[Hiraoka Park in Sapporo] Ume Grove Has About 1,200 Red Ume Trees and White Ume Trees

Hiraoka Park

Hiraoka Park (平岡公園) is a comprehensive park of 664,000 m2 in Kiyota ward, Sapporo city, and has opened since 1991. It is away from the downtown of the Sapporo. In the parks of the Sapporo, it is the 4th largest park after Moerenuma Park (モエレ沼公園), Makomanai Park (真駒内公園) and Maruyama Park (円山公園). The Hiraoka Park is divided into 2 parts, East Area and West Area by Hokkaido Expwy (道央自動車道). The East Area has a baseball ground, a tennis court, a gateball ground, a multi-purpose open space, Playground Equipment Open Space (遊具広場), Earth Open Space (地球の広場), Lawn Open Space (芝生広場), a parking lot and a public restroom, and the West Area has Ume Goove (梅林), a man-made marsh, Sanri River (三里川), Lawn Open Space (芝生広場), Flower Open Space (花の広場), a park golf course, public restrooms and parking lots. Especially, the Ume Groove is the most famous things in the Hiraoka Park, and is also well-known as a good place to see the Ume blossoms. The best time to see the Ume blossoms is about from early May to mid May. Admission free. A parking lot is free of charge.

During the Ume blossoms blooming, Hiraoka Ume Festival (ひらおか梅まつり) is held about between a month, and about 120,000 visitors come. 15,000 people per a day seem to come at the most. The Ume grove used to be lit up, but it does not seem to be lit up now. The park is used as a setting by WORKING!!, a popular Japanese animation, so the visitors can enjoy visiting the real-life locations. By the way, Hiraoka Greenary Center (平岡樹芸センター) that is famous for cherry blossoms and fall foliage is close to here.

Movie of WORKING!!

Hiraoka Greenary Center with Fall Foliage

Hiraoka Greenary Center (平岡樹芸センター) is a botanical park opend in 1984, and is commonly known as Midorimu (みどりーむ). Mr. Sanjiro Takezawa (竹澤三次郎) donate land with trees, and the park was developed. 100 kinds of trees, about ten thousand tress, such as 3000 Japanese Yew (イチイ) and 700-800 Mountain Maple Trees (ヤマモミジ), Nomura Maple Trees (ノムラモミジ) and Japanese Weeping Maple Trees (シダレモミジ) are planted on the site of about 3 ha. The park is famous as a beauty sopt for cherry blossom and fall foliage, too, and a lot of tourists and photographers come to take photos in cherry blossom season, from early June to mid June, and fall foliage season, from mid october to early November. In addition, Tanabata Star Festival (七夕祭) is held in early August, too. Admission free. A parking lot is free of charge. Read More

SAPPORO

Sapporo (札幌) that about 1,960,000 people live is the largest city in Hokkaido. Although there are various theories, its origin of the name is “Dry Big River (乾いた大きな川)” in Ainu language. A population of the Sapporo is the 4th largest city after Yokohama, Osaka and Nagoya in japan, and the population accounts for 36 % of Hokkaido’s population! So the Sapporo has been flourished as the center of the Hokkaido. The area of the Sapporo is 1,121.26 km2, and is about as big as Hong Kong, and is the 7th largest city in the Hokkaido. The Sapporo is also famous as a tourist city, and about 15 million people come. As for a climate, it is hot that temperature rises to nearly 25 degrees in a summer, but it is easy to live without moisture. I always feel a little cool. It is cold that temperature falls to nearly -10 degrees in a winter, and amount of snowfall sometimes has more than 1 m. Read More

Ume Groove of Hiraoka Park

About 1,200 Ume trees are planted at the site of about 65,000 m2. The Ume trees have 2 types of Ume trees, White Ume Tree (白梅) and Red Ume Tree (赤梅), and those blooming period are a little different, so the best time to see Ume blossoms is blooming the both Ume blossoms at the same time. When I visited here in May 12, 2017, it was just good timing. Red and White Ume blossoms were in full bloom! The site is large, so it takes about 60 minutes to look around on foot. In addition, the visitors had better comfortable shoes because they walk some small hills with slopes. I parked my car at The 1st Parking Lot (第一駐車場). First of all, I walked to the Ume grove through Umnoka Bridge (梅の香橋). The bridge is a wooden bridge made of Bongossi tree, and has been built since 1993. The length is about 70 m, and it is said that the bridge used to be the longest wooden bridge in Japan at that time. At present, the Japan’s longest wooden bridge in the Guinness Book is Horai Bridge (蓬莱橋) in Shizuoka prefecture, and the length is about 900 m.

It takes about 10 minutes from the parking lot to the Ume grove on foot. A tunnel of the Ume blossoms is formed on a small hill of about 50 m elevation, and the Ume blossoms are in full bloom here and there. Those have good smell, too.

Views from a small hill with slopes at the side of the Hokkaido Expwy is most beautiful, and the visitors can view a valley of the Ume grove. The Red Ume blossoms and White Ume blossoms go well with green grass.

Hiraoka Ume Honpo (ひらおか梅ほんぽ) opens a business in the Ume grove during the Hiraoka Ume Festival. A lot of poeple ate pink Ume flavor soft serve ice creams when I visited here. It is very popular, so a long line sometimes is foemed. At the shop, Bairin Soba with pink noodles is served, too.

Atmosphere of Ume Blossoms of Hiraoka Park Can Be Watched on Youtube

Movie of Ume Blossoms of Hiraoka Park

List of Accommodations

Refer to following websites for the accommodations around the Hiraoka Park. You can get information regarding online reviews and photos.

Atsubetsu ward

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Hotel Emisia Sapporo(ホテルエミシア札幌)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Shin-sapporo Arc City Hotel(新さっぽろアークシティホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten

Kita-hiroshima

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Kitahiroshima Classe Hotel(北広島クラッセホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Kitahiroshima Nature Forest Campsite(北広島市自然の森キャンプ場)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten