Orange County Events To Look Forward To- The Cherry Blossoms In Orange County

A fun-filled weekend for the whole family packed with Japanese food, music, dance, cultural performances, games, and crafts for the kids kicks off during the Cherry Blossom Festival on March 13-15, 2020.  

The annual Orange County Cherry Blossom Festival is one of the Orange County events celebrated annually by Japanese and Japanese American culture in Southern California. The festival is supported by a 30-year student exchange relationship that Huntington Beach shares with their sister city of Anjo, Japan. The Sister City Association of Huntington Beach is a volunteer organization dedicated to maintaining the tradition of friendship and cultural exchange with its sister city in Anjo, Japan.

Orange County events like this bring together a broad spectrum of performers and activities that span the traditional to the contemporary. From Taiko drumming, minyo, classical dance, gagaku music, origami, ikebana alongside with cosplay contests, anime characters, electronic music, jazz, video game tournaments, and beyond. 

In 2013, the Huntington Beach Cherry Blossom celebration was created by one of our student ambassadors as her Girl Scout Gold Award project. The Huntington Beach Cherry Blossom Festival highlights Japanese dance, music, cultural exhibits, arts, crafts, and games and becomes distinguished for its exquisite Japanese food offerings! 

More than 70,000 delegations attended the festival last year from Japan to witness and support the event! If you would like to be involved with the Huntington Beach Sister City program as either a student ambassador or chaperone, we encourage you to apply!

The three-day schedule is packed with Cherry Blossom Entertainment

The Orange County Cherry Blossom Festival expanded its tradition. It celebrates the food, drink, crafts, music, and dance of Japanese Americans and the rootedness and hybridity of this culture in SoCal. 

The festival presents a more extensive community with a chance for everyone to see and hear traditional elements of the Japanese culture as well as the many contemporary and hybrid forms that have emerged in the United States. 

The Sakura Night Market will feature the same food booths and vendors offered during the day. The main difference is that the park will be lit up at night with light installations for the Sakura Night Market (Fri & Sat: Between 5 pm-9 pm). Attendees can enjoy this evening experience of live entertainment, performances, food, drink, and more! This event is also all about tasting the best of Japanese food and drinks.

This Night Market will come alive with live performances, 50+ vendors and some of the best Japanese and Japanese American style cuisines in the region, including GAJA Japanese Food (okonomiyaki), JAPA DOG, Okamoto Kitchen, Tenkatori Japanese Fried Chicken, Lucky Ball Korean BBQ, Takoyaki Tanota, Hungry Belly Thai, The Deli Doctor, baby mini donuts and much more.  

Whether it is taiko drumming, folk music, classical dance, jazz, cosplay dance troupes, symphonic rock, DJs, crafts, Asahi, sake, Nintendo Switch tournaments, or the 20+ food vendors, the festival is sure to offer something for everyone to enjoy. 

Need more information?

The Cherry Blossom Festival hours:

Friday, March 13 from 5 – 9 pm, 

Saturday, March 14, from 10 am – 9 pm and 

Sunday, March 15, from 10 am – 4 pm. 

Address: Central Park, 7111 Talbert St. in Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach, CA92648

Cost:$5

For more information, visit https://occbfest.com/home

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