Arrival at Narita Airport

Welcome to Tokyo! A Japan Travel representative will meet you at the arrival gate with a customer sign.

Hotel in Tokyo

Tokyo (Tokyo Sky Tree / Asakusa Sensoji Temple / Sushi Making Experience / Tsukiji Outer Market)

You will be taken to the tallest steel tower in the world, Tokyo Sky Tree Tower. With 634 meters high. Enjoy the Tokyo scenery from above, and also Mt. Fuji when it’s clear.

Then we visit the Asakusa Kannon Temple, an active place of worship where you can see the largest paper lantern in Japan. You can also explore the Nakamise Market, which is located just past the outer gates of the temple. It is a traditional style shopping street with centuries of history.

You will then have the opportunity to enjoy a sushi experience with a professional sushi chef. Whatever I prepare, you can eat! Then, we will head to the Tsukiji Outer Market, where various restaurants and shops line the streets.

Then, pay a visit to the Imperial Palace, the former site of Edo Castle and the current residence of the Imperial Family of Japan.

Note: For Sushi Making Experience, if you are vegetarian, have gluten-free diets, have a shellfish allergy, or don’t eat raw fish, contact us for other ingredient options.

Breakfast lunch dinner
Park Hotel Tokyo or similar class

Hotel in Tokyo

Tokyo – Nikko – Tokyo

Nikko, a three-hour drive from Tokyo, is both a wonder of natural beauty and an important site of Japan’s architectural masterpieces. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999. The Toshogu Shrine, completed in 1636 and dedicated to the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, is the convergence point of the city. Most of the shrine buildings, as well as numerous items, have been listed as National Treasures or Valuable Cultural Heritage. The Shinkyo Bridge or “Holy Bridge” stands gracefully over the Daiya River.

Lake Chuzenji shines especially in early May, with the blooming of the colorful cherry blossoms and in October, when the leaves put on their autumnal finery. A 5-minute walk from the Chuzenji Onsen bus stop is the Kogen waterfall, one of the most famous in Japan. It is possible to approach it thanks to an elevator.

Breakfast lunch
Park Hotel Tokyo or similar class

Tokyo – Yokohama – Kamakura

We will depart from Tokyo to Yokohama in our luxurious private coach. Yokohama, Japan’s second-largest city, is one of the first cities to be opened to foreign residents during the Meiji Restoration (1868-1911). Today it is a busy port city with several buildings inscribed in the country’s history.

Minato Mirai 21, is a new neighborhood built for the 1989 Yokohama Exposition. It is the symbol of the city of the future with its skyscrapers, shopping malls and leisure parks. It contrasts with the neighboring neighborhood of Sakuragicho, which represents the old city.

We will go to the Cup Noodle Factory, where you can learn interesting history of instant soups that today are known and popular all over the world. You can also make your own instant soup there.

Yokohama’s Chinatown can be accessed through 4 different colored Chinese doors, each facing in one direction. It is full of shops and about 500 restaurants. Yamashita Park, the oldest on the boardwalk, stretches for about 1,000 meters along Yokohama Port.

We continue the trip to Kamakura

Breakfast lunch
Kamakura Prince Hotel or similar class

Kamakura – Hakone (cable car)

We will visit Kamakura, It is a small coastal city dotted with temples with a silent atmosphere. Due to the presence of the feudal government, which took possession of its neighborhoods in 1192, it preserves today a historical heritage of the utmost importance.

We will visit the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine located near Kamakura Station. The “Hongu” or main building of the shrine opens to a magnificent view of the city of Kamakura. We will also walk through Komachidori Street, where you can enjoy shopping for handicrafts.

Of course, we will see the Great Bronze Buddha which attracts the most visitors to Kamakura.

We will depart from Kamakura to Hakone. We will tour Hakone by taking a 20 minute cable car from Togendai to Owakundani. Most of the area around Owakundani is considered an active volcanic zone since its inception from the eruption of Mount Hakone some 3,000 years ago. Now, you can experience hot springs and hot rivers there, where sulfurous vapors still linger. Owakundani also has splendid views of Mount Fuji in good weather. From Hakone, we will proceed to Mt. We will stay at the Hakone, where you can soak in the therapeutic waters of a hot tub and enjoy a traditional Japanese Kaiseki banquet dinner.

Breakfast lunch dinner
Sengokuhara Prince Hotel or similar class

Hakone, Mt Fuji

From Hakone, we will proceed to Mount Fuji. Along the way, enjoy the changing landscapes, from thick vegetation to lowlands and rolling clouds. Stop at Mt. Fuji 5th station (depending on the weather) to admire the world famous peak. We visit Nascentes de Oshino Hakkai, after the Oshino Lake dried up, the springs of Oshino Hakkai were formed, which have their origin in the water coming from Mount Fuji; the melted snow water for several decades has been seeping through the porous layers of volcanic earth originating eight springs of a water of unique purity. Oshino Hakkai is a pilgrimage site due to the religious belief in the spiritual power of Mount Fuji, and the water from these springs is believed to purify the body. With water of a color as clear as that of the Caribbean seas, it is a very famous place among tourists who come to enjoy the landscape of the four seasons of Mount Fuji and the beauty of these waters.

After the tour, we transfer to the hotel in Matsumoto.

Breakfast lunch
Matsumoto Hotel Kaguetsu or similar class

Matsumoto (Matsumoto Castle), Takayama (Old Town / Takayama Jinya)

Today we will head to Matsumoto, where we will visit Matsumoto Castle, or Black Crow Castle, which dates back more than 400 years. Then, we will continue to Takayama. This city is nestled among the Japanese Alps and is known as “Little Kyoto” for its preserved historical structures and surroundings. Due to its remote position in the mountains, it was isolated from the rest of Japan for most of its history and thus has maintained a unique and traditional atmosphere. We will explore the old town of Takayama. Along the way you will notice the huge cedar balls hanging from the eaves of various stores, indicating that the stores are for sake. Then visit Takayama Jinya, the only traditional local government office in existence and a fine example of a miniature palace containing offices, an interrogation room with torture devices, and a 440-year-old rice barn.

Tonight you will stay at a Ryokan, which is the traditional hotel. Enjoy sleeping Japanese way, you will sleep on a Futon on tatami.

Breakfast lunch
Oyado Koto No Yume or similar class

Takayama (Morning Market), Shirakawa-go (Shiroyama Lookout – Gassho-zukuri Minkaen),

This morning we will enjoy the lively market of the city.

Then we go to the rural area of ​​Shirakawa-go, declared a World Heritage Site. Shirakawa-go is home to the UNESCO designated gassho-zukuri farms. Gassho-zukuri translates as “praying hands”, in which the roofs resemble praying hands. Visitors can see great views of Ogimachi Village from the Shiroyama Lookout. We will also tour the Gassho-zukuri Minkaen, an open-air museum of farms and other structures. From Shirakawa-go, we will depart for Kanazawa.

Breakfast lunch
Hotel Nikko Kanazawa or similar class

Kanazawa

During the Edo era, thanks to the Maeda lords (Daimyo) and also for its location, between the mountains and the sea, and for its large rice production, Kanazawa enjoyed three centuries of peace and became the richest territory from the country. Thus he attracted artists from Kyoto who created new and vibrant with fewer restrictions, and developed culturally. The city has preserved one of the greatest architectural heritages of ancient Japan that have survived to this day due to being saved from the bombings of World War II. For those looking for cultural and historical tourism, it is a very interesting and recommended city.

This morning we will enjoy the Kenrokuen Garden, one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan. The name Kenrokuen literally means a garden that combines the 6 attributes of a perfect landscape: space, seclusion, artifice, antiquity, elements of water and panoramas. Here you’ll find Japan’s oldest fountain and Kotoji-toro, the two-legged stone lantern that is iconic of Kenrokuen and Kanazawa.

We will visit Higashi Chaya-Gai or the geisha district of Kanazawa is one of the most charming neighborhoods in Japan. We visit the traditional gold foil factory.

We will visit the Samurai Neighborhood where we can learn about the tradition, culture and life of the Samurai.

After the tour, transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast lunch
Hotel Nikko Kanazawa or similar class

Kanazawa – Kyoto (Kiyomizu Temple, Gion)

After breakfast, we will travel to Kyoto, a historical city. During the Second World War, it was saved from air raids and was saved from the atomic bomb for its cultural and historical value.

Along the way we stopped at a viewpoint to see Biwako, the largest lake in Japan.

Arriving in Kyoto, we visit the famous Kiyomizu Temple, best known for its wooden stage that protrudes from its main hall, 13 meters above the slope below. The setting offers visitors a beautiful view of the many cherry and maple trees that open below into a sea of ​​color in spring and fall, as well as the city of Kyoto in the distance.

Then, we will tour Gion, the old neighborhood of Geisha and Pontocho, whose cobbled alleys vibrate with nightlife.

Breakfast lunch
New Miyako Hotel or similar class

Kyoto (Nishijin Kimono Show / Golden Pavilion / Arashiyama – Tenryuji Temple Zen Garden – Bamboo Grove – Togetsukyo Bridge / Fushimi Inari)

Today we will begin our tour of Kyoto, which was once the capital of Japan and is still considered its cultural center. At the Nishijin Textile Center, you can see kimono displays and even see a kimono parade. Visit the Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavilion) covered in 18 karat gold leaf. This three-story structure was originally built by Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu in 1397. Then we will visit Arashiyama to see Tenryuji Temple where you can get a glimpse of the traditional Zen landscape garden design. Then proceed through a dense bamboo grove, passing by several small shrines, tea shops and private houses before reaching the Togetsukyo Bridge over the Hozu River.

Finally we visit the picturesque and historic district of Fushimi. We will visit the impressive vermilion-colored Fushimi Inari Shrine, whose 4 km tunnel of scarlet torii gates was featured in the movie Memoirs of a Geisha. This resort surrounds a bamboo wilderness that includes mountains, streams, and ponds, the perfect backdrop for a scenic hike.

Breakfast lunch
New Miyako Hotel or similar class

Kyoto, Uji (Green Tea Ceremony), Nara (Todaiji Temple / Deer Park), Osaka (Dotonbori – Shinsaibashi)

We continue to Uji where we will experience a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. From Uji, our coach leaves for Nara, the oldest capital of Japan. We will visit the Todaiji Temple, the largest wooden building in Japan. This temple is also home to the largest bronze Buddha statue at 16.3 meters high, and the surrounding park is filled with more than 1,000 Sika deer.

Our last visit of the day is Dotonbori, which runs parallel to the Dotonbori canal. A popular shopping, entertainment, and food district, Dotonbori is known for the hundreds of mechanized and neon signs that line the street, including the famous Glico Running Man and Kani Doraku Crab signs.

Breakfast lunch
Hotel New Otani Osaka or similar class

Himeji (Himeji Castle), Kurashiki (Canal Area / Ohara Museum of Art)

Today we take a 2 hour drive by private car to Himeji to visit Himeji Castle. It is known as “White Egret Castle” and “White Heron Castle” due to its bright white exterior, which resembles a flying bird. Himeji Castle is the largest and most visited castle in Japan, and is one of the few remaining original castles in Japan. This splendid example of traditional architecture was declared one of the first UNESCO World Heritage sites in Japan.

The following is a visit to Kurashiki. In merchandise days, this picturesque town prospered as a port for rice shipments. Several old rice barns and examples of historic architecture still remain, in addition to the stone-lined canal.

In the afternoon, we will continue our journey to Hiroshima.

Breakfast lunch
Hiroshima Washington Hotel or similar class

Hotel in Osaka

Hiroshima (Peace Memorial Park / Atomic Bomb Museum / Miyajima – Itsukushima Shrine), Shimanami Kaido (Scenic Observatory / Kirosan)

Today we will visit the Peace Memorial Park and the Atomic Bomb Museum. The Peace Memorial Park (Heiwa Kinen Kōen) was before the fall of the atomic bomb the financial and political center of the city. Today is the place to learn about what happened and remember the victims. Learn more about the historical events that led Japan to the War of the Pacific, the results of the bomb, and the effects on the population at the Peace Memorial Museum, a very interesting, but extremely harsh museum (hard not to miss a tear at some point).

After lunch, we will take a short ferry ride to Miyajima Island. At high tide, the famous vermilion torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine seems to float in the middle of the sea. The shrine complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Miyajima has been selected as one of the three most scenic places in Japan (nihon sankei).

Breakfast lunch
Hiroshima Washington Hotel or similar class

Hiroshima – Bullet Train – Tokyo

After breakfast, experience a Shinkansen bullet train ride from Hiroshima to Tokyo, which can reach speeds of up to 300 km / h.

In Tokyo, enjoy shopping before heading back to the country or the places you don’t want to miss.

Breakfast
Park Hotel Tokyo or similar class

Tour ends

After breakfast, our tour officially ends. Check-out time is 11:00 AM. Narita Airport can be reached by the hotel’s shuttle service.