Cherry blossom lingo: full bloom

An important word to know when you are in the Japan for cherry blossom season is "mankai" 満開. This is the word used for when a cherry blossom has reached its full bloom. And it is used on cherry blossom reports throughout the country to indicate when the cherry blossoms are at their peak.

In fact, the Japan Meteorological Corporation (JMC), which provides the official national standard for sakura reporting, defines full bloom (満開 / mankai) as when 80% or more of the buds on the sample tree have opened. Waiting for 100% would make dates unpredictable and inconsistent across regions. Moreover, it would give viewers a shorter window in which to see the trees in their prime and to organizing "hanami" (picnic under the sakura). At 80% they already look fully in bloom to most people.

So if you want to see the cherry blossoms at their best, keep an eye out for reports declaring the sakura as "mankai".  And even though it may mean the trees are still at 80%, be prepared to view the trees within a couple of days of "mankai" being declared as sometimes full bloom doesn't last very long, especially if there is a lot of rain and / or wind.