[Rob Dyer]

Hi Ash (thanks for the tag @joshgrisdale )

Sakura season is beautiful, of course, but as Josh says, be prepared for pretty much every popular and accessible spot to be rammed – largely by locals. Golden Week aside, it’s just about the most busy period in Japan (both for international and national tourism). Inevitably this can push the prices of things like hotels up, so just worth bearing that in mind.

It is still a wonderful experience but you’ll need to time your visit well and there will be an element of luck as to how much blossom you’ll see as the season can be quite shortlived. However, if you’re able to potentially view the blossom in different areas/cities then you’ll give yourselves a better chance of catching it.

(The blossom appears at different times during the year depending on where in the country you are, but the cities you mention the window will generally be between late-March and mid-April). This introductory post to sakura viewing might help:
https://www.therealjapan.com/sakura-guide-to-cherry-blossom-festivals-in-japan/

Alternatively, you might instead want to consider coming to Japan in late autumn for the spectacular displays of autumn/fall leaves. This season last much longer than the cherry blossom and so is easier to predict and plan for. Autumn in Japan is a wonderful season – possibly my favourite.

In central Honshu (and the cities you mention) it is mostly during the second half of October and into November that the best displays can be seen.

I’ve written a detailed guide to some of the best autumn leave viewing spots here:
https://www.therealjapan.com/viewing-autumn-leaves-in-japan/

Hope this info and those posts help.

Rob