Japan’s Top 100 Blossoms: Ōmura Park (Nagasaki)

Ōmurazakura is a variety of yaezakura discovered in 1941 that has a large number of petals, ranging from 60 to many as 200 per blossom. It blooms slightly later than somei yoshino from early to mid-April. The park is also famous for its approximately 300,000 Japanese irises that flower from late May to mid-June.

Ōmura Sumitada was a sixteenth-century lord of Kushima Castle who became the first daimyō to be baptized and who also dispatched a mission to Europe. Although not part of UNESCO’s “Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region” World Heritage site, the park features many relics from the days when Jesuit missionaries were active in Nagasaki.

Ōmura Park (Nagasaki)

• Varieties: Somei yoshino, ōmurazakura, etc.
• No. of trees: 2,000
• When: Late March to early April
• Hours: Open 24 hrs.
• Admission: Free
• Address: 1-43 Kushima, Ōmura-shi, Nagasaki
• Website: Ōmura City

Near Ōmura Park

• Nagasaki Boasts Japan’s Top Night View
• Touring Nagasaki’s Gotō Islands by Boat
• The Natural Beauty and Historic Churches of the Gotō Islands (Video)
• Exploring Nagasaki’s Gotō Islands and the History of the Hidden Christians

Sakura 100: Japan’s Best Blossoms

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Ōmura City Convention and Visitors Association.)