On our Shibazakura Festival tours you will have the
chance to see thousands of moss phlox, which are
also known as ground cherry blossoms. The best
places to see the flowers are at the Fuji Shibazakura
Festival and the Shibazakura Festivals of Hokkaido.
The Shibazakura Festivals of Hokkaido is best
experienced at the Higashimokoto Moss Phlox Park.
The creation of the field started with only a box full of
the seeds. After 8 years of hard work the
Higashimokoto Park was founded in 1956. Since the
planting of the seeds more have been added to flower
park and now it covers over 100,000 square meters
on a hillside overlooking Takinoue. It was started and
mostly built by one man named Chubachi Sueyoshi.
His sister obtained a single moss phlox plant shortly
after the end of World War II and brought it from
Rubeshibe to Higashimokoto. During the
Higashimokoto Moss Phlox Festival, which is from
early May to early June, the fields are illuminated at
night.
Fuji Shibazakura Festival is a 1 ½ month long
celebration that usually starts mid-April to the end of
May. It is a festival that features the moss phlox flower
with Mount Fuji in the background. There are over
800,000 moss phlox (shibazakura) planted throughout
the area. The venue used is three kilometers away
from Lake Motosuko, which is part of the Fuji Five
Lakes. There are five varieties of moss phlox, which
are Scarlet Flame, Autumn Rose, McDaniels Cushion,
Tama no Nagare, and Little Dot. Amongst the pink
fields there is a mound that is meant to be the
shibazakura version of Mount Fuji. Once entering the
park you will be taken flooded with an amazing field of
shibazakura. The Panorama Footbath allows you to
enjoy great views of the field while soaking your feet in
hot water.
