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 Cherry Blossom Festivals in the U.S.,Canada, Britain and Australia!
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Where, When and More to Find an Cherry Blossom Festival or Cherry Harvest Festival Near You!

Cherry harvest festivals and cherry blossom festivals occur almost everywhere, but it can be hard to find reliable information about where and when.  I've listed every known cherry festival below, organized by country and state (or province / region) along with contact information and links to their websites.  Please write me, if you know of any to add!

Always click on the links (the blue, underlined name of the each festival) to confirm this year's dates on the website for each festival. If they don't have a website, call the phone number provided, but ALWAYS CONFIRM THIS YEAR'S DATES AND TIMES BY EITHER VIEWING THEIR WEBSITE OR CALLING.

Also, see our pages on easy illustrated directions about

For other fruit and vegetable festivals, see this page!

[United States] [Canada] [Britain] [Australia] [Japan]

United States

California

  • Pasadena Cherry Blossom Festival - April 1-2, 2006, 10 am to 6pm. Rose Bowl, Pasadena California. Events calendar.
    There is a parade, fashion show, entertainment, history, and cherry tree dedication ceremony. Farmers from the Leona Valley will offer young cherry trees, lilacs, and dried lavender as well as cherry blossom honey. There will also be a pavilion devoted to Asian medicine and wellness practices, a fashion show, and workshops on dollmaking and origami. Visitors can tour a Japanese village complete with garden, participate in a tea ceremony, and learn about koi fish.
  • Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival - April 22nd and 23rd, begins at 11am each day
    Barnes Park, 350 S. McPherrin Avenue, Monterey Park, CA. Admission: Free. Planned and coordinated by community volunteers! See, hear, and taste a bit of the Japanese and Japanese American culture through a first-hand experience of watching traditional Japanese dancing, hearing the resounding beats of the taiko drums, observing the mastery and various skills of martial arts, participating in the ancient art of the tea ceremony, or buying hand-made crafts or food with an Asian flair. Also, games & crafts for children, and numerous cultural displays. PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE  DIRECTIONS & PARKING, HISTORY  PICTURES  PRESS SECTION
  • San Francisco Cherry Blossom Festival - April 15 and 16, 22 and 23, 2006. San Francisco, CA
    San Francisco's Cherry Blossom Festival in Japantown provides two weekends of Japanese singing, dancing, martial arts demonstrations, food and a parade!
  • San Leandro Cherry Festival - late May or June - San Leandro’s 2008 Cherry Festival is scheduled for Saturday, May 31, 2008
    San Leandro, CA. 2008 Cherry Festival Information, 2008 Cherry Pie Bake-Off
  • Cherry Festival - June (in 2008: June 5 ~ June 8, 2008 - see the website for updates)
    Stewart Park, 9th and Orange Street, Beaumont, California. Admission Thursday: $3.00, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: $5.00; Children 6-11 $2.00; Kids Under 5 FREE!  $1 CHERRY FESTIVAL DISCOUNT BY USING THE FREE CHERRY FESTIVAL PARKING AND BUS SHUTTLE!!!

Georgia

  • International Cherry Blossom Festival - March 17-26,2006. Macon, Georgia. Events calendar.
    Macon has over 300,000 cherry trees. They were donated by William A. Fickling, a local realtor who discovered the first Yoshino cherry tree in his back yard in 1949. He propagated and gave the trees to his neighbors. Macon has been hosting a Cherry Blossom Festival since 1984. The festival includes a hot-air balloon rally, a marathon race, parades and amusement rides.
  • Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival - March 25 - 26, 2006. Conyers, GA (metro Atlanta area) - Events calendar.
    The Festival offers three stages of continuous entertainment, over 300 booths consisting of arts and crafts vendors, various children's activities and civic and nonprofit organizations. The hours of the Festival are 10am-5pm daily. Directions: Avoid construction on Hwy 138 by using an alternate route. Click Here for Directions to the Festival Other useful links: Download the 2006 Vendor List; Download the 2006 Festival Guide; 2006 Entertainment Schedule. Admission is free, $5 parking fee. Featuring: Over 400 Booths, 300 Quality Arts & Crafts Vendors, International Food Court, Music, Children's Activities, Performers, Multi-Cultural Activities, Hi-Tech-Simulators, Virtual Reality Games, Cherry Trees and Tee Shirt sales and Eating Contests. This annual event is held at the Georgia International Horse Park. For more information, call 1-800-266-9377.

Hawaii

Idaho

  • Emmett Cherry Festival - Wednesday, June 11, 2008 at 9:00am
    Emmett City Park, Emmett, ID. Enjoy Cherry Festival Parade (6 p.m. June 14), Great Cherry Bake-off, Cherry Pie Eating Contest, as well as carnival rides, food and entertainment.

Michigan

  • The National Cherry Festival - July 1 - July 8 2006. Traverse City, MI. Events calendar.
    Celebrating 80 years with parades, competitive events, fun events, children's events, food, arts and crafts, car and truck show, and air show and new events including a feast of cherries and local wines and a world record attempt to host the world's largest cherry pancake breakfast

Nebraska

  • Kimmel Orchard & Vineyard Cherry Festival  - Cherry Festival, June 28
    5995 G Rd, Nebraska City, NE 68410. Phone: 402-873-5293. Email: eolson@arbordayfarm.org.  We're wild about cherries at Kimmel Orchard & Vineyard, particularly the tart Montmorency variety that makes the best fruit pies. This Saturday, savour the day picking cherries (while they last) and enjoying all things cherry: pie, ice cream, wine and cherrywood-smoked barbecue. Enter the pie eating contest at 2 pm or the pit-spitting contest from 1 to 3 pm. Also, live music and hay rides. Kimmel Orchard is one mile north of Arbor Day Farm.

New Jersey

New York

  • Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom Festival) - Saturday, April 29, and Sunday, April 30, 2006, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Brooklyn, NY. Events calendar
    Held in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, where there are over 200 trees in bloom, the flowering cherries take center stage during this phenomenal weekend celebrating Japanese culture. Enjoy over 60 events and performances, including traditional music and dance, taiko drumming, ikebana flower arranging, cooking demonstrations, tea ceremonies, craft demonstrations, and workshops for both adults and children. New events include 60s-inspired Japanese pop grooves by famed musical sensations Gaijin a Go-Go, workshops in tofu making and calligraphy art, displays of geta shoes and other arts from Inuyama, and a kimono fashion show. New events especially for kids include book readings, puppet shows, CosPlay, and workshops in Japanese classical dance.

Pennsylvania

  • Philadelphia's Subaru Cherry Blossom Festival-  March 25-April 10, 2006. Events calendar.
    This year's two-week Festival - the biggest yet - offers many chances to explore the best of Japanese culture, from traditional customs and delicious cuisine to delicate craft and awe-inspiring performances. It starts with a black-tie gala featuring a traditional sake barrel-breaking ceremony. Next, follows traditional taiko drumming and dance, demonstrations of traditional Japanese crafts and martial arts, and kite-making workshops will all be undertaken with great gusto. The celebration concludes with the "Sushi Spectacular" featuring master sushi chefs from Japan.

Washington, D.C.

  • National Cherry Blossom Festival - March 29 to April 13 (2008)
    This is the big festival of them all in the U.S. The National Cherry Blossom Festival commemorates the 1912 gift to the city of Washington, DC of 3000 cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to enhance relations.

Washington State

  • Sakura Matsuri Cherry Blossom and Japanese Cultural Festival -
    Seattle’s Cherry Blossom Festival began when one thousand Cherry trees were sent by the Japanese government. The trees are planted along Lake Washington Boulevard and Seward Park. You can have your own O-hanami (flower viewing) and then join the crowd at the Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural Festival.  The festival is held from April 21-23, 2006 - Seattle Center in downtown Seattle, Washington. There's a lot for you to experience during these 3 Days: watch a Go tournament, visit arts & crafts booths, dine on traditional cuisine and see exhibits and performances. All Events are free and take place at the Center House and Flag Pavilion.

Canada

British Columbia

  • Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival - from the first week in March through mid April every year
    Phone: 604-681-9447. Email: info@vcbf.ca. The Cherry Blossom Viewing Picnic As a Spirit of Vancouver initiative, the Vancouver Board of Trade introduces Vancouver to the Japanese tradition of Hanami (blossom viewing with picnic celebration). The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival Map (To be published March 2nd in the Vancouver Sun West Coast Life) identifying some of Vancouver’s spectacular displays of cherry trees. Check our forecast for weekly updates with regards to peak bloom locations. Following our launch for the month of March you will be able to order a specially created picnic online: a Japanese Bento Box lunch by Hi-To Food/Fisheries or a West-Coast Picnic by Savory Coast. Story Time and Origami Workshop, Self-Guided Blossom Walks, Haiku The Vancouver Public Library hosts a haiku presentation, and a variety of special events including full-length tea-ceremonies (approx 35 min) in the garden's traditional tea house and in the Asian Centre Tea Gallery and a variety of musical performances.

Manitoba

Nova Scotia

Ontario

 

Britain (England, Scotland and Wales)

 

Australia

  • Cherry Blossom Festival at the Cowra Japanese Garden - held in September every year. 27 September to 1 October (2006).
    The Sakura Matsuri is a major event held annually in Cowra, in which many locals, Australian and International visitors have the opportunity to experience and learn traditional elements of the Japanese culture. This year’s Sakura Matsuri incorporates some new and exciting changes designed to attract families and school-aged children. The emphasis is on involvement and education with workshops featuring traditional Japanese crafts such as Origami, Calligraphy, Ikebana and Bonsai held at various times from Wednesday to Friday.

    Saturday 30 September is Family Fun Day. For the all-day admission charge of just $15 per family you can enjoy a range of activities designed to entertain every age group. Children will be well catered for with the extremely popular Obstacle Course, Kids Corner plus giveaways from Streets and Coke. For the ‘children at heart’ there are Sumo Wrestling Tournaments, Karate, Sword Demonstrations, Tea Ceremonies, Origami, Calligraphy, Ikebana, Kite Flying and Bonsai demonstrations.

    On Sunday 1 October the festival concludes with a Reconciliation Service and wreath-laying ceremony will be held at the Australian and Japanese War Cemeteries at 9.30. (NO CULTURAL ACTIVITIES ON SUNDAY)

    A selection of Japanese food (bento boxes and sushi rolls) is available at the Red Carp Restaurant, open daily 8.30 am to 5.00pm.

     

Japan

(English websites)

 

 

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