You can explore Anan through several seasonal highlights: cherry blossoms in spring, a camellia festival in March, and events in July and December. The area also has historic sites whose stories span different eras. This lets you organize nature, history, and event-related visits according to your personal interests.

Cherry Blossoms at Two Locations

Two locations in Anan are associated with spring blossoms. In spring, Somei-Yoshino cherry blossoms cover the entire hill at Ushiki Castle Ruins Park, making it a well-known cherry blossom spot. Anan Park, in the central district of Tomioka-chō Shōfukujiyama, is also a well-known place to see cherry blossoms in spring. The springtime scenery is therefore associated with two specific locations: an entire castle hill and a park in a central district.

The Castle Hill and Its History

Ukigame Castle stood on the hill at Ushiki Castle Ruins Park during the Sengoku period. It was the residence of the Shingai clan, a military family serving the Hosokawa, who ruled Awa. During the Edo period, the site was the residence of Kagashima, a karō of the Hachisuka house. This sequence takes you from the Shingai clan’s castle residence to the later residence of Kagashima of the Hachisuka house, showing two successive uses of the same hill.

Festivals in Specific Months

A camellia festival takes place in March at Tsubaki Nature Garden in Anan Shi. This offers another seasonal event alongside the cherry blossom spots. At Anan’s summer festival in July, visitors can experience Awa Odori alongside displays decorated with hundreds of thousands of LEDs. The winter event in December, held around Christmas, features a variety of activities centered on a tree decorated with LEDs. July and December differ not only in the month: at the summer festival, illuminated displays and Awa Odori go together, while the winter event’s activities revolve around the tree. If you want a festival to determine your travel dates, check the specific event dates before deciding when to book your stay. The camellia festival is held in March; the cherry blossoms at Ushiki Castle Ruins Park and Anan Park are part of the spring season. When choosing your travel dates, you can therefore distinguish a specific festival month from the seasonal flowering period.

A Lighthouse at Kamoda Cape

Kamoda Cape is also in Anan. A hill rises at its tip, crowned by a white lighthouse that began operating in 1924. This historic feature differs from the castle hill: the lighthouse’s history can be tied to a specific year when it began operating, while the periods of the Sengoku and Edo eras provide the historical framework for Ushiki Castle Ruins Park.

Discover more destinations: Mima, Toyooka, Naka, Komatsushima, Kaiyo, Tokushima, Miyoshi, Obatake

For the broader travel overview: Tokushima Prefecture.