painting.

My first visit to Japan turned magical when I found a lone Sakura at the entrance to Ueno Park, blooming early on the first day of March. Locals, tourists, people of all ages, and even birds were enjoying the symbol of Spring. To immortalize their joy, I simply had to photograph the birds enjoying the blossoms. I feel proud of this photo, and very lucky to have witnessed such a magical Spring moment in the heart of Tokyo.

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

🎎 Kuwanouchi Hina Doll Exhibition 🎎 Today (February 27) I went to see the hina doll exhibition in the Kuwanouchi district.👀✨ I lost track of time admiring the dolls loaned by local residents and the artworks arranged around them.🥰 The warmth of the community seemed to shine through the hina dolls.💖