OliverB

I was thinking of making reservations for a cruise along the Sumida River from Hamarikyu Gardens to Asakusa and then wandering around Senso-ji but as we'll be visiting both destinations (Hamarikyu/Asakusa) regardless on this trip, I was wondering if the Sumida Cruise is the most scenic/enjoyable of the various water bus lines and whether it's a good route to admire cherry blossoms along the banks?

Is there any good reason to purchase tickets online in advance versus just buying in person?

Of the dates that we'll be in town, sakura is estimated to be in full bloom from 03/28 - 04/04.

I know that it's entirely weather and temperature dependent and there's obviously no way of knowing or calculating exactly when they'll be at peak blossom. That said, should we wait to schedule activities like this in order to perfectly align and overlap with the projected dates, or can it be safely assumed that it will still be very scenic even in the days prior (25th, 26th, etc) since flowers bloom gradually and it doesn't just suddenly happen overnight?

Thanks!

OliverB

On second thought, this looks incredibly boring. I was going to delete this thread rather than reply but I figured I'd leave it up in case anyone else was considering doing the same. I just flipped through photos on TA and it does not look interesting or enjoyable at all. I'm not really sure why they specifically advertise for sakura cruises when there are few trees and almost no greenery to be seen on this route. It looks like an alternative means of transportation (longer and more expensive than subway) to get from one point to another with little in between. If you've ever been out on a touristy steamboat on the Mississippi, it looks very similar... minus the old steamboat and the jazz, so basically no appeal whatsoever. The website displays a picturesque cherry blossom lined river bank when in reality, you see a lot of ugly buildings and highways. If I'm mistaken, feel free to correct me, but this is the impression I get upon further research.

Are other cruise lines more interesting?

Are there smaller operators that run along other more scenic rivers or canals?

Pickles

One word: 飲み放題

abmj-jr

That river taxi ride is just an easy way to get between those two venues. The scenery is mostly the backs of buildings, although it does pass under a whole slew of bridges. The sakura will be great at both ends - my favorite viewing place is Hama Rikyu - but the ride is just a boat ride down to the bay and back up the river..

There really is no point in trying to reserve tickets ahead.

evergrn

Agree with all this. If you're going to Hamarikyu and Asakusa, might as well ride the river bus. The ride is okay, but there's no impressive scenery. I don't know that there aren't any sakura trees along the bank of Sumida River but, even if there were, I don't think you're going to get any up-close cherry blossom viewing from the boat since the river is wide and the boat cruises down the middle of the river. It does cruise along the back of Tsukiji marketplace, which may be interesting to some (not to me). It can be convenient to use when you stay at IC Tokyo Bay. I've never booked tickets for this in advance, but I do remember seeing a sign when I rode it a couple months ago saying that reservation is not needed except during cherry blossom seasons. Probably because a lot of people use it to go to Hamarikyu for sakura viewing there.

LapLap

As has been described, the Sumida river "cruise" is completely underwhelming. See it just as an interesting alternative method of transport with multilingual tannoy descriptions.

I've done Pickles' suggested all you can drink (and eat) experience - but as a corporate guest on a tatami floored Yokohama Bay cruiser. Don't actually remember much of it. That could well be the point.

shuigao

It's worth the ride just to see that golden turd just before reaching Asakusa

But yes, echoing all the above posters, it's OK if you need to travel from Hamarikyu to Asakusa anyway, but not really worth it otherwise.

Cheetah_SA

LapLap

Cheetah_SA
It was rather chilly at the start of the year and the initial Sakura forecasts reflected this. However, it has been getting warmer and warmer since then and the trend with each new forecast is for earlier and earlier first blossom and full bloom date.
I was at the mercy of UK School Easter Break dates so I won't be arriving until the 29th March (recently predicted as full bloom date), so am in the same position as you. Unfortunately, we'll be lucky to see the tail end. Means I'm concentrating solely on Sakura related activities for the very first days of our arrival.
Our last Sakura visit was 2016. The Sakura in Tokyo was endless on that occasion as a vicious cold snap (there was snow) moved into the region putting the open blossoms into a deep sleep. The cold weather moved on and the last of the petals withered in the warm 26C sunshine.

If you do miss the Sakura in Tokyo, I recommend catching them at Matsumoto Castle.

angra

I absolutely echo this recommendation. There are a ton there, it is fairly easy to get to from Tokyo, and it's a nice, relaxing change of pace from the big city. Particularly if you've never been!

OliverB

Thanks for all the feedback and for reaffirming what I had expected re. the cruise.

As for cherry blossom dates, I was initially following this website, which forecasts *peak* blossoms between March 29 to April 06, 2018:

https://www.kyuhoshi.com/japan-cherry-blossom-forecast/

This japan-guide website forecasts the same:

https://www.japan-guide.com/sakura/#tokyo

And another:

https://planetyze.com/en/japan/tokyo...-forecast-2018



However the JR pass website indicates March 22, 2018:

https://www.jrailpass.com/blog/japan...ossom-forecast


I'm not sure which is most accurate but it would be helpful to get an idea since we're trying to plan our days around sakura viewing when they're at their peak.

OliverB

If a forecast for a particular location indicates that blossom begins 03/17 and reaches full bloom at 03/24 (this is just an example) would it still be worth visiting said location prior to full bloom, say around the 19th or 20th, or would the trees not be that impressive yet? Having never experienced sakura in Japan, I'm just wondering if any projected dates from the start of the cherry blossoms in a given location are going to be impressive and worth visiting, or if these early dates are just indicative of early buds with a few flowers here and there? I'm probably not expressing my question very well but I hope someone gets what I'm trying to ask. There are many sites that we want to visit from Inokashira Onshi Park to Meguro River, Sumida Park/River Terrace, and the Imperial Palace & Chidorigafuchi... it looks like a very short season for cherry blossom based on the latest updates and it will be difficult to squeeze everything into the few days that each location is at its peak.

Example for clarification of above question:
We have dinner at an izakaya beside Ueno Park on 03/20 and we'll be strolling through the park afterward to admire the hundreds of lanterns and illuminated trees. Ueno is projected to be at full bloom on 03/23. We want to experience Ueno's nighttime sakura festival and we don't have time to visit the park a bunch of times because we've got other evening plans and dinner reservations all over the city. We'll be back to visit some museums during the daytime at some point, but since I wasn't expecting cherry blossom to reach their peak until the first week of April, I've locked us into other plans for the evenings and we won't have an opportunity to return for a few days. Again, I understand that all forecasts are rough estimates but assuming it were somehow entirely accurate, would we still get the full experience even if we're 3 days ahead of the full bloom? I don't intend for this example to be taken literally... I'm asking this question in a figurative sense. I don't expect that Ueno Park is suddenly going to turn pink at a specific date and time. I just want to better understand how these forecasts are interpreted and what to expect in the days prior to "full bloom", if thousands of Japanese families congregate at sakura locations on the specified dates projected (March 23rd we go to this park, March 25th this park!) etc.

ksandness

I've taken the Sumida River trip a couple of times, especially as a means of relaxing while getting somewhere on hot days when I'm tired of traipsing around town.The most interesting feature, to my mind, is the remnants of the old canal system, visible on the east bank.

I've never done it at cherry blossom time, though.

And I've never needed reservations.

Cheetah_SA

Thanks for that. I will look into how easy it is to get to Matsumoto Castle within our schedule.

We are not too concerned with hitting peak blossom season this time. We did that once before and even moved our trip by 4 days shortly before departure to optimise the probability of getting it spot on. This time we are more relaxed and are happy to take what we get. As we are moving around quite a lot we do have a few options: if blooming is early we will probably strike the sweet spot in Kanazawa - or even Takayama if it's extremely early! If there is some bizarre weather pattern that makes them late, we might find sakura heaven in Kyoto (which we have pretty much written off in that respect for now).

abmj-jr

Best way is the JR Azusa or Super Azusa from Shinjuku.

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