Japan Cherry Blossom Tours 2022
Cherry blossom season and spring is a beautiful time of year to travel to
Japan. With the changing of the seasons people across the country enjoy
the vibrant early plum blossom before the more popular and delicate colours of
the cherry come into bloom.
We have designed our blossom tours to capture some of the best displays the
Japan has to offer. However, our tours include much more than simply the
opportunity to enjoy some of the cherry blossom festivals that are held in
different parts of the country. Japan is a country that allows you to
enjoy terrific scenery, fascinating castles, temples, shrines, culture, a rich
history as well as delicious food as you travel around.
Regarding bookings and the impact of Covid-19: In previous years our cherry tours have seen many early bookings, well in advance.
For our tours for the 2019 blossom season we closed to
additional bookings
in early in the New Year. The 2020 and 2021 seasons were effectively cancelled due
to the Covid pandemic and Japan closing its borders and at the end of 2021 the
2022 season looks to be effectively cancelled as well due to the emergence of
the omicron variant. However, we do intend to re-offer these tours in
2023. As this is a very popular time of year it is best to contact us
to secure your place as soon as practical. You can either use our simple
contact us form or email us directly at
admin@japancustomtours.co.nz
March and April 2022 Japan Cherry Blossom Tours
For spring 2022 we are
offering three main cherry blossom tours. For
March we do have a flexible slot in the first half of the month to capture some
tail end of the late plum/early cherry blossom season.
Our main tours are based around the core blossom season covering late March and April.
Building on previous years we have made some changes to our schedules based on
guest feedback and improvements to the order and travel times in some places.
This has resulted in a reduction in travel times between locations, but also
things like an additional scenic journey between Takayama and Matsumoto, and
incorporating a visit to the city of Sendai and one of the "three views of
Japan, Matsushima Bay.
With most arrivals occurring one or two days prior to the commencement of the
tours this allows us to meet you at the airport, transfer you to your
hotel in Tokyo and provide an initial
introduction to Japan and Tokyo, one of the largest and vibrant cities in the
world. This also gives you some free time to adjust to the time-zone, and
explore a few areas of the city that interest you before we head off on our
journey around the country. We understand many guests wish to arriving
before the formal start of a tour due to flights and flight pricing, this allows people
flexibility to easily join a tour. Depending on guest arrival times we my
also be able to offer an optional Fuji/Hakone excursion that has a
popular add-on for many people.
We have designed the cherry blossom tour schedules taking into account the dates for
the Japanese cherry blossom festivals and viewing in each
location. These dates are based on the average flowering times from the last ten years
and are a guide only. (The actual dates are out of our control.) However, there
are a couple of things that make chasing the cherry blossom a little easier.
Firstly, the early part of the season is when plum trees are flowering, providing an
alternative offering of spectacular colours.
Secondly, the "official" cherry blossom forecasts refer to a specific five petal
variety (somei yoshino), and there are many different types of cherry trees - some that flower earlier and
some later, extending the season. Certainly for our previous tour seasons we had cherry blossom viewing
across a two month period. We also take pride in finding tranquil and uncrowded
spots for our guests to enjoy the blossom season across the full March and April
season.
Cherry blossom tours and Schedules
Each year we update our schedules incorporating feedback from guests and to
build in improvements over the previous year's tours. The following
provides a brief description of the tours we are planning for spring 2021 and
more detailed schedules are available on request. A tour brochure is
available for download using the following link.
Early Cherry Blossom Tour during March (Sunday 20th March to Saturday 2nd April 2022)
Starting in Tokyo, before heading to the Japanese alps and the onsen town of
Togura. After an overnight stop in Kanazawa travel south to Hiroshima and the
beautiful Miyajima.
From our most southern point we head back to the old capital of Kyoto, before
heading back into the mountains to the picturesque town of Takayama. From here
the two weeks is completed with the journey back to Tokyo.
Classic Cherry Blossom Tour (Sunday 3rd April to
Sunday 17th
April 2022)
The peak period for cherry blossom viewing starts in Tokyo at the beginning of
April, including some of the famous and popular viewing locations around the
city before heading south to Hiroshima and the island Miyajima with its floating
torii gate.
Leaving Hiroshima we head to Kyoto and a selection of its famous sights before
heading west to Kanazawa and its famous Kenrokuen Gardens and castle.
We then head to the mountains for a stay at a traditional Japanese inn and onsen
before chasing the cherry blossom festival in the area around Sendai city, including a
cruise around Matsushima Bay (considered one of the "three views of Japan".) The end of the tour sees us return to Tokyo for
the weekend.
Late Cherry Blossom Tour (Wednesday 20th April to Tuesday 3rd May 2022)
Our late cherry tour includes a trip to the north of Tokyo including side
trips from Sendai (for Matsushima and Kakunodate depending on the season), and also Aomori for the
Hirosaki Castle Park, a site with 2,600 cherry trees and a site of a large and
famous cherry
blossom festival.
Returning to the centre of the country, we stay in the mountains at an onsen near Nagano and a visit to the
snow monkeys before undertaking a scenic mountain trip to Matsumoto and onward
to the alpine town of Takayama (including a visit to the UNESCO World Heritage
site of Shirakawago). Heading to the western side of Japan we visit the city of Kanazawa. From
Kanazawa, for those limited to a two week trip there is a speedy shinkansen
journey back to Tokyo.
Price inclusions/exclusions
We price in Japanese yen, but can quote in
your local currency on request.
Early Cherry Blossom Tour: The price for fourteen days
(accommodation for thirteen nights) is from Y695,000 per person share
twin/double.
Classic Cherry Blossom Tour: The
price for fifteen days (accommodation for fourteen nights) is from Y745,000 per person share twin/double.
Late Cherry
Blossom Tour: The price for the base fourteen day tour (accommodation for
thirteen nights) is from Y695,000 per person share twin/double.
For solo travellers (one person, without a shared room), the cost of
accommodation is unable to be shared, but we have a policy to limit the extra
cost and have priced our tours for a solo travellers at Y145,000 above the
shared/double/twin rate to partly cover the cost of accommodation.
The price includes:
- Our tour service, including a dedicated guide for the duration of your
tour. That includes a meet&greet at the airport and transfers to the hotel in
Tokyo.
- Accommodation, averaging 4* - 5* properties. We aim to book superior rooms to give additional space
and comfort during your trip.
- Transport, all train travel, subways, and transfers. Taxis are also covered
during the day for our sightseeing as well as the occasional bus connection.
(Not flights to/from Japan.)
- Entrance fees for temples, shrines, castles, parks, gardens, and museums.
These are listed in your agreed tour schedule.
- Evening meals at ryokan (Japanese inn) accommodation are normally
included. In general, we do not include lunch and
dinner meals because Japan has a huge range of foods and we prefer not to
restrict options, especially when food is a significant part Japan.
Exclusions are generally items such as theatre performances, sporting or
other special events, theme parks, lunch and evening meals, snacks/drinks and
other incidental costs such as hotel room service/laundry.
Bookings and Inquiries
If you are interested in joining one of these tours, please contact us or email us
directly at
admin@japancustomtours.co.nz.