Cherry Blossom Season in Seattle - Colorfully Caroline

The beginning of spring in Seattle is marked by the thousands of cherry trees lining streets and parks bursting into bloom. Cherry trees are very special to the city of Seattle, symbolizing the city’s history of friendship with Japan. Seeing the snowy white and pink blossoms is one of my favorite parts of spring in Seattle, and every year people flock from all over to see them. In this post I’ll share the best places to experience cherry blossom season in Seattle!

Cherry blossoms at University of Washington

A Gift of A Thousand Cherry Trees

Seattle’s history with cherry trees began with the arrival of 2,000 trees gifted to the United States by the City of Tokyo, Japan in 1909. These trees were destined for the banks of the Potomac River, to be planted as a symbol of friendship and giving between the two countries. These were the trees that sparked the beginning of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in the US.

Seattle received its own gift of 1,000 cherry trees in 1976 from Japanese Prime Minister Takeo Miki to commemorate the American bicentennial. On this day, the Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Culture Festival was founded. This annual festival is held in Seattle Center and celebrates Japanese and Japanese-American culture with traditional music and dance.

The Best Places to Do Hanami in Seattle

Hanami is the practice of cherry blossom viewing. It’s pretty simple: just take a stroll through a park or street and admire the blossoms or plan a picnic in their shade.

Seattle has thousands of cherry trees, many just lining neighborhood streets and showering sidewalks with their tiny petals. However, if you want to see a lot of trees together the best places to experience cherry blossom season in Seattle are below!

The Quad at University of Washington

This is my personal favorite place to see the blossoms, where the gothic stone architecture acts as a perfectly complementary backdrop. The 30 trees lining the Quad have been here since 1962, but have called Seattle their home since at least the 1930s. Though their origin is a bit of a mystery, they were likely part of the 4,000 cherry trees gifted to Seattle by the city of Yokohama in 1930.

The Washington Park Arboretum

This sprawling, wooded park is also home to many cherry trees among other flowering plants. Azalea Way in springtime will treat you to blooming cherries, plum trees, rhododendrons, and more. For some extra Japanese cultural immersion, visit the Japanese Garden (part of the larger arboretum) and sign up for a guided tour.

For more info on what to see in the arboretum, see my post about 5 things to do on your visit to Seattle.

Seward Park

This park is the original site of the Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Culture Festival founded in 1972. Many of the original trees gifted to Seattle were planted here.

Pike Place Market

Right in front of the market entrance on Pike Street, deep-pink cherry trees line the street. These make a great photo op with the iconic neon sign in the background and the wind coming off the sound frequently stirs up the petals to make it look like it’s snowing. You can also treat yourself to a cherry branch bouquet from the many flower sellers in the market.

Cherry Blossom Vocabulary

Here are some cherry blossom-related terms to show off your knowledge during your visit!

Sakura: the flowering blossom of a cherry tree
Hanami: “flower-viewing,” this frequently refers specifically to the appreciation and celebration of cherry blossoms and is practiced through picnics, parties, or park strolls among the trees.
Yoshino: a variety of cherry tree, the most common found throughout Seattle

Blossom Viewing Tips

The UW Quad is by far the most popular place to view the blossoms. Expect large crowds, especially on weekends. If you want to avoid having other people in your photos, try to go on a weekday before 5pm or in the morning.
Cherry blossoms come and go quickly! I use the UW cherry blossom webcam and Twitter account to see the status of the blossoms so I know exactly when it’s the best time to go to experience peak bloom.
Dogs are allowed on the Quad, but be courteous of others and keep them leashed and pick up after them.
Respect the trees and please do climb or hang on the limbs.
For the best pictures, have the person holding the camera take your photo from a lower angle. This will capture the most blossoms in the background and help hide other people behind you. Stand in the shade of the trees for the most even lighting and to avoid weird shadows from direct sun.