Residents in Aomori Prefecture seem to cherish sakura more than anywhere else in Japan, according to a survey on cherry blossom viewing by weather forecaster Weathernews Inc.
The survey was conducted on subscribers to its smartphone apps.
In ranking their individual spending plans for this year’s blossom-viewing parties, those in the northern prefecture came out on top at ¥3,167. Members in adjacent Iwate Prefecture ranked second at ¥2,919.
Aomori’s subscribers also ranked high in two other categories, placing third in time spent viewing cherry blossoms, at 2.3 hours, and fourth for time spent holding sites in advance at crowded venues, at 5.1 hours.
Gifu subscribers took first in site reservation time at 6.2 hours, followed by Hiroshima users at 5.6 hours.
On the question of how many times they want to hold sakura-viewing parties, Yamagata’s subscribers placed first at 2.2 times, followed by those in Saga, Akita and Toyama.
Okinawa’s subscribers ranked lowest in spending and number of viewing parties. Some participants replied that Okinawans do not have a habit of holding sakura-viewing parties and merely enjoy the blossoms themselves.
The survey used multiple-choice questions, and the responses to each one ranged from 7,500 to 9,700.