If you haven't been to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden during cherry blossom season, go soon!

In Japan, hanami is the tradition of viewing cherry blossoms (sakura) in the spring. With more than 200 cherry trees, the first of which were planted after World War I, the BBG has one of the largest collections of these gorgeous trees outside Japan. (And hey, you won't need to hustle down to Washington D.C. with much of the Northeast and battle it out for hotel rooms!)