Wuhan University Cherry Blossoms

Wuhan University is perennially ranked among the most beautiful campuses in China, and in mid-March, when its several thousand cherry trees are in full blossom, it becomes one of the major annual pilgrimages in Chinese domestic tourism. The campus occupies the hills above the western shore of East Lake, with early-Republican-era stone buildings in a Chinese classical architectural style set among terraces, gardens, and pathways framed by cherry blossoms in various states of bloom.

Visitor numbers during peak blossom (usually the second and third week of March) can be staggering — timed entry tickets are required and should be booked online weeks in advance. Early morning visits are most rewarding; by midday the paths through the cherry groves are crowded and the atmosphere changes from serene to carnival. Outside blossom season the campus is free to walk through and remains worth visiting for the architecture and the East Lake views from the upper terraces.

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A story
The cherry trees at Wuhan University were planted by Japanese soldiers who occupied the campus during the Second World War. After Japan's defeat in 1945, Chinese officials debated whether to destroy them as symbols of occupation. They were kept, and they now draw millions of visitors each year — an inadvertent monument to the complexities of cultural memory.