Cosmos Wonder in Awaji Hanasajiki

Date: 23rd November 2018

My last stop in Awajishima before heading back to Kobe is the Awaji Hanasajiki (あわじ花さじき), located on the northern end of the island. Awajishima is known for its flowers to the point of having its own flower pilgrimage sites called the Awaji Hana Henro featuring 52 different sites.

From the hillside of the park, you will be able to see Osaka Bay and the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge that connects Awajishima and the Honshu Island which provides a great backdrop for the flower hill.

Various flowers bloom throughout the season as listed below:

Spring: nanohana / rapeseed blossoms (early Mar to mid Apr), murasaki-hanana / purple rape blossoms (late Mar to late Apr), narcissus, poppies (mid Apr to mid May)
Summer: himawari / sunflower (mid Jul to late Aug), verbena (Jun to Jul), cleomes (early Jul to mid Aug)
Autumn: cosmos (early Oct to early Nov), salvia (early Sep to end Oct)
Winter: stock flower (mid Nov to late Feb), pansy

I thought that I would be too late for the cosmos, but I was able to capture some great shots of the lovely cosmos here in late November. The sun was shy on this day so I had to spend a bit of time playing hide and seek and waiting, but it was worth it!

Info

Opening hours: 09:00 – 17:00

Closing days: New Year Holidays

Admission fee: Free

Access

Bus

To Higashiura Bus Terminal:
- From Maiko Station (Tarumi, Kobe) on the JR Sanyo Main Line, take the bus to Higashiura Bus Terminal for 12 minutes, 610 yen. There are 2-3 buses per hour operated by a number of bus companies – bus schedule is available in Google Maps.
- From the southern end of Awajishima, you can take the 縦貫線 (Longitudinal) line to Higashiura Bus Terminal. Buses run every hour or so, it takes around an hour from Tsuna Ichinomiya Interchange @ 810 yen.
From Higashiura Bus Terminal, take either a taxi for a 10 mins-ride, or you can hike up for 40-mins (2km).

Driving