Wonders of Japan - Small Group

Welcome to Tokyo, Japan’s fast-moving capital, where long-held traditions sit alongside one of the world’s most dynamic cityscapes. On arrival, you’ll be met and transferred to your hotel, with time to settle in before meeting your Travel Director and fellow travellers. This evening, come together and enjoy your first taste of Japanese cuisine and get to know your small group as your journey through Japan begins.

Take in Tokyo from above with views from Tokyo Tower before a drive past the Imperial Palace Plaza, Tokyo Station, Marunouchi and the Ginza district. Continue to Asakusa to visit Sensoji Temple and explore Nakamise shopping street, lined with traditional stalls and local snacks. Then join a bonsai masterclass with an apprentice, and visit the Bonsai Museum, home to more than 1,000 documented trees, including a 1,000-year-old pine regarded as the masterpiece of Mr Kobayashi’s collection. This evening is at leisure. You could explore Ginza after dark, head to Shibuya for its bright crossings and city views, or find a local izakaya for dinner.

Spend the day in the Izu Peninsula, beginning with a ropeway ride at Izu Panorama Park to the 452 m (1,483 ft) summit of Mount Katsuragi, where the viewing area, forest walkway and Katsuragi Shrine look out over the region and, on a clear day, Mount Fuji. Continue to Nakaizu Winery Chateau for lunch with paired wines among the vineyard slopes of central Izu. Later, travel to Mishima, known for the spring water that flows from Mount Fuji into the city. This evening, join your fellow travellers for dinner at your hotel.

Discover another side of Shizuoka today as you visit a tea plantation and meet Mr Noboru, a tea master from a family-run farm known for its gyokuro. You’ll learn about the traditions behind the tea grown here, make your own cup and taste the difference between the brews. Enjoy a green tea-inspired lunch of green tea noodles in soup with vegetable tempura, served as a local expression of Shizuoka’s tea culture. Later, board one of Japan’s famous bullet trains to Nagoya, an experience that has become part of the country’s modern identity. On arrival, check in to your hotel.

In Seki, a city known for sword-making for more than 700 years, join a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience for a private sword forging demonstration with a master swordsmith. Continue to the Washi Paper Museum to learn about Japanese papermaking and create your own souvenir. Then travel to Gujo Hachiman for a kaiseki lunch, a traditional multi-course Japanese meal, at a local restaurant. Enjoy a demonstration of Gujo Odori, Gujo Hachiman’s traditional festival dance, before free time to explore and perhaps try the town’s well-known eel.

Enjoy a Relaxed Start before visiting Takayama, where the preserved streets of the old town reflect the character of the Edo period. There is time to explore, perhaps browsing sake breweries and local craft shops, or visiting Takayama Jinya. Continue to Ainokura, part of the UNESCO-listed Gokayama region, where gassho-zukuri farmhouses with steep thatched roofs still shape the village landscape. Later, travel to Kanazawa and check in to your hotel. The evening is at leisure. You could explore Higashi Chaya District after dark, dine on local seafood, or head out into the city for drinks and late-night food.

Visit Kenrokuen Garden, one of Japan’s most celebrated landscape gardens, before sitting down to a four-course lunch at Jardin Paul Bocuse, where the culinary tradition of one of France’s most influential chefs is expressed through seasonal ingredients from Ishikawa and the wider Hokuriku region. Continue at Ohi Gallery, where you’ll discover Ohi ware, a pottery tradition established in 1666 and closely linked to Kanazawa’s tea culture, before enjoying matcha tea. Later, spend time in Higashi Chaya District, where preserved wooden teahouses reflect Kanazawa’s geisha culture and shops showcase the gold leaf craft for which the city is known.

Enjoy a Relaxed Start before boarding Japan’s bullet train to Kyoto. On arrival, join your Travel Director for a walk through Gion, Kyoto’s well-known geisha district, where traditional wooden townhouses and narrow lanes reflect the character of the old capital. There is free time to explore before you check in to your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure. You could visit Nishiki Market, explore Pontocho’s dining streets, or head out in the evening to see Kyoto’s temple district after dark.

Enjoy a morning visit to Fushimi Inari Shrine, the head shrine of Inari worship in Japan, known for the thousands of vermilion torii gates that lead into the hillside. Continue to Arashiyama Bamboo Forest and explore Arashiyama with Insight Choice. You could take part in sutra copying at a temple, where Buddhist scripture is copied by hand in a quiet, traditional setting, or choose a rickshaw ride through the district instead. Later, visit Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Pavilion, one of Kyoto’s most recognised landmarks. The evening is at leisure. You could return to Gion, dine along Pontocho Alley, or head into the lanes around Kiyamachi for bars, restaurants and a different side of Kyoto after dark.

Enjoy a full day at leisure in Kyoto to return to the places that caught your interest, pick up souvenirs or explore more of the city at your own pace. You may choose an Optional Experience to Osaka and Nara, taking in Osaka Castle, then visiting Dotonbori Street before heading to Nara Deer Park, or an Optional Experience to a sake brewery for a tour and tasting. This evening, mark the final night of your small group tour through Japan with a Kyo Kaiseki dinner, Kyoto’s traditional multi-course cuisine, accompanied by a performance from a maiko, an apprentice geisha.

Transfer to the airport, saying goodbye to your small group and Travel Director and bringing your journey through Japan to a close.