This year’s cherry blossom flowering is expected to occur earlier than average in many areas, with some locations—especially in eastern Japan—likely to see significantly earlier blooming.
Compared with the previous forecast, flowering dates have been revised slightly later from the Kanto region westward, while northern Japan has been revised slightly earlier. In Kochi, the forecast has been moved earlier after confirming that the buds have begun to develop.
This winter, cold air masses arrived repeatedly, but they did not last long, and there were also periods of notably high temperatures. As a result, dormancy breaking is expected to have been somewhat weaker than average in many areas, with this tendency becoming more pronounced toward the west.
Since mid-February, temperatures have become considerably warm. The current return of colder conditions is expected to be temporary, and warmer conditions are likely to continue from the latter half of March onward. Consequently, flowering is expected to be earlier than average in western Japan, with some locations in eastern Japan likely to see significantly earlier blooming.
In northern Japan, temperatures are forecast to remain higher than average through April, so earlier-than-usual flowering is also expected.
(Updated Mar 12, 2026)
Note: Detailed forecast is only available in Japanese.
| Kanto/Koshin | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Mito | 3/24 | 3/30 |
| Utsunomiya | 3/23 | 3/29 |
| Maebashi | 3/23 | 3/28 |
| Kumagaya | 3/20 | 3/28 |
| Tokyo | 3/18 | 3/25 |
| Choshi | 3/27 | 4/1 |
| Yokohama | 3/20 | 3/29 |
| Nagano | 4/1 | 4/5 |
| Kofu | 3/16 | 3/25 |
| Tokai/Hokuriku | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Shizuoka | 3/26 | 4/2 |
| Nagoya | 3/16 | 3/26 |
| Gifu | 3/18 | 3/26 |
| Tsu | 3/24 | 3/29 |
| Niigata | 4/2 | 4/7 |
| Toyama | 3/30 | 4/2 |
| Kanazawa | 3/29 | 4/4 |
| Fukui | 3/28 | 4/1 |
| Kinki | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Hikone | 3/27 | 4/2 |
| Kyoto | 3/23 | 3/30 |
| Osaka | 3/24 | 3/31 |
| Kobe | 3/25 | 4/2 |
| Nara | 3/24 | 4/1 |
| Wakayama | 3/23 | 3/30 |
| Chugoku/Shikoku | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Okayama | 3/25 | 3/31 |
| Hiroshima | 3/18 | 3/27 |
| Matsue | 3/25 | 3/31 |
| Tottori | 3/27 | 4/1 |
| Takamatsu | 3/24 | 3/31 |
| Tokushima | 3/26 | 4/2 |
| Matsuyama | 3/20 | 3/30 |
| Kochi | 3/15 | 3/25 |
| Shimonoseki | 3/25 | 4/3 |
| Kyushu | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Fukuoka | 3/20 | 3/29 |
| Oita | 3/25 | 4/4 |
| Nagasaki | 3/24 | 4/2 |
| Saga | 3/22 | 3/29 |
| Kumamoto | 3/21 | 3/30 |
| Miyazaki | 3/23 | 4/2 |
| Kagoshima | 3/27 | 4/5 |
| Amami/Okinawa | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Naze | 2/1 | --- |
| Naha | 1/18 | 2/3 |
| Minamidaitojima | 3/2 | --- |
| Miyakojima | 1/9 | 2/6 |
| Ishigakijima | 2/4 | 2/18 |
|
◇The colored places indicate points which already have passed first or full bloom.
◆Okinawa and Amami regions are areas where forecasts are not provided. |
||
| Tohoku | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Aomori | 4/12 | 4/17 |
| Akita | 4/8 | 4/12 |
| Morioka | 4/8 | 4/13 |
| Sendai | 3/29 | 4/2 |
| Yamagata | 4/3 | 4/8 |
| Fukushima | 3/30 | 4/3 |
| ◆Hokkaido (Wakkanai, Asahikawa, Abashiri, Obihiro, Kushiro) has a different species of cherry blossom trees - Ezoyamazakuara. | ||
| Hokkaido | ||
| Cities | First bloom | Full bloom |
| Sapporo | 4/23 | 4/27 |
| Wakkanai | 5/7 | 5/11 |
| Asahikawa | 4/26 | 4/30 |
| Abashiri | 5/2 | 5/6 |
| Kushiro | 5/5 | 5/8 |
| Obihiro | 4/27 | 4/29 |
| Muroran | 4/26 | 5/1 |
| Hakodate | 4/20 | 4/24 |
Cherry Blossom Forecast 2026 Schedule
- First Forecast Issued January 22nd
- Second Forecast Issued February 5th
- Third Forecast Issued February 12th
- Fourth Forecast Issued February 19th
- Fifth Forecast Issued February 26th
After March 2nd, we will update the first bloom and full bloom reports every day and provide forecasts every Monday and Thursday.
Forecast Criteria
The forecast is based on the bloom timeline of the official observation trees that are located at the 58 Japan Meteorological Agency offices across the country.
We release the forecast for 53 points in Japan except for Amami and Okinawa regions where there are no official observation trees available.
We release the forecast for 53 points in Japan except for Amami and Okinawa regions where there are no official observation trees available.
Blossom Criteria
The forecast is based on the bloom timeline of the official observation tree.
"First bloom" means observation trees have 5 to 6 flowers that have bloomed.
"Full bloom" means 80% of the observation tree flowers have bloomed.
We forecast the "Date of First Bloom" and "Date of Full Bloom" according to these meanings, which are the same with JMA's observation rules.
On average, tree fully blooms a week after first bloom.
"First bloom" means observation trees have 5 to 6 flowers that have bloomed.
"Full bloom" means 80% of the observation tree flowers have bloomed.
We forecast the "Date of First Bloom" and "Date of Full Bloom" according to these meanings, which are the same with JMA's observation rules.
On average, tree fully blooms a week after first bloom.
