The pilgrimage route of Japan

Experience and learn about the spiritual side of Japan.

Destination

Osaka/Himeji/Kurashiki/Hiroshima/Shimanami Kaido /Takamatsu/Naruto/Koyasan/Kumano/Ise Shima/

Simple itinerary

• Day 1 Arrival in Osaka
• Day 2 Himeji – Kurashiki
• Day 3 Hiroshima
• Day 4 Shimanami Kaido – Takamatsu
• Day 5 Naruto
• Day 6 Koyasan
• Day 7 Kumano
• Day 8 Ise Shima
• Day 9 End of the Trip

Trip description

Experience and learn about the spiritual side of Japan.

The Japan Pilgrimage Route route will allow you to access and enjoy some of the culturally attractive areas and scenic spots in Japan. The tour will take you on a journey into the religious aspects of Japan, giving you an alternative and deeper understanding of Japanese culture and history. This itinerary will provide an insight into Japan’s cultural roots to Shinto and Buddhism, which are still practiced in some of the temples that we will visit. Many of the spiritual sites are located in places surrounded by nature. This means that you will be rewarded with panoramic views that will invoke a sense of calm. Immerse yourself in the environment as you will have the opportunity to experience the lifestyles and cultures first hand.

Before starting the pilgrimage routes, we will first travel through historical and iconic figures such as Himeji Castle, Kurashiki and Hiroshima. Then, we will start with the panoramic routes of this excursion visiting the island of Miyajima, one of the three most picturesque places in Japan (nihon sankei). Then drive along Shimanami Kaido, a 60-kilometer toll road that connects the main island of Honshu in Japan with the island of Shikoku, passing through six small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. Most of Shikoku has not yet been touched by mass tourism. This is a place of immense natural beauty, seeping into the legend of colors, history and dotted with 88 pilgrimage temples.

Take a ferry to Wakayama and visit Koyasan. You will have a chance to experience temple stay and eat Shojin Ryori (vegetarian) dinner. In the morning, you will join the monks in their meditation practice to better understand their spiritual customs. In Kumano, we will walk and breathe at the trail sites along temples and shrines, among other important structures on the UNESCO World Heritage Site Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Trail. From these sacred grounds you can see the highest waterfall in Japan, Nachi Fall. The waterfall deity is said to be enshrined in the main shrine. Ise Grand Shrine is one of the most important shrines in Japan and is rebuilt every twenty years to symbolize death and rebirth. It is surrounded by 300-year-old cedars and intact foliage. After visiting the mountains and temples, we will visit one of Japan’s lesser-known treasures, where pearl collecting officially started into an art and trade.

Our Japan Pilgrimage Route is a tour that will provide you with cultural awareness about the historical past and ingrained belief systems in Japan.

Detailed itinerary

Day 1
Osaka Kansai Airport

Welcome to Osaka! An OOT representative will meet you at the arrival gate with a “Only One Travel” sign.
Hotel Nikko Kansai Airport or similar class
Hotel Elsereine Osaka or similar class (NOTE 1 and 2)

NOTE 1: If you want to stay in downtown Osaka for the first night instead of Nikko Kansai Airport Hotel, we can arrange for you to stay at Elsereine Osaka Hotel (or similar class). In this case, the airport transfer is not included, but we will provide you with directions to get to your hotel in advance.

NOTE 2: If you are flying to Itami Airport (ITM) instead of Kansai International Airport (KIX), we can arrange for you to stay in Downtown Osaka (Hotel Elsereine Osaka or similar class) instead of Hotel Nikko Kansai Airport. In this case, airport transfer and meetings are not included, but we will provide you with full directions to the hotel in advance.

NOTE 3: The meet and greet is ONLY available for flights arriving at Terminal 1 after 11:00 AM. For guests arriving at Terminal 2, airport pickup is not included, but we will provide directions to your hotel in advance.

NOTE 4: If you want to stay more nights before the tour starts, please contact us to book hotel accommodation.

Day 2
Himeji (Himeji Castle), Kurashiki (Canal Area / Ohara Museum of Art)

Today we take a 2 hour ride on a private bus 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 original castles left in the country. 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 the past, 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. We will also visit the Ohara Museum of Art, considered the first Western art museum in Japan. It is a private museum consisting of three adjacent buildings next to the canal. In the afternoon, we will continue our trip to Hiroshima for two nights.

Breakfast dinner
Grand Prince Hotel Hiroshima or similar class

Day 3
Hiroshima (Peace Memorial Park – A-Bomb Museum / Miyajima Island – Itsukushima Shrine)

Today our travels will continue with a visit to the Peace Memorial Park, the landmark of the Hiroshima memorial for those killed in the infamous bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. There we will also enter the A-Bomb Museum where documents are found, artifacts and videos are displayed throughout the museum. After lunch, we will take a short ferry ride to Miyajima Island; the cherry blossoms on the island are a spectacular sight. At high tide we can see that the famous vermilion torii gate of the Itsukushima Shrine seems to float in the middle of the sea. The shrine complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, while Miyajima has been selected as one of the three most scenic places in Japan (nihon sankei).

Breakfast lunch
Grand Prince Hotel Hiroshima or similar class

Day 4
Shimanami Kaido (Scenic Observatory / Kirosan), Takamatsu (Shikoku Mura Village / Ritsurin Park)

In the morning, we will drive through the Shimanami Kaido to Shikoku Island. The Shimanami Kaido is a 60-kilometer toll road that connects the main island of Honshu in Japan with the island of Shikoku, passing through six small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. It is also known as the Nishiseto Highway. We will stop at the Kirosan Observatory from where you can see the Kurushima Kaikyo bridges that are located between hundreds of islands that are beautifully scattered throughout the Seto Inland Sea. The modern observation deck was cleverly designed and built midway into the slope of the hillside so as not to spoil the natural environment. Then we head to Takamatsu with a stop at Shikoku Mura Village. Shikoku Mura (Shikoku Village) is an open-air museum located at the base of Yashima. This pleasant hillside park preserves and displays traditional buildings and structures that have been moved here from all over the island of Shikoku. Then visit Ritsurin Park, a Japanese landscape masterpiece 100 years in the making. This extensive park has beautiful ponds and pavilions with Mt. Shiun as the perfect backdrop.

Breakfast lunch
JR Hotel Clement Takamatsu or similar class

Day 5
Naruto (Whirlpool Viewing Amusement Park / Shikoku Trail Pilgrimage – Ryozenji to Gokurakuji <1.2 km / 0.75 mi> / ferry from Tokushima to Wakayama, Koyasan (Temple accommodation – Shukubo / After vegetarian dinner, visit Okunoin cemetery at night)

We continue our journey today to Naruto. Naruto is known for its whirling eddies, we’ll take a small boat and get right next to and between the eddies. Naruto is also the starting point of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, which takes you around the island to visit 88 temples through Shikoku associated with the famous Buddhist monk, Kobo Daishi, the founder of the Ryozenji Shingon Buddhism temple. Naruto is the first temple of the pilgrimage. We will travel on foot for approximately 1.2 km (0.75 miles) from Ryozenji Temple to Gokurakuji Temple. From Shikoku Island, we will board a ferry to Honshu Island where we will stay at a monastery in Koyasan complete with authentic Buddhist vegetarian meals. We will experience life largely as a monk would in Japan. Koyasan is the center of Shingon Buddhism, a Buddhist sect that was introduced to Japan in 805 by Kobo Daishi, one of the most important personalities in the religious history of Japan. The temple complex of more than 100 temples is locate d at the top of the mountain, surrounded by cedar trees and mountain peaks. After a vegetarian dinner at the temple, you have the option to follow your guide in the evening to Okunoin’s tomb. It is the largest cemetery in Japan, where the founder of Shingon Buddhism is said to be in eternal meditation.

Breakfast lunch dinner
Koyasan Sekishoin or similar class

Day 6
Koyasan (early meditation with the monks / Okunoin temple / Kongobuji temple / Danjo Garan)

Current activities begin with reflection as you meet the Koyasan monks. Next, we will go to Okunoin temple which is surrounded by many grave marks, most of which are old and worn. The tomb is also the resting place of the Shingon founder of Buddhism in Japan, Kobo Daishi. The following is Kongobuji Temple which was originally built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of Nobunaga’s generals during the wartime. The temple also has the Ohiroma Hall, a room specially set up for ceremonies and rituals with tatami floors and elegantly designed sliding doors. the pilgrimage ends at Danjo Garan, a temple complex also belonging to the original bases of Kobo Daishi. Painted in the bright vermilion color, one of the structures called the Konpon Daito pagoda stands out among the others.

Breakfast lunch dinner
Katsuura Onsen Hotel Nakanoshima or similar class

Day 7
Kumano (Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Trail – Daimonzaka to Nachi fall <2.2 km / 1.3 mi>, on the way visit Seigantoji temple and Kumano Nachi great shrine)

This morning we head to the Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Trail, a world heritage site, where pilgrims have walked the forest trails for over 1000 years. The Kumano region is the mountainous southern portion of the Kii Hanto, Japan’s largest peninsula, where sacred trails are still used for pilgrimage to the three great Kumano shrines. We will walk along a short section of Daimon-zaka Trail and visit the 133-meter-high Nachi Waterfall, whose vertical torrent, pouring over the edge of the cliff into virgin forest, is said to be the highest in Japan. We slowly climbed the pilgrim’s steps to visit Seigantoji Temple, originally built in 1590, and a very picturesque 3-story vermilion pagoda that creates a perfect image of Japanese tranquility.

Breakfast lunch dinner
Toba Grand Hotel or similar class

Day 8
Ise Shima (Ise Grand Shrine / Okage Yokocho District / Mikimoto Pearl Island)

The pilgrimage continues to Ise Shima where the Ise Grand Shrine is located. The Ise Grand Shrine has a history of two thousand years, is the most important Shinto shrine in Japan and serves as the center of all Shinto shrines throughout the country. Situated near the banks of the Isuzu River, the shrine is surrounded by Japanese cedars, some 800 years old. The inner sanctuary is considered the abode of Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, the deity of whom it was considered a descendant. At Okage Yokocho Street we can experience the urban landscape of a bygone era, where the buildings leading to the inner sanctuary reproduce the architecture and atmosphere that surrounded the Ise pilgrims during the Edo Period (1600-1868). Our next stop is Mikimoto Pearl Island, where in 1893, Kokichi Mikimoto first perfected the cultured pearl production technique and started a global industry. Here we see ‘Ama’, pearl divers, demonstrate their skills, observe how cultured pearls are produced and see an incredible collection of million dollar treasures made from pearls.

Breakfast lunch
Hotel Nikko Kansai Airport or similar class
Elsereine Osaka Hotel or similar class (NOTE 5 and 6)

NOTE 5: If you want to stay in downtown Osaka for the last night instead of the Nikko Kansai Airport Hotel, we can arrange for you to stay at the Elsereine Osaka Hotel (or similar class). In this case, the airport transfer is not included, but we will provide you with full instructions so that you can get to the airport in advance.

NOTE 6: If you are flying from Itami Airport (ITM) instead of Kansai International Airport (KIX), we can arrange for you to stay at Hotel Elsereine Osaka (or similar class) instead of Hotel Nikko Kansai Airport. In this case, the airport transfer is not included, but we will provide you with full instructions so that you can get to the airport in advance.

Day 9
Tour ends

After breakfast, our tour officially ends. Check out time is at 11am. M. And Osaka Kansai Airport can be reached in three minutes on foot.

Breakfast

NOTE 7: If you want to stay longer in Japan, please contact us to reserve hotel accommodation.