Cherry Blossom Trees at the Kersenbloesempark, The Netherlands

There is one special place to see Cherry blossoms in the Netherlands. Once a year during Spring you can visit the beautiful Kersenbloesempark in Amstelveen and experience 400 thriving cherry blossom trees for the day. The Amstelveen cherry blossoms can make a beautiful day out for all. However they are not in bloom for very long, so if they are then don’t miss your chance to see for yourself.

Cherry Blossom Trees at the Kersenbloesempark

There are in total 400 cherry blossom trees at the park, which were a gift from the Japan’s Women’s Club (JWC). The Japan’s Woman Club is a non-profit organisation established in 1989, made up of ladies of the Japanese business community. The organisation was proudly set up to help new members integrate to the Dutch culture and surroundings and to help stay in touch with other locals, through activities and meet ups.

Sakura (桜) is Japanse for Cherry Blossom.

In 2000 the club donated and planted the 400 trees in celebration of the cultural ties between the Netherlands and Japan “The Netherlands – Japan Friendship Treaty”. The amount of trees of 400 was chosen as it was the 400th anniversary! The trees were planted in the Amsterdamse Bos, which has since changed name to the Blossom Park.

Flowers and nature in general are particularly symbolic throughout Japanese culture, and the cherry blossom represents both a new beginning and the fragility of life.

This memorial below is dedicated to those who lost their lives on 11th March 2011 from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Cherry Blossom Festival: Hanami Matsuri (花見祭り)

Every year in you can find the Amstelveen Cherry Blossom Festival, translated to Hanami Matsuri, at the Kersenbloesempark in Amstelveen. Since the planting of the trees, this yearly festival is hosted by the Japan’s Woman’s Club.

The name Hanami Matsuri (花見祭り) is translated as the following;

• Hana: flower
• Mi: look/view
• Matsuri: party/festival

The festival itself is invite only as it is an official Japanese vacation day. On this day the invitees celebrate with wearing traditional “kimono”, listening to Japanese music, treat themselves to Japanese food and can also buy gifts/presents for loved ones. Invitees include Japanese expats who are part of the large community within Amsterdam and Amstelveen, who also work at one of the 350 Japanese companies in the city such as Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Yakult and Yamaha.

Best Time To Visit & How

Are you in the Netherlands for Spring? Well this is something not to miss! Keep a look out early on, as it could be as early as end of February to the begining of May. But be aware, once in bloom the cherry blossom trees usually last only for 1 week! So it is a little hard to plan your visit to a specific date in advance, but more luck with Springtime. The Amstelveen cherry blossoms are a must if you are in the area!

I visited by public transport from Amsterdam, however by car is also suitable as there are many organised places to park in the area with just a short walk away. If you are wanting to visit by public transport like I did, it is easily reachable within an hour from Amsterdam Centraal by bus and 30 minutes from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. If I lived close by I would cycle there through the rest of the Amsterdamse Bos park!

You can keep track with the twitter hashtag #kersenbloesempark and follow the Japanese Park Amstelveen facebook page for up to date information on the Spring season.

Summary For The Cherry Blossom Trees at the Kersenbloesempark

For 2019, the cherry blossom trees started blooming on the 19th March as the Netherlands had two warm weather weeks which started the buds to bloom earlier than the year before. I took my chance and went three days later, which was a little early for the full bloom. This can be seen in the photos as many have not yet opened their petals, but it was still super pretty to experience.

I enjoyed some time relaxing in the park and scouted the best blooming trees as well as the gezelligheid of others visiting the park too.

Check out our other Spring post for the best places to see Tulips In The Netherlands!

Tips:

• Take a picnic & blanket to relax under the trees
• Make sure your camera battery is charged with space on your memory!
• Respect the park – take your litter home

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We loved seeing the Cherry Blossom Trees at the Kersenbloesempark! Have you been here or have some beautiful blossom locations to share? Let us know in the comments!