Grand Tour of Japan

Upon arrival at Tokyo Haneda International Airport (HND) or Narita International Airport (NRT), our representative will welcome you to Japan and assist you to transfer by the airport bus to your hotel in central Tokyo.

This morning our guide will meet you and together you will spend the day exploring Tokyo like a local would. You will ride local trains and subways to efficiently get around the city visiting the neighbourhoods of Shibuya, Asakusa and Ginza.

Learn how to purify yourself at the entrance of Meiji-jingu shrine. Stroll down colorful Takeshita street in Harajuku with its youthful fashionable atmosphere and Kawaii culture. You may even run into some cosplayers all decked out as their favourite anime character. Next is the elegant tree lined Omotesando with its high style buildings and one of a kind architecture housing designer luxury boutiques.

The Asakusa traditional district in the northwest section of the city boasts the magnificent Senso-ji temple and its five story pagoda. Here, incense burning worshippers are oblivious to the selfie taking tourists. Let our guide help translate the good fortunes printed on your Omikuji and save as a souvenir of Tokyo. Some shopping time for souvenirs or Japanese rice crackers is in order along Nakamise shopping street which leads to the outer gate of the temple. Not to be missed on a visit of Tokyo is the entertainment, dining and upmarket shopping district of Ginza. Here you will find the flagship stores of major Japanese and International brands.

This morning you will join a group bus tour of Mt. Fuji and Hakone. You will visit Mt. Fuji’s 5th station at an altitude of 2,300 meteres. The tour continues to the town of Hakone where you can admire the spectaclar view of Mt. Fuji from aboard a ship and a ropeway ride to the peak of Mt. Komagatake. Lunch is included during the tour.
*Mt. Fuji views are weather permitting

This morning you will join Tsukiji outer fish market tour and sushi workshop. Tsukiji Outer Market is Japan’s food town where one can encounter all kinds of traditional Japanese foods. A mixture of wholesale and retail shops, along with numerous restaurants, line the streets, and new culinary trends are born here. After exploring the market, learn how to make your own plate of sushi from a professional chef and enjoy your own creation for your lunch.

Rest of the day is free for your own activities.

Our staff will meet you at your hotel and assist you to get to onto the right platform at Tokyo station to board your bullet train to Nagoya. In Nagoya, transfer to the Hida limited express train for the scenic ride to Takayama.

After dropping off your luggage at your hotel, you have free time this afternoon to explore Takayama on your own. Grab your camera and head to the historic narrow streets of Sanmachi Suji district. Here the wooden merchant houses from the Edo era, have been converted into modern day businesses. You will be able to do some shopping, sample sake at a sake micro-brewery or sit down for some green tea and sweets.

Takayama is a town famed for being deeply rooted in its local culture and history, where daily life still revolves around its longstanding traditional shops. You will stroll down the side streets of a beautiful town, practically unchanged since the Edo period while having a bite in some of its best food shops along the way. Learn about the wonders of Takayama through sight, sound and taste—and experience what the locals already know and love. Stop by tofu and miso shops to learn about how these timeless food staples are made, experience the goodness and artistry of “Wagashi” Japanese sweets, and sample some local sake varieties that have been part of the Takayama food scene for generations.

After the tour, take a local bus to Shirakawago, registered as the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Shirakawa-go is a Japanese mountain settlement in what was once considered a wild and unexplored region. Because of the area’s natural environment, with high mountains and heavy snowfall, interaction with neighboring regions was limited. However, this also created the conditions for the development of unique cultural practices and lifestyles. After exploring Shirakawago, you will take a local bus to Kanazawa.

This morning our guide will meet you for a full day walking tour of Kanazawa. With many areas of the city unscathed from the second world war, Kanazawa boasts many historical sights as well as one of the three great gardens of Japan. You will explore this mid-size Japanese city on foot and by bus.

Soak in the historic atmosphere of the Nagamachi Samurai District as you walk the narrow lanes flanked by the traditional residences where the Samurais and their families lived during the Edo period. Visit the restored Nomura Samurai house and its exquisite tiny garden best viewed from the second floor tea room.
Kenrokuen Garden is a strolling park-like Japanese landscape garden. The garden invokes all six design elements of spaciousness, seclusion, serenity, subtleness, panoramas and water courses.
After a short bus ride, you will get off at the well preserved historic Higashi Chaya Geisha district. The beautiful wooden chayas (tea houses) were the venues where Geishas once entertained nobility and rich merchants. The number of Geishas have dwindled over the years but there remains a few active tea houses here where Geishas still entertain their well off clients on a nightly basis. Our guide will point them out to you.

Make your own way to Kanazawa station and board a local train for the 30 minute ride to Kaga Onsen station.

On arrival at your ryokan, you will be warmly welcomed by the staff. You will experience the deeply rooted Japanese custom of Ometenashi (to whole heartedly look after guests). Your stay here will be a most unique Japanese experience from how you dress, sleep and bathe. Relax and embrace the experience and do as the locals do.

After checking out, board the Ryokan’s shuttle bus to the station and board the train for the approximately 2.5 hour ride to Osaka.

Enjoy the remainder of the day at your leisure. Explore Dotonbori area which is a popular shopping and entertainment district and also known as a food destination. At night it is lit by hundreds of neon lights and mechanized signs.

With our detailed instructions and included transportation tickets in hand, you will leave Osaka from Namba station and travel along the Nankai train line for about 90 minutes to the end of the line at Gokurakubashi. From there board a steep climbing cable car for the 5 minute ride to the top of Mount Koya and then a short bus ride down to the center of town. The sacred site of Mt. Koya also known as Koyasan is the cradle of Shingon Buddhism. There are over a hundred temples and pagodas to explore, as well as the mysterious Okunoin cemetery with its more than 200,000 tombstones where spirits are said to roam. After spending the day in Koyasan, make your way back to Osaka.

Travel by train from Osaka to Hiroshima with a stop in Himeji to visit Himeji castle. Designated as a national treasure of Japan in 1931, the castle is also a UNESCO world heritage site. Unlike many other Japanese castles which are rebuilt replicas, Himeji castle was not destroyed by war, fire or earthquake. It is one of the few original castles left in Japan and is the finest example of early 17th-century Japanese castle architecture. It is considered as Japan’s most spectacular castle. Because of its elegant appearance totally covered with white plaster, the castle has been compared to a white bird flying off to the sky, hence the nickname White Heron Castle. On arrival in Hiroshima, make your own way to your hotel.

First you will board a local train followed by a short ferry ride to Miyajima Island. As the ferry approaches the island, to your right will be the giant floating Torii gate marking the entrance to Itsukushima shrine. The shrine was designated as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1996. Following the visit to the shrine, our guide will show you around the island.

You will leave Miyajima and head back to Hiroshima where you will spend the afternoon at the Peace Memorial Park and the Peace Memorial Museum. You will have a chance to learn and reflect on the horrific event of August 6th, 1945.

You will spend the day in the foothills of Northern and Western Kyoto. You will visit Kinkaku-ji, a Zen temple also known as the Golden Pavilion. The top two floors of the building completely covered in gold leaf. Our guide will lead you through the beautiful gardens to the tea house where you will exit the temple.

A short walk down the street is Ryoan-ji. The attraction of this temple is its famous rock garden with its deceptively simple and clever arrangement of 15 stones. After some contemplative moments at the rock garden, you will leave the area and travel to the western side of Kyoto.

In Arashiyama, you will tour Tenryu-ji Zen temple with one of the finest gardens in Kyoto. You will exit the temple by the north gate which brings you right onto the famous verdant bamboo groves of Arashiyama.

In the morning, join the tea ceremony and kimono wearing experience. Learn about the history of tea and the spirit of tea ceremony, then you can try making a cup of tea under an instructor’s guidance.

Rest of the day is free for your own activities.

Take a bullet train from Kyoto to Tokyo. Rest of the day is free for your own activities.

At the pre-booked time board the airport limousine bus in front of your hotel for your transfer to the airport.