Where to Find Chicago’s Cherry Blossoms

eATLAS has three Adventures near the cherry blossoms in Jackson Park. Our free Hyde Park Art Walk takes you to eight murals, sculptures, and more. Will Quam’s Brick Architecture of Chicago
– Hyde Park walk takes you to nine stops, including Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House, where the brickwork is not only beautiful, but reveals information about the buildings. The third is the scavenger hunt created by the Hyde Park Neighborhood Club. Here you’ll learn about the neighborhood’s rich history, artwork, and famous residents.

By Dave Lifton (@daveeatschicago)

Although the area surrounding the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C., is most closely associated with cherry blossoms, Chicago has its share. In 2013, in recognition of the 120 th anniversary of the World’s Columbian Exposition, a civic public-private partnership called Project 120 looked to restore the beauty of Jackson Park, where the fair was held. The organization worked with the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Chicago to plant a more than 150 cherry trees, or sakura, to symbolize the relationship between Japan and Chicago. Osaka and Chicago are sister cities.

Most of the cherry blossoms are located on the west side of the Columbia Basin directly south of the Museum of Science and Industry. Another batch was planted in the Garden of the Phoenix on Wooded Island, the site of the Japanese pavilion. For many of the fair’s visitors, it was their initial exposure to Japanese art and culture. Accessible via footbridge, the garden also features a pagoda and Yoko Ono’s Sky Landing, a dozen 12’ stainless steel lotus petals.

On April 26 th , 2025 from 1 – 3 p.m., the Japanese Arts Foundation, Chicago Park District, Japanese Cultural Center, and Tsukasa Taiko will host their annual Hanami, a festival dedicated to viewing the sakura. The afternoon will feature traditional taiko drumming, origami folding, and the making of decorative postcards.

The year before the sakura arrived in Jackson Park, the government of Japan gifted the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe 20 cherry trees in recognition of the 100 th anniversary of the donation of the Washington, D.C., trees. They were planted in the Elizabeth Hubert Malott Japanese Garden (Sansho-En), a collection of three islands. The Keiunto (Island of the Auspicious Cloud) is the focal point, with pine trees, stone lanterns and a Shoin House that was built in Japan. The Seifuto (Island of Clear, Pure Breezes) features a Zen garden and arbor house, with gravel paths raked in a way that symbolizes breaking waves. The third, Horaijima (Island of Everlasting Happiness), represents paradise, and is inaccessible and viewed only from a distance.

Lastly, The Morton Arboretum in Lisle also has a small collection of cherry trees. They can be found in the Asia Collection on the East Side of the arboretum in a path off the trailhead of Main Trail Loop 1.

Cherry blossoms are usually only in full bloom for a week or two during the end of April and beginning of May. However, Chicago’s notoriously unpredictable springs often make it difficult to determine when – or even if – the buds will open. Check the Chicago Park District’s page about cherry blossoms so you can see when they will be at their peak.

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