Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival

See the beautiful cherry blossom bloom and stick around for Japanese movies, snacks and silent discos

For approximately two weeks in August, you can walk under a canopy of pink blossom in the Auburn Botanic Gardens and take stunning photos of the Japanese Gardens. It’s cherry blossom season and to celebrate the Gardens run a festival of ticketed events to complement the flora.

They have Serenity days, which are $5, and limit visitors to the Garden so that budding photographers can get a clear shot of the blossom. There’s a food festival with noodles and sashimi from Masyua, Japanese-inspired hot dogs from J Dogs, gyoza and yakitori wraps from Shiso Fine and bao buns from Tsuru and Mr Bao.

You can watch professional wrestlers in the gardens as they compete for the Sakura Cup, there are silent discos, and there’s a night viewing of the blossom called ‘yozakura’ – a tradition in the cherry blossom season. Or you can simply take a self-guided tour and hanami (meaning ‘flower viewing’) around the lake, bridges and alleyways.Read more