The Nagahama Plum Tree Bonsai Exhibition started in 1952, and has now become the number one plum tree bonsai exhibition in Japan in terms of both history and scale, as well as a much beloved annual springtime tradition in Kansai.

Enjoy the awe-inspiring sight of 12,000 early blossoming “Kanzaki Nabana” rape flowers, contrasting spectacularly with the lingering snows on Mt.

Cosmos flower bloom profusely in fallow fields close to the Roadside Station “Higashi Omi City Aito Marguerite Station.

As spring blooms once again it is joined by the 1,200 cherry trees in the vicinity of Hikone Castle, marking the most beautiful time of year to visit the castle and its grounds.

Summer sees 20,000 and fall another 10,000 sunflowers blossom beautifully.

See the brilliant blooming colors of 16,000 tulips.

The largest daffodil hill in the Kansai region, boasting an awe-inspiring explosion of 300,000 bulbs.

An English garden located in Maibara.

Strawberry Factory, located in Kusatsu, Shiga, offers not only strawberry picking but also a café and fields for rent.

10,000 hydrangeas flower on the banks of Lake Yogo, creating an enchanting sight.

From July through August sees a veritable carpet of over 10,000 sunflowers in bloom.

Moriyama City is an alluvial plain that was created by sand and soil carried by the Yasu River, and long ago the underground water that bubbled up from almost everywhere was effectively used in both agriculture and everyday life.

Zeze Castle was completed by Ieyasu Tokugawa in the year following his historic victory at the great battle of Sekigahara, and was a beautiful castle that used water from the lake to create natural moats around it.

Nagara Park is famous for its cherry blossoms in spring.

The large and extremely beautiful gardens that spread to the south of Enmanin-shinden Temple are a nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty and Historic Site, and a visit is especially recommended during the changing of the leaves in fall.

The Biwako Otsukan was built in 1934 as the first international tourism hotel in the prefecture, with the intention of bringing in more tourists from overseas.