Cherry Blossom Festival Tours
Overview of the Cherry Blossom Festival
This year marks the 98th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival. The original trees were a gift to the United States by Japan in 1912. They were planted by First Lady Mrs. William Howard Taft and the Viscountess Chinda of Japan. More than 3,700 cherry trees of several varieties bloom in Washington DC. They are found around the Tidal Basin near the Jefferson Memorial, at East Potomac Park, and on the Washington Monument grounds. Make sure you take full advantage of the Festival, including visiting the Cherry Blossom Parade, watching the Fireworks, and just spending time viewing the beautiful trees.
How to See The Blossoms — Cherry Blossom Tours
The best way to see the Cherry Blossoms is to take the OnBoard DC It All! Tour. It is the only ticket you can buy that will show you the blossoms by both land and water. Included in the DC It All! Tour, (starting March 28) is a boat cruise on the Potomac. The boat will sail up the channel along East Potomac Park to show you the cherry blossoms from the best vantage point possible. You will also visit the Jefferson Memorial on the tour shuttle, and your guide will walk you around the Tidal Basin to see the fabulous trees in full bloom. Please bring extra memory cards for your camera, because you won’t believe the fantastic photo opportunities. Reserve your seats for the DC It All! Tour here.
The OnBoard RoundAbout Tour also stops near the Cherry Blossoms. If you want more time to spend looking at the trees, the RoundAbout is your best bet because you can decide when to leave the area rather than having to stay with the group. We recommend that you purchase a DC It All! Tour for the boat ride and the overview tour, and then purchase a RoundAbout ticket so you have unlimited transportation back to the Tidal Basin over the next 3 days. Book your RoundAbout Tour of DC here.
Cherry Blossom Blooming Schedule
National Park Service horticulturists have predicted the peak bloom for the Yoshino cherry trees around the Tidal Basin and East Potomac Park to be
April 1 – April 4, 2009. The “peak bloom” is defined as the period when 70% of the blooms are open. Because of this winter’s weather patterns, OnBoard believes that the blossoms will start opening on March 28 and will run through approximately April 12th. If you take the DC It All! Tour at the beginning or end of that period, you should expect to see fewer blooms, and you run the risk of there not being any blooms at all. Unfortunately, we cannot control mother nature for sometimes she has her own plan that does not take into account the interests of DC visitors.
Fireworks Show
On April 3rd, a spectacular fireworks display will take place over the water at 8:30pm. The festivities start at 5:00pm with the prelude to the fireworks, including musical performances, kids craft activities, cuisine from local restaurants, and more. We suggest that you sign up for the DC The Lights! Tour on April 3rd. In addition to seeing DC’s monuments lit up at night, our guide will take you to a strategic location to view the fireworks in the middle of the tour.
The Cherry Blossom Festival Parade
The Parade of the National Cherry Blossom Festival begins at 10am on Saturday, April 10. The Parade marches along historic Constitution Avenue between 7th and 17th Streets, NW. Tickets are $15 each, and may be purchased through Ticketmaster.
The parade is a wonderful event for children of all ages. It includes:
* Dance and drumming performance teams from Japan and the United States highlight the art of taiko drumming.
* Cherry blossom queens from the US and Japan add royalty to the procession.
* The National Cherry Blossom Festival® All-StarTap Dance Team and Youth Choir entertain with sensational musical numbers for eager audiences.
* Giant balloons, floats, horses, antiquecars, clowns and mascots all add to the merriment on parade morning.
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