The 4 Best Activities During the Cherry Blossom Festival
Last updated on : Apr 16, 2021
Springtime is the most beautiful time of year to visit Washington, DC. One reason for this is the cherry blossom trees that adorn the Tidal Basin and other parts of the city. These beautiful trees were gifted by the Mayor of Tokyo to Washington, DC in 1912, and they’re celebrated every spring during the monthlong National Cherry Blossom Festival. Here are 4 of the best activities during the Cherry Blossom Festival.
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The National Cherry Blossom Parade offers fun for the whole family with beautiful floats, performances, and marching bands. I had a beautiful time watching cultural processions like this one from Colombia!
You can pay $20 for a seat in the bleachers, which is where you can hear the announcers and see performances or go early and bring your own blanket or chair to sit along Constitution Avenue and watch the parade for free. I bought a bleacher seat, which was actually convenient, and allowed me to hear more about each parade participant.
Flying a kite on the National Mall dates back to the 1967 Smithsonian Kite Festival. It’s a time-honored tradition that is great for families. And the colorful kites flying over the National Mall is a beautiful sight to see.
This waterfront event lasts the entire day, offering music, water activities, art installations such as Japanese calligraphy, a beer ‘garden’, and an evening fireworks show.
Other unique activities are renting a paddle boat along the Tidal Basin, where you can see the Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial from the water and sampling cherry-blossom-themed menus at participating restaurants.
And though cherry blossoms don’t bear fruit like cherries, it’s still fun to see menu items like cherry blossom macarons and cherry blossom margaritas.
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Nonetheless, the #1 thing you should do is snap a photo of the beautiful trees!
Have you attended the Cherry Blossom Festival? How was your experience?
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These are some great things to do! I hope one day I’ll be able to partake in this event if planned correctly! Thanks for enlightening us!
Hi Ashley,
It’s a great way to welcome spring!!
I’ve always wanted to spend time flying a kite perfectly. In past attempts i wasn’t able to get it up and going for long periods of time.
Hi Tee,
Flying a kite can be a challenge, but it’s awesome to see the different colors in the sky.
Cherry blossom trees are one of my favorite trees! This Festival sounds really fun. I would love the parade, and I think my girls would really love the kites.
Thanks Alaina,
It’s not quite the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, but it’s cute!
Love this post, I am so intrigued by the Cherry Blossom festival. I am hoping to attend the festival next year and your tips are going to be very helpful.
I love Cherry Blossom time. Great pictures and very timely. We plan to head there soon.
Hi Aditi,
Such a unique time of year. They are really beautiful. Hope you make it out one day soon.
How incredible, is love to go there one day and see it for myself! The parade looks like so much fun!
Hi Ithfifi,
It is a pleasant time in DC!
The trees are so pretty. I would love to experience this one day. Thanks for sharing
. Now I will know how to prepare.
Thanks!! They are beautiful trees.
It seems like there is a lot of cool stuff to do here. I love the idea of flying a kite that’s a lovely activity to try.
I didn’t know about this Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC! I know in Japan they are marvelous. How beautiful!
Hi Nati,
Great idea. That’s a good reason for me to go back to Japan!
All of these activity sound like a lot of fun. Especially the festival, such a nice photos.
Xx, Nailil
http://www.thirtyminusone.com
I absolutely love cherry blossoms and I had no idea they had a festival inspired from it! Thank you for the information and I def love all your details!
Thanks Jessica! It’s the unofficial start of spring in DC!