The average amount of money people will be spending for this year’s cherry blossom viewing is ¥2,831 ($19), the highest in six years, as more people travel for the annual event, according to a survey by Weathernews, a private weather company.

The figure topped prepandemic levels in 2019 (¥2,728) and is up by ¥301 from last year (¥2,530).

The survey, conducted via the company’s app, allowed respondents to select budgets ranging from none to over ¥10,000 in increments of ¥500.

People in Yamanashi Prefecture emerged at the top of the list with an average budget of ¥3,688, followed closely by those in Tokushima Prefecture (¥3,684) and Okayama Prefecture (¥3,410). People in Akita Prefecture, who spent the most last year among all 47 prefectures, dropped to sixth place, with ¥3,282.

Some 52% of the respondents said they will go to cherry blossom viewing, also known as hanami. But what stood out from last year is that those planning hanami trips doubled from 7% last year to 14% this year.

This increase in travel is believed to be the cause of the increase in average hanami budgets, as increased transportation costs add to the overall expenditure in addition to food and beverages, the survey said.

The survey also asked respondents for their favorite cherry blossom viewing spots, with Hirosaki Park in Aomori Prefecture topping the list, followed by Mount Yoshino in Nara Prefecture, Miharu Takizakura in Fukushima Prefecture and Goryokaku Park in Hokkaido.

As of Thursday noon, reports from the Meteorological Agency reveal that cherry blossoms in 39 prefectures, including prominent locales such as Kyoto, Hiroshima and Fukuoka, have begun to blossom, which is later than normal due to a bout of cold weather.

According to the Weather Association’s forecast on Wednesday, cherry blossoms in Nagoya will reach full bloom on the same day. Those in Tokyo will reach full bloom on Thursday, followed by Osaka and Sendai on Saturday, Nagano on April 12 and Sapporo on April 30.