Cherry blossoms covering Mt. Yoshino, renowned for its 30,000 sakura trees of 200 varieties, in the western Japan prefecture of Nara reached their peak blooms Friday, 10 days earlier than usual.
This year was also marked by fewer visitors due to the coronavirus pandemic, with disinfection booths set up in nearby train stations and parking areas, as well as bus tours for tourists taking rapid COVID-19 tests before visiting the area.
Reservations for about 2,000 buses for tours are made every year but they have plummeted to a tenth this year due to the coronavirus spread, according to the town of Yoshino where the mountain is located.
