Ninnaji’s Late-Blooming Cherries

Ninnaji · 仁和寺

It is mid-April and the rest of Kyoto has moved on. The Somei Yoshino trees along the Kamo River are bare, their petals long since washed downstream. The Philosopher’s Path is green again. Cherry season, everyone says, is over. Then you walk through the gate at Ninnaji and find yourself standing among two hundred cherry trees in full, extravagant bloom — not towering above you as cherries usually do, but at eye level, their blossoms close enough to touch. The five-story pagoda rises behind them against a pale spring sky. You are not late. You are exactly on time.

Why Ninnaji Is Special

Ninnaji was founded in 888 AD by Emperor Uda, who abdicated the throne and became the temple’s first head priest — establishing a tradition of imperial abbots that continued for over seven hundred years. The temple complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized as part of the “Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto,” and its grounds contain a striking collection of buildings spanning several centuries: a massive Nio-mon gate, a five-story pagoda, a graceful Goten palace with painted screens and dry landscape gardens, and the Kondo main hall, which was originally part of the Kyoto Imperial Palace before being relocated here in 1613.

But what brings most spring visitors to Ninnaji is not the architecture. It is the Omuro cherries (御室桜), a variety found nowhere else quite like this. These are multi-petaled, late-blooming trees that grow only two to three meters tall, their trunks thick and gnarled, their branches spreading outward rather than upward. The reason for their stunted growth is the temple’s clay-rich soil, which restricts root development and keeps the trees low. The effect is startling: instead of looking up at cherry blossoms as you do everywhere else, at Ninnaji you look across at them, or even slightly down. The Japanese phrase is “hana wo miorosu” — to look down upon the flowers — and it describes an experience unique in all of Japan.

The roughly two hundred Omuro cherry trees were designated a National Natural Monument, and their late bloom timing — one to two weeks after the standard Somei Yoshino — makes Ninnaji the last major cherry blossom site in Kyoto. For visitors who arrive in mid-April thinking they have missed the season entirely, Ninnaji is a gift: the final act of spring, played at a height where you can see every petal.

Getting There

The Randen tram line is the most atmospheric way to arrive — the small, single-car train runs through quiet residential streets and the station is directly in front of the temple’s main gate. From central Kyoto, take the Randen from Shijo-Omiya or connect via the Kitano Line from Kitano-Hakubaicho.

Spring at Ninnaji

The Omuro cherries bloom in mid to late April, typically one to two full weeks after the Somei Yoshino trees that define cherry season at most Kyoto sites. This timing makes Ninnaji the undisputed last stop on Kyoto’s cherry blossom calendar. In a year when the main season peaks around March 30, the Omuro cherries may not reach full bloom until April 15 or later. They hold their blossoms for roughly a week before scattering.

During bloom season, a special viewing area opens within the cherry grove, and the ¥500 admission is charged specifically for access to this section of the grounds. The grove is compact enough that you can walk through it in fifteen to twenty minutes, but most visitors linger much longer, circling back to see the trees from different angles and with the pagoda in different positions in the background. The combination of the low, spreading trees and the towering pagoda creates compositions that are almost impossible to photograph badly.

Because the Omuro cherries bloom after most tourists have left Kyoto or turned their attention to other activities, the crowds at Ninnaji during bloom are real but manageable — nothing like the crush at Maruyama Park or the Philosopher’s Path during peak Somei Yoshino season. Weekday mornings at opening time are the quietest, and by 11:00 AM on a weekend you will be sharing the grove with a moderate but not uncomfortable number of people, many of them locals who know to come here last.

Insider Tips

Nearby Spots

When the rest of Kyoto has said goodbye to spring, Ninnaji’s Omuro cherries are just beginning. Two hundred trees blooming at eye level, a pagoda against the April sky, and the rare pleasure of looking down upon the flowers. The last blossoms are often the sweetest.

Last updated: 2026-03-03