50 Ways to Get Your Cherry Blossom Fix

When spring arrives, watch out for amazing cherry blossoms which sprout forth all season long around the world. While Japan and Washington D.C. tend to be the best-known locales to see this delicate blossom, here are a few other favorites to explore.

The National Cherry Blossom Festival includes a parade, a kite festival and tons more. Events begin as early as March 15 and run through April 14. Check out the Cherry Blossom Package offered by the Courtyard by Marriott Capitol Hill/Navy Yard.

The Pink Tie Party, sponsored by All Nippon Airways is the A-List D.C. party of the season. Your $225 ticket includes an open bar, culinary tastings plus crazy fun entertainment.

Want to bike along the Tidal Basin beneath the canopy of cherry blossoms? Hyatt Place Washington D.C. Georgetown/West End offers complimentary bicycles, along with a map, helmet and bottled water.

The easiest way to get from one cherry blossom viewing spot to the next in D.C. is on the Metro. Hilton Garden Inn Tysons Corner has a package that lets you park your car for free and provides a free Metro Pass.

Kyoto is one of Japan's most well-known cherry blossom hotspots. The pink and white blooms are predicted to be at peak bloom here March 27-30. There may still be hotel rooms left for those dates, but they are likely to book quickly.

Tokyo is the obvious first stop on your Japanese cherry blossom explorations, not only for the ease of flights but also because the first average bloom is a few days earlier than in some cities.

Another early-blooming Japanese city, Nagasaki begins turning pink around March 22. Check out this amazing Silversea luxury cruise that departs Nagasaki on March 25. There are still a handful of suites left.

A cruise with Holland America is another option for stops in Japanese ports, including Nagasaki, during cherry blossom season. How does a fourteen-night sailing from Hong Kong to Shanghai sound?

Can't make it to Japan in March or early April? In northern reaches of the country, the blooming season is considerably later. Try this Princess cruise departing Tokyo April 20, with a stop in Aomori on April 26-near perfect timing for this year's blooms.

Singaporeans love the Sakura (cherry blossom) season so much that at the famous Gardens by the Bay Botanical garden, they brought in their own trees and host a Sakura Japan Fair March 30-April 8.

Did the Olympics leave you craving a trip to South Korea? Try this amazing 28-day Windstar Cruise that will include several cherry blossom stops, including Jeju City in South Korea.

If flying to Seoul is more to your liking than a cruise, the cherry blossom season runs from April 6-13. The Conrad Seoul has river view rooms available in the heart of the city.

Cherry blossoms in Beijing are sure to be on your to-do list on this 14-night Windstar Cruise that overnights in China's capital city.

Gucan Park in Shanghai has more than 12,000 cherry trees. Take a look at this unbelievably low-priced cruise on NCL that should put you in Shanghai in time to see the blossoms.

The Brooklyn Botanical Garden is the spot to get your fix in NYC. Look for them from late March through mid-May. Try Hotel le Bleu, which is walking distance from the park.

Keep the festival going with a late-season bloom in Buffalo. The Buffalo Cherry Blossom Festival runs May 5-6 in the Japanese Garden in Delaware Park. For a chic hotel opt for the nearby Foundry Suites.

Bloomfest is Newark's version of a cherry blossom festival. The schedule includes a bike race, 10K run and guided tours of Essex County Branch Brook Park.

In Connecticut, look for a celebration in New Haven's Historic Wooster Square on April 22 where they have 72 Japanese cherry trees.

In Philly, you can celebrate the return of spring at the Suburu Cherry Blossom Festival, held at the Horticulture Center in Fairmont Park. Expect food, fun and entertainment celebrating Japanese culture.

Cherry trees bloom at Hillside Gardens at High Park in late April and early May. Centennial Park also has more than 200 trees and Broadacres Park has 100. Reads more about Toronto's record-breaking tourism season in 2017.

The trees put on a show and the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation put on this year's festival April 3-29. Look for galas, picnics and concerts.

The blooming of the cherry trees in Victoria begins in February, but hurry and you can still catch the late bloomers all around town.

For a small-town version of cherry blossom season head east from Charlotte to the community of Cherryville. They throw a party with entertainment and a 5K race on April 14th. And getting there is easier than ever with American's new service to Charlotte.

Peach trees are not the only celebrated fruit trees in Georgia. In Macon, they throw one heck of a party celebrating cherry blossoms. It runs March16-25 in Central City Park.

Enjoying the blooms in San Francisco buys you a little extra planning time since the festival starts a bit later, running from April 14-22, concluding with a grand parade from City Hall to Japantown. Get in the spirit at Hotel Kabuki.

One doesn't always think about Southern California in relation to cherry blossoms, but Balboa Park is home to an annual celebration in the Japanese Friendship Garden. This year's festival took place March 9-11, but if you missed it, the trees should still be blooming for a bit after those dates.

Descanso Gardens Botanic Garden features a multitude of blooms every spring, including cherry blossoms. Enjoy a guided walk to learn more about the cherry blossoms and other flowering trees on weekends throughout March.

As in many communities, Seattle's Cherry Blossom Festival began as a celebration of a gift of trees to the city from Japan. The event takes place in late April, which might coordinate with an early Alaskan cruise. Try Princess or NCL for departures from Seattle.

One would expect that a parked named "Cherry Blossom Park" is a great place to begin your search in Portland. Word has it that the Tom McCall Waterfront Park is another blooming spot to check out.

March 17 is Cherry Blossom Day at the Oregon State Capitol. Pack a picnic and a camera. The nearby Grand Hotel looks like an ideal spot to stay close to the festivities.

The Missouri Botanical Garden is colored with more than 250 ornamental flowering cherry trees in March and April. After you've seen the blossoms, continue exploring along the Mississippi with American Queen Steamboat Company.

The Missouri Cherry Blossom Festival will be in Marshfield April 26-28. An interesting twist to the celebration is an open invitation to all descendants of presidents, who are honored during the festival.

This aptly-named town in southeastern Kansas holds its cherry blossom festival on the weekend of May 6 this year. Contact the Chamber of Commerce for details.

Northern Michigan is home to thousands of blooming cherry trees-the kind that actually produce cherries. Take a drive north from Traverse City for amazing views of the blossoms in mid-May.

The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden is in the midst of a massive blooming display called "Dallas Blooms," featuring flowers from around the world, including cherry trees. The Arboretum is a short drive from Downtown and Uptown attractions and lodging like the iconic Hyatt Regency Dallas.

The best place to see cherry blossoms in spring in Denver is the Cherry Creek neighborhood. Try Pulaski Park along Cherry Creek. Nearby hotels include the luxurious JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek.

The walkway encircling Capitol Hill is lined with 433 cherry trees that bloom in white in late March or early April. Be sure to bring your camera. For more on Salt Lake City, start here on Travel Pulse.

The Jerte Valley is another spot to experience a sea of white cherry blossoms every spring-from over two million trees.

Aah, springtime in Paris! What could be lovelier than the Eifel Tower framed by the pink petals of cherry trees? Find the blooms in late March or early April in small parks near Notre Dame and along Rue Monge in the Latin Quarter.

Not to be outdone, London has a number of great cherry blossom spotting locations. Start with Kew Gardens, then try St. Paul's Cathedral or Kensington Gardens. Mid-April is the best time to catch the pink blooms.

The Meadows Park in Edinburgh is well known for a lovely display of cherry blossoms in early May. For an interesting treat for your stay in Edinburgh, check out this hotel powered by an underground river.

The Japanese Garden in Tatton Park Gardens east of Liverpool is the cherry blossom hotspot in this county in northwest England.

In Dublin, try strolling the paths of Herbert Park in late April or early May for a concentration of pink fluffy blooms.

Hamburg has its own Cherry Blossom Festival in May every year to celebrate Japanese culture, complete with a fireworks display.

Streets in the Alstadt (Old Town) in Bonn become tunnels of pink blossoms every year in April, attracting one of Europe's largest cherry blossom crowds.

Amsterdam has its very own Cherry Blossom Festival to celebrate the beginning of spring. Join the fun March 14-16. And the timing is perfect to start a cruise on the Danube after the festival.

Copenhagen's Sakura Festival is celebrating 150 years of diplomatic relations between Denmark and Japan April 28-29 this year. You may be able to use the event to kick off a Baltic cruise. Take a look at Seabourn's schedule.

The Kungstradgarden is the spot for Sweden's most famous Japanese festival. Look for amazing blossoms in mid-April and the festival on April 21.

And just in case you can't get to any of these amazing destinations to get your fix during the Northern Hemisphere's spring-head down under in August when the cherry blossoms spring open in the Auburn Botanic Gardens in Sydney.