Minami Izu Sakura Guide
The Place That Made Me Fall in Love with Cherry Blossoms Again
Having lived in Japan for over a decade (how time has flown!), I’ll be honest - I had lost my delight for cherry blossom season, as it just generally meant to me; crowds, long toilet lines and drunken hanami shenanigans…
Another reason was also because perhaps it’d become normality for me to be able to see these beautiful bloomings every Spring so easily (most likely because I also used to live in a suburb/ku who’s name literally translates to Cherry Blossom New Town!) so for me it was just normality to see it every year on my regular streets. Even now where I live, there are various plum & cherry blossom tress wherever I walk, peeping over neighbours’ fences, at a local temple, small parks, so I never feel I have to go to a specific location to see hundreds of trees and deal with crowds - I love the simplicity and pure beauty that its just part of my everyday (spring season) world.
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Wild, Beautiful, Quieter Minami Izu
After a recent trip to Kawazu in Shizuoka during it’s early Kawazu-zakura blooming season, I started to re-appreciate the beauty of this fragile blossom as I explored the popular area (luckily on a weekday) but it was the subsequent day in Minami Izu viewing the Minami no Sakura which made me fall back in love with Japan’s cherry blossom season.
To experience the wild beauty (rather than manicured) of cherry blossoms against a carpet of bright yellow nanohana with sasa (wild bamboo) grasses crunching under your feet against a backdrop of the Izu mountains with onsen steam rising is truly breathtaking and I think may have spoilt me for the future. I will probably have to return to experience this wildness again.
And I did! The following year I had to visit Kyoto for work in early March, so I thought prior to that I’d tack on a couple days and see if I could catch Minami Izu in bloom again. Note the difference in the photos, the photos with a more golden hue were shot the first year I visited - later in the afternoon in late February. Whilst the following year, I visited the first couple nights of March, stayed longer and took photos more in the mornings.
Yellow Nanohana & Pink Sakura
The riverbed of the Aono River stretches just over 4km and both sides are generally lined with these beautiful wild Minami no Sakura. Some areas have more of the yellow nanohana then others, but regardless it’s just truly beautiful specially with the onsen steam from Shimogamo Onsen town rising above (see photos below). Minami Izu is not as curated as Kawazu, so you won’t find huge swatches of Nanohana purposefully planted.
You can see from my photos, that the following year, a lot of the Sasa grasses had been cut, allowing easier walking down the slope of the river bed, and that the river flowed more readily.
How Do I Reach Minami Izu?
Now you may be wondering how does one get to these pretty places, it will take some effort and planning… If you can drive it will make your trip a whole lot easier, which is why Kawazu is often a more popular choice as it’s directly accessible from Tokyo by public transport and right by Kawazu Station.
However part of the adventure is the journey itself to reach your destination. Driving is the easiest for Minami Izu — public transport can get you there but it may take a few changes… am I going to give you a step by step guide to how to get there…? the answer is no — because depending where you’re coming from, the day, the time - it will change your route but luckily we have the beauty of Google maps now. However below are some tips.
Public Transport Tips to Remember:
To reach Minami no Sakura - type in to Google maps “Road Station Shimogamo Onsen Yunohana”
Generally you will probably have to take a local bus from Shimoda Station. The bus route numbers will depend on what day and what time you’re travelling. Google Maps is definitely your friend here.
There are two bus stop options where you can get off - Bus Stop: Hinno (26min walk to Road Station Shimogamo) | Bus Stop: Gujobashi (2min walk to Road Station Shimogamo)
I ended up getting a bus that dropped me off at Hinno, because no bus was running that would have taken me to Gujobashi at the time I wanted. One just never knows in the Japanese countryside.
At Road Station Shimogamo Onsen Yunohana - you can also enjoy a relaxing and deliciously hot onsen foot bath, and pick up some ridiculously cheap veggies, fruit and produce from local farmers plus pretty plants (was sorely tempted to buy a potted cherry blossom tree, but had no way to get it back to Tokyo easily).
Make Sure to See the Yozakura in the Evening
We returned at nighttime to enjoy some yozakura (night time cherry blossom viewing) and though I’ve experienced yozakura many times in my years living in Japan, I’d become disenchanted by it all with the crowds, the drunkenness and loudness.
Experiencing it out in the quiet solitude of the countryside, with the inky night sky as a backdrop only broken up by the twinkling of stars gave me a whole new appreciation for it again. For everyone who was also enjoying it (not that there were many people there) were also just quietly viewing the scenery and breathing in the fresh air.
A Field of Yellow Nanohana
Roughly about 30mins walk from the Minami no Sakura is a random field of Nanohana, juxtaposed against a backdrop of bubble-era Japanese buildings on one side, and mountains to the other. Both times I visited, we were a bit early in the season, but you can see in the background a row of trees with thin branches still not in bloom. These are also cherry blossom trees, which will bloom later around mid March if memory serves me right. Apparently in summer, the Nanohana field becomes a Sunflower field.
If you wish to walk down (or drive) to the Nanohana Field which is off a major intersection — type in “FamilyMart Minamiizu Hino” (gotta love Japan that it’s just randomly opposite a convenience store) which is the closest ‘landmark’ on Google Maps. I walked both times - was easy.
Hungry for Lunch?
After you’re done exploring and enjoying the pretty blooms, you will probably be starving as I was! Around the corner from the Family Mart, roughly a 2min walk is a local seafood restaurant Okada (Oakada for google maps - enter the phone number 05 5862 1006 - phone numbers tend to work better for Google Maps in Japan) which specialises in spiny lobster, red snapper, spider crab (depending on season) and other delicious local produce. The teishoku lunch sets are impressive as are their banquet options!
TIP: Whilst Kawazu can be possibly done in a day trip from Tokyo, I would suggest give yourself a more leisurely exploration for Minami Izu and stay a night or two especially if you’re not driving.
OTHER PLACES TO STAY / THINGS TO DO
Kawazu Zakura - catch the early blooming deep pink Sakura in February
Hanareya Ishidaya - A gorgeous traditional onsen ryokan stay right in Kawazu. Rooms with private outdoor onsen available.
Seiryuso - Relax in Shizuoka’s countryside at this stunning traditional onsen ryokan with an onsen heated swimming pool
Funado no Banya - soak in this beloved public onsen with ocean views
Izu Okada Restaurant - enjoy a tasty Teishoku lunch of fresh seafood here
TRAVEL FURTHER
Kyoto Prefecture - no matter how popular Kyoto is, it will always be a favourite destination
Tokyo Prefecture - discover the local charms of Tokyo from a long term resident
Nagano Prefecture - explore Japan’s 4th largest prefecture, lush with nature, culture and onsen
Tochigi Prefecture - an easy trip from Tokyo, immerse yourself in nature, onsen, ancient shrines & temples
