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Downtown Akron Sakura Festival

Category: Event Calendar

Date and Time for this Past Event

  • Saturday, Apr 15, 2023  4pm - 8pm

Details

SATURDAY, APRIL 15 | 4 - 8 pm

Join us for the 2023 Downtown Akron Sakura Festival as we celebrate the coming of spring and the beautiful cherry blossom trees planted along the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in downtown Akron.

This year the celebration will be bigger than ever, with food, music, vendors, craft activities, and activity spots at the Mustill Store, Locks 1 - 3, Ohio & Erie Canal Park, and the Towpath behind Spaghetti Warehouse. The festival is free and open to all.

Festival schedule and details

Towpath Trail Sakura Festival Bike Ride (2:30 - 3:30 pm)

Mustill Store (4 - 6 pm)

  • Live music with Lydia Snyder
  • Museum exhibit
  • Origami craft
  • Smartphone photography workshop with Micah Beree of ArtWorks (registration required)

Lock 3 Commons Room (4 - 8 pm)

  • Sushi from Cilantro Thai & Sushi
  • Sake tasting
  • Snacks & beverages
  • Live traditional Japanese koto and shinobue music with Miki Saito
  • Ikebana (Japanese flower arranging)
  • Akron Children's Museum craft
  • Restrooms

Lock 2 (4- 8 pm)

  • K-Pop & J-Pop DJ with Mic Drop Entertainment
  • Kimono vendor (Ohio Kimono)
  • NIHF STEM students poetry exhibition
  • STEM students Wish Ribbons Activity
  • Buddha Board activity by Akron Art Museum
  • IB Designs Caricatures
  • Asian Services in Action

Lock 1 (4 - 8 pm)

  • Storywalk

Spaghetti Warehouse Trailhead (4 - 8)

  • Live music & dance performances
    • Sho-Jo-Ji Japanese Dancers
    • Yume Daiko Drummers
  • Dr. Hibachi food truck
  • Red Bean Bakes Asian bakery
  • Bereka Coffee
  • Guided painting activity by Street Craftery (registration required)
  • Bonsai display by Akron-Canton Bonsai Society
  • Bonsai vendor (Lucky Bonsai)
  • Reconnecting Our Community
  • Wild & Free OT kids nature activity
  • Akron-Summit County Public Library Bookmobile
  • Sunshine Expressions Face Painting
  • Origami craft
  • Restrooms 

Williams Tower (4 - 6 pm)

  • Live Japanese koto music by Mike Hovancsek 
  • Storywalk
  • Restrooms

Boiling House Akron

  • Sakura sushi combo 
  • Sakura summer drink special

Click here the Festival Map.

Click here for the Festival Performance Schedule.

PARKING:

Click here for the Spaghetti Warehouse Parking area

Click here for the Lock 2 / Lock 3 Parking area (about a 9-minute walk to Spaghetti Warehouse area)

Click here for the Mustill Store Parking area

Click here for the Williams Tower Parking area

DAP will join the Japanese Association of Northeast Ohio (JANO) in following the blossoms as they emerge, and will use social media invite visitors to view their splendor throughout the brief bloom. Follow DAP on social media at @downtownakron or check back in the coming days for updates on the blossoms.

Between 2011 and 2012, the City of Akron, with support from JANO, planted more than 400 cherry trees along the Towpath Trail. Every spring, for a handful of days, the trees emerge with beautiful blooms, heralding the coming of spring to downtown.

Read about the 2022 Downtown Akron Sakura Celebration.

The 2023 Downtown Akron Sakura Festival is presented by DAP in partnership with Japanese Association of Northeast Ohio (JANO), Asian Services In Action: ASIA, Ohio & Erie Canalway, Alpha Phi Alpha Homes, Cascade Locks Park Association, the City of Akron, Akron Children's Museum, and Akron Civic Commons, with additional support from Akron Community Foundation, Ohio Arts Council, GAR Foundation, and Knight Foundation.