I am so blessed that I lived in Hokkaido. During spring and summer, Eastern Hokkaido is amazingly gorgeous with its breathtaking flower parks and gardens. One of the flowers that can be frequently seen in the ground is the moss or creeping phlox (Phlox subulata) called shibazakura in Japanese. Its simple flowers are not only pretty but remarkably plentiful, densely populating the field. There are 2 parks in Hokkaido dedicated for shibazakura: Higashimokoto and Takinoue.

Higashimokoto Shibazakura Park

Higashimokoto Shibazakura Park is the bigger of the two. The park is located in a small town called Ozora, in Abashiri district. I’ve been there twice and I was at awe in both of those visits. The best time to see the park is from mid-May to early June.

The hill is painted with approximately a million of shibazakura making it an amazing, magical scenery. It’s like a pink paradise where the shibazakura covers the area of about 100,000 square meters on a steep hill slopes. Climbing up the hill while looking at the glorious pink moss phloxes was a great experience.

Shibazakura Takinoue Park

Two hours north of Asahikawa is the Takinoue town where the Shibazakura Takinoue Park is located. Among the 2 parks, I have been in Takinoue first and it was the first time I fell in love with the massive beautiful pink moss phloxes. The park also lies on a hillside of 100,000 square meters with walking pathways provided.

The shibazakura flowers start blooming in late April and reach their peak season between the mid and late May. So it’s a must to see these real-life pink fairylands when visiting Hokkaido in spring.