A slice of Japan will no longer be making a return to Auburn this year as Cumberland Council is forced to cancel its annual Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival.
Due to the current, escalating COVID-19 situation, the Council has had to make the difficult decision to pull the pin on the festival, which was scheduled to run from Saturday, August 21 to Sunday, August 29 at the Auburn Botanic Gardens.
The annual Cherry Blossom Festival symbolises the start of the cherry blossom season and is celebrated widely in Japan, known as ‘hanami’, meaning flower viewing.
A spokesperson from Cumberland City Council said it is disappointed to announce the event will be cancelled, but noted it was unsafe to proceed due to the public health risk.
“For anyone who has purchased a ticket, it will be automatically refunded in the next seven to 10 working days,” the spokesperson said.
“The decision to cancel was not made lightly.
“The health and safety of visitors to our events and parks are of the utmost priority.
“We understand this decision will be disappointing for our community – as it is for us.
“Our staff have worked hard to plan a fantastic event with amazing food and entertainment but you can’t keep a good festival down and we look forward to blooming again next year.”
Troy Dodds is Parra News' Managing Editor and Breaking News Reporter. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working with some of Australia’s leading media organisations. In 2023, he was named Editor of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.