Hirosaki Sakura Matsuri

Hirosaki Park is the grounds of Hirosaki Castle, and about 2,600 cherry trees of 52 varieties grow along its moats and inside its walls, most of them Somei Yoshino. In 1882 Kikuchi Tatee, a former retainer of the Hirosaki domain, donated 1,000 Somei Yoshino trees. The festival began in 1918 as the Kanokai, a cherry-viewing party, and took its present name later. The trees are looked after with what is called the Hirosaki method, which borrows from the way apples are grown. When the petals fall, they cover the outer moat in a layer of pink called hanaikada, "flower rafts", which the tourism association says is at its fullest about three days after full bloom. During the festival a stretch of the outer moat bank that is normally closed is opened so that people can see it close up. In the evening the trees are lit from sunset to 22:00. Late in the festival the lighting turns to the Hirosaki Shichizakura, seven double-flowered varieties chosen from the park's trees and named as a group. The castle keep was moved off its base in 2015 so that the stone wall beneath it could be repaired. The plan is for it to be back on its original base around mid-November 2026. The festival is organised by the City of Hirosaki, the Hirosaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Hirosaki Tourism and Convention Bureau and the Hirosaki City Products Association.