The Wisteria Festival at Ashikaga Flower Park ・ A Perfect Springtime Day Trip from Tokyo
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Like a fairytale garden filled with whispy, beautiful wisterias hanging in lacy curtains, this Tochigi destination is an ideal day trip from the big city.
Ashikaga Flower Park is one of Japan's most popular seasonal flower viewing destinations, known particularly for the enormous wisteria trees that burst into purple and white blooms each spring, just about a month after Japan's more famous cherry blossom season. Wisteria season generally starts in mid-April and lasts through the first half of May, with different varieties blooming at slightly different times in different regions. But when it comes to must-see wisteria spots, Ashikaga Flower Park is undoubtedly top three. From individual wisteria trees with branches stretching out 1,000m² from the trunk, to wisterias in different shapes, sizes, and colors, plus plenty of other plants arranged in unique formations to complement the flowers, Ashikaga Flower Park is just about wisteria heaven, and it's only an hour or two outside of Tokyo!
To celebrate the blooming of the famous wisteria trees, Ashikaga Flower Park holds a festival every year during the peak blooming period. While not too much changes in the park during the festival (except the wisterias coming into bloom), they do lengthen the park's opening hours, and of course sell plenty of special wisteria-themed merchandise. If you love pale purple, take a look at some of the souvenirs available!
The festival is also the perfect time to try some wisteria-themed sweet treats, as well. I can't in all honesty recommend the "wisteria smoothie" to you, unless you particularly like mildly blueberry/blackberry flavored purple yogurt, but the equally purple wisteria-flavored soft-serve ice cream seemed to be a crowd-pleaser!
Part of the fun of a visit to Ashikaga Flower Park is enjoying all the less common varieties and colorations of wisteria the park grows alongside the standard purple strands. Some trees trail especially low with long bunches of flowers, while others have extra petals and look a little like purple popcorn. Their tunnel covered entirely with white wisterias trailing down from the heavens is always a popular spot, as are the "sakura-colored" pink wisteria, a ceiling of heavenly white wisterias, and a trellis covered in golden-yellow Kibana wisterias is a special treat, blooming at the very end of the season (and found nowhere else in Japan)!
There's a good reason for lengthened hours during the wisteria festival, though, and that's because at night the flowers are lit with bright lights to create a whole new, extra-romantic atmosphere. The tendrils of purple and white flowers seem to glow in the lights, as they hang down from the dark tree canopies. It truly is like walking into a magical garden from a fairytale. Or maybe the wisteria-covered mountain of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
If you can't quite time your trip to coincide with the Ashikaga Flower Park Wisteria Festival, don't worry! Try for winter instead! During the colder months of the year, when not much is truly in bloom, the park transforms into a world of beautiful light displays, where flower-shaped fairy lights take on the role of wisterias. Sparkling in the cold winter air, the lights aren't quite the same as real flowers, but they might just be equally gorgeous.
Ready to venture out of Tokyo and north into a world of purple flowers? Ashikaga Flower Park is a little out of the way and far from any major train stations, so in the past, the only practical way to access it was by car. Fortunately, in recent years a small train station was built alongside the park, and now visitors can take the train and get from central Tokyo to Ashikaga Flower Park Station in just about 2 hours. With a JR pass it gets even more convenient, as a short trip on the Tohoku-Hokkaido Shinkansen cuts the travel time down to under an hour and a half. During peak flower-viewing seasons, there are even special trains that run direct from Tokyo to Ashikaga Flower Park Station, with no train changes necessary! So next time you need a fresh of breath air, don't hesitate to seek the wisteria-perfumed breeze of Tochigi Prefecture, and Ashikaga Flower Park in particular.
For more info and updates from Japan, check Japankuru for new articles, and don't forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook!
Details
NAME:Ashikaga Flower Park (あしかがフラワーパーク)
ACCESS:Ashikaga Flower Park Station (あしかがフラワーパーク駅)
https://www.ashikaga.co.jp/fujinohana_special2021/en/index.html
Half a lifetime ago I came to Japan for a semester abroad... and I never left. I guess I really like the place! I spent my first few years in Japan living in the middle of nowhere, so I'd love to hear your Tokyo recommendations via Japankuru's social media accounts!
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SHIKOKU
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On the other side of the Seto Inland Sea opposite Japan’s main island, Shikoku (四国) is a region made up of four prefectures: Ehime, Kagawa, Kochi, and Tokushima. The area is famous for its udon (in Kagawa), and the beautiful Dogo Onsen hot springs (in Ehime).
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KAGAWA
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Kagawa Prefecture is on the northern part of the island of Shikoku, facing Japan's main island and the Seto Inland Sea. It's known for being the smallest prefecture in Japan, by area, but at the same time Kagawa is called the "Udon Prefecture" thanks to its famous sanuki udon. Aside from Kotohiragu Shrine and Ritsurin Garden, the prefecture's small islands are popular, and Kagawa is full of unique destinations, like Angel Road. They say that if you lay eyes on Zenigata Sunae, a huge Kagawa sand painting, you'll never have money troubles ever again.
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KYUSHU
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Located in the most southwestern part of Japan, Kyushu (九州) is an island of 7 prefectures: Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima. The island's unique culture has been influenced by Chinese and Dutch trade, along with missionaries coming in through Nagasaki's port. Modern-day travelers love the lush natural scenery and fresh food, plus the natural hot springs found all throughout the area (thanks to volcanic activity)!
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FUKUOKA
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Fukuoka Prefecture has the highest population on the southern island of Kyushu, with two major cities: Fukuoka and Kitakyushu. Thanks to growing transportation networks, Fukuoka is more accessible than ever, and so are the many local attractions. On top of historical spots like Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, travelers shouldn't miss Fukuoka's food scene, with motsu nabe (offal hotpot), mentaiko (spicy cod roe), and famous Hakata ramen―best eaten from a food stall in the Nakasu area of Hakata. Plus, it's full of all sorts of destinations for travelers, like trendy shopping centers, and the beautiful nature of Itoshima and Yanagawa.
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KAGOSHIMA
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Kagoshima Prefecture played a major role in Japan's modernization as a backdrop for famous historical figures like samurais Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi, who pushed Japan out of the Edo era and into the Meiji. Because of that, Sengan-en Garden is just one of many historical destinations, and when it comes to attractions Kagoshima has plenty: the active volcano of Sakurajima, popular hot springs Ibusuki Onsen and Kirishima Onsen, World Heritage Site Yakushima Island, even what Japan calls the "island closest to heaven," Amami Oshima. Kagoshima might be found on the very southernmost tip of the southern island of Kyushu, but there's plenty to see.
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OKINAWA
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The island chain of Okinawa (沖縄) makes up the southernmost tip of Japan, which is why it's also the most tropical area in the country. Thanks to a history of independence and totally distinct political and cultural events, Okinawa has a unique culture, and remnants of the Ryukyu Kingdom are still visible all over the islands. Food, language, traditional dress, it's all a little different! It's also said to be the birthplace of karate.
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