Flower Station “IKOMA Plateau” – Apple Picking & Cosmos Festival in 2016 – (Kobayashi City, Miyazaki)

We visited Ikoma Plateau (Kobayashi City, Miyazaki) to enjoy apple picking!

Lucky the Cosmos Festival was held at the time of our visit♪

Big apples and colorful cosmos flowers were very impressive. 🙂

CONTENTS

1 Arrival on Ikoma Plateau
2 Many Apples!
- 2.1 Happy Family Time
- 2.2 Useful Picking Tool
3 Ikoma Plateau Cosmos Festival
- 3.1 Enter Park
- 3.2 Beautiful Scenery
4 My Comment
5 Information of Ikoma Plateau
6 Nearby Sightseeing Spots

Arrival on Ikoma Plateau

It took about 1.5 hours to drive from Kagoshima City via Kyushu Highway to the plateau by car.

The shop appearance was different from the last year and became new!

（See Article of Apple Picking in 2015）

We entered the shop and found many fresh apples sold. 🙂

Every one of apples are very big and look delicious. I found my favorite apple “Gunma Meigetsu”!

(Personally I love the apple because it is sweeter than other kinds of apple)

We paid entrance fee and entered the picking park!

You can pick different kinds of apples according to different season.

Surprisingly there are as many as 16 kinds of apple!

When we came to the park in September last year, we enjoyed picking apples at 1st park. It was the beginning of September this time, we picked apples at the neigboring 2nd park♪

I received a paper of list of apples in October.

According to the list, you can pick apples such as “Shinano sweet”, “Gunma Meigetsu”, Shinano Gold” and “Fuji”.

Many Apples!

We got a bag for picked apples. Let’s enter into to the apple world!!

Big round apples welcomed us♪

Despite of some recent typhoons, many apples are hanging from trees.

I introduce 4 kinds of apples.

Sweet but not too sour “Shinano-sweet”

Good texture, sweet and sour “Shinano-Gold”.

Good balance of sweetness and sourness “Fuji”

My wife loves the Fuji.

Sweet and very popular “Gunma Meigetsu”

I mainly picked this apple.

Happy Family Time

We have visited this apple park 7 years consecutively.

Last year my wife visited here for the first time. At that time, she was pregnant.

Our daughter joined our family this year. She is 6 months old.

Our daughter picked an apple with her own hands. She looks delighted.

Our nephews joined apple picking this year. They seemed to have enjoyed picking apples very much, too.

Useful Picking Tool

I found that some people were using special tools to pick apples this year.

We have not seen it until last year. I found it useful to pick an apple at high branches of the tree.

This tool enables old people and small children to enjoy picking apples at high places.

Ikoma Plateau Cosmos Festival

The cosmos park is located across the road of the apple park.

We visited the cosmos festival at the park.

The night candles and fireworks will be held at night during the festival season.

Enter Park

We found many tents of local food stores after entering to the park.

I found that one of shops sold many kinds of beautiful flowers include my wife’s favorite Dahlia.

Every flower is fresh and beautiful.

Beautiful Scenery

Beautiful scenery impressed us after we got through shopping area.

We could see Kobayashi City in a distance!!

Many people enjoy having lunch on the lawn.

Cosmos is the flower of autumn.

We enjoyed the colorful contrast of cosmos flowers, green lawn and beautiful autumn sky.

Beautiful Mt. Kirishima stands near Ikoma Plateau (following picture).

Various stage events such as Latin music performance were held during the festival.

The park was fulled with various delicious smells from each foot shops.

There were some sections for children to play and mothers to give babies milk.

Since we were taking a baby, this facility was of great help.

If you come here at night, firework display will be very beautiful.

Many beautiful flowers of various colors.

We enjoyed watching cosmos fields. I pushed a baby car.

My daughter was very delighted to see many cosmos flowers.

My Comment

The Ikoma Plateau is 30 minutes away from Kirishima Hot Springs by car.

Why not enjoy apples and cosmos flowers in autumn after having relaxing bath time at Kirishima Hot Springs?

Not only old people but also small children can have a great time at the park!

Personally I recommend the place for dating of young couples. The girls will be very happy if their boyfriend peel apples for them or take them to this beautiful cosmos fields hand in hand.