Here are my favorite places to ogle the plum blossoms in all their glory!
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This shrine is one of the most beautiful in Tokyo…
and it not only has a ton of plum trees, it has a festival to celebrate them the whole month of February, with monkey shows, taiko performances and food booths on the weekends.
It features gorgeous specimens of some of the most beautiful varieties, including some towering weeping plums…
The grounds become a wonderland of flowers for the entire month of February
and not only is every tree on the grounds dressed in its finest…
they’re lit up at night during peak bloom!
There’s a nice little garden with a waterfall
and during The Season they bring out their exquisite collection of bonsai plums.
Admission: Free
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This garden is one of the most famous in Tokyo for plum trees. They’re planted in an extensive grove…
and they’re as spectacular as cherry trees when they’re all in bloom
There are a few rare ones that bloom both pink and white on the same tree
As a bonus, they’ve planted a sea of yellow flowers behind the earliest-blooming trees, and it’s a favorite place for wedding photography, so you might see some brides in kimono while you’re there.
And don’t be deterred by weather – plum blossoms are at their most beautiful in the rain and you’ll have the garden to yourself, too!
Admission: ¥300
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This is a small but exquisite formal garden, and is especially known for its plums. The trees are planted close together for maximum flowery effect against the green of the stroll garden…
…and there are a number of the rare trees that bloom both pink and white on the same branch.
They’re even prettier up close!
Admission: ¥150
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KAMEIDO TENJIN SHRINE
This temple is famous for wisteria, but it turns out they have a killer plum tree collection too. There are many fine varieties blooming during the month of February, with the shrine’s signature red bridges in the background
The Kameido Shrine’s red arched bridges have been featured in many famous woodblock prints
And any shrine that has “Tenjin” or “Tenmangu” as part of its name usually has a red plum and a white one flanking the entrance to the sanctuary…
as well as a collection of rare plum varieties on the grounds…
that you won’t see anywhere else.
Paths between the red bridges criss-cross the grounds between stone lanterns, plum trees and wisteria arbors, making this shrine well worth a visit in plum season.
Admission: Free
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OKURAYAMA PARK
This park is a bit of a schlep in the Yokohama direction, but it’s well worth it in plum blossom season because an entire valley is dedicated to plum trees. I like this one better than Hanegi Park (which is much better known) because it’s more of a landscape and easier to take nice photos
There are many different kinds, including an unusually high percentage of pink and red ones
Gentle pathways wend their way between the trees
Including some spectacular specimens, like this pink weeping plum
Even more amazing up close
The bank of mixed pink and white trees near the entrance is expecially nice
Admission: Free
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This fabulous botanical garden is about a 10 minute bus ride (or a pleasant 25 minute walk) from Chofu Station, and it’s well worth the trip! Bonus attraction: it’s bordered by the Jindai-ji temple, with an old-fashioned shopping street featuring lots of soba noodle restaurants.
This gorgeous botanical garden has a really nice grove of plum trees
Plum trees aren’t always particularly pretty, but look at this shapely beauty!
There are some varieties at Jindai-ji I haven’t seen elsewhere, like these variegated pretties
Admission: Free
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Ikegami Honmon-ji temple has an entire garden dedicated to plum trees, with nice thatch-roofed teahouses situated among them. Even though it’s not a huge garden, when they bloom, it’s glorious
There are many varieties…
including unusual specimens that have more than one color of flower on the same plant
The weeping ones are especially nice
but even the ordinary trees are lovely
Admission: ¥100
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There’s a grove with many different varieties of plum trees in the traditional Japanese garden by the tea house…
and their angular branches popping with blooms against the background of the formal Japanese garden never disappoints.
I’ve always thought that plum blossoms are more beautiful than cherry blossoms up close…
and even in the rain, they never disappoint.
There’s another grove of trees near the snack stand in the central area of the park, and its weeping plum trees turn into gorgeous bridal veils when they’re in full bloom.
Admission: ¥500
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Those are my favorites, but these other great places to see plum blossoms in Tokyo are well worth visiting if you’re nearby:
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HANEGI PARK
This park has over 600 plum trees of various kinds…
and even though it isn’t a very scenic garden – more like a hill planted with hundreds of plum trees – it awes by sheer volume and variety.
Plus, it’s just a three minute walk from the train station so: no excuses
Admission: Free
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KITANO SHRINE
This is a small shrine near Koraku-en, but it has a row of really glorious red plum trees…
that look especially nice with the gold details on the shrine.
Bonus: Cow-shaped rack for tying your unwanted fortunes to!
Admission: Free
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The plum grove at my favorite Tokyo garden blooms early and often. Lots of different kinds, plus the rest of the garden is beautiful too.
Admission: ¥300
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Nishiarai Daishi has a large variety of specimen trees planted around the main sanctuary…
and in the central area, there’s an early-blooming cherry tree that’s dressed in pink at the same time!
Admission: Free
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
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I love the photos by KyuShibaRikyu5. Thank you for this post.