14 Days Grand Takayama Festival Tour 14 Days - Spring

Welcome to Japan! We will have transportation services to take you to your hotel. Please refer to your tour handbook for more information. Rest at the hotel and be ready to start your exciting tour tomorrow. **INFORMATION** From Narita Airport to downtown hotel in Tokyo - about 90 mins(Bus) From Haneda Airport to downtown hotel in Tokyo - about 30 mins(Bus)

Today will be devoted to exploring the multi-cultural spots of Tokyo. Our tour will first stop by the Tsukiji Fish Market, the famous fish market that provides fresh ingredients for thousands of families and businesses alike. Then we proceed to the Edo Tokyo Museum where you can get acquainted with the history of Tokyo. After lunch, we will delve in the old town district of Asakusa – shop around the Nakamise Shopping area and pray at the Sensoji Temple. Returning to our hotel, the tour bus will be passing by the famous Shibuya Crosswalk.

We will continue our journey to Hakone, where we will take a ropeway to Owakudani, an active volcanic crater still steaming from its last eruption some 3,000 years ago. There you will get a taste of the local Japanese food, the black egg, cooked in one of the craters. We then take a relaxing ride on the Hakone Ropeway for more stunning views of Mt. Fuji. We will also stop by the famous Hakone Sekisho, a checkpoint during the Edo Period known to be one of the most difficult to cross. The tour will take you to the Itchiku Kubota Art Museum. Here we will witness tsujigahana, the technique used to dye kimonos over five centuries ago. The beautiful works of tsugigahana are displayed in this museum which stands in a great location with a spectacular view of Mt. Fuji. This Takayama Festival Japan Tour package with Hiroshima would not be complete without a long relaxing soak in the onsen, hot spring, to rejuvenate you for tomorrow’s adventure. Yukata, a Japanese robe, will be provided for you. The onsen is located in our own ryokan, a Japanese style hotel, which includes a traditional Japanese food.

In the morning, we will head to Takayama Festival with some side trips along the way. First stop is Matsumoto Castle. This castle is one of the very few original castles that were kept intact and never destroyed. Also its unique black coloring gave its nickname karasu-jo, the Crow Castle. It’s one of three must see castles in Japan and ranked on the top 100 world castles. We will then head to the Azumino Wasabi Farm to get a better understanding about the famous sushi garnish. Following the sound of drums, we will reach our destination to Takayama just in time to witness the festival in full swing. Takayama Festival is considered to be one of the best festivals in Japan. Their huge floats will light up the night’s sky with many arrays of color paper lanterns.

Takayama, or as some people call it Little Kyoto, has many areas where homes and shops are more than 300 years old and well preserved. The morning market is also located in that area and we will explore many vendors and activities. You will have free time to roam around to buy souvenirs, take pictures, or visit other important sight see spots. Takayama is famous for its old town which has preserved buildings and houses since the Edo Period. Takayama Jinya is a great example of Edo architecture, having actually served as the local government office, headed by the officials dispatched from Edo. Our Takayama Festival Tour will also have time to see the Takayama floats during the daytime to see a puppet performance from the floats. The portable shrines also act as stages to mechanical puppets, or karakuri, that people control from the inside of the floats. The tour will then make a visit to the beautiful Kenrokuen Garden, known as one of the three most beautiful landscape gardens of Japan. A stroll along this beautiful garden featuring streams, hills, and everything nature has to offer is sure to calm your soul. We will continue to a small farming community of Shirakawago. It’s declared an UNESCO world heritage site where the old traditional farm homes, gassho-zukuri, are preserved to maintain the beauty of the scenery.

We will open our day with arts and crats, first learning about Kutani-yaki, a style of porcelian art dating back from the 17th century. Continuing on, we head to Yunokuni No Mori, a handicrafts village with numerous workshops and styles to learn from. We will continue on to the Golden Pavilion, or Kinkakuji Temple, a Japan’s must see attraction where the two upper floors are covered in gold leaf. The reflection of the golden temple on the lake adds to the stunning sight. In the evening, we will head to the Gion Geisha District, Japan’s most famous geisha district. This area is filled with shops, restaurants, and tea houses and the area in Japan that you are most likely to run into real geisha and maiko on their way to perform at the Gion Geisha Center.

Today it's off to Nara to Todaiji Temple. Todaiji Temple holds the World Guinness Record as the largest wooden building. Inside the temple, you will behold the largest Buddha statue in Japan. Just outside the temple is the Nara Deer Park, where you will be greeted by numerous deer that roam around freely. The deer here at the park are known to be friendly and may even bow at you for a little treat. Then we are off to spend more time sightseeing in Kyoto. We will head to Fushimi Inari Shrine, a popular destination that can't be skipped while in Kyoto. We then proceed to Kiyomizu Temple, famous for one of the most beautiful panoramic views of Kyoto. After a tea ceremony, we will return to our hotel.

We will begin today by heading to Kuromon Ichiba Market in Osaka. A fresh market in Osaka filled with various kitchen goods, foods, and fake-food samples makes for an entertaining stop, and a great place to get lunch. Next our tour bus will make a stop at Himeji-jo, or Himeji Castle. Himeji-jo is a UNESCO distinguished site, representing Japanese castle architecture at its highest with almost all of the castle structure still intact from its original construction in the early 1600’s, having survived all wars, earthquakes and natural disasters. We will then make our way to Kurashiki, a town in Okayama for more sight-seeing before checking into our hotel.

Our Japan tour will spend part of this morning at Hiroshima. One of the main highlights here in Hiroshima is the A-Bomb Dome, the only surviving building from the aftermath, and the Peace Park Memorial where you can see and read about the relic of the war. The A-Bomb Dome has been preserved to be a reminder of the tragedy for future generations and to symbolize its wishes for everlasting peace. Stroll along the park to see famous attractions like that of Sadako’s statue and the freedom bell. Here you can see and read about the relic of the war. After our visit, we will take a small boat to Itsukushima, a small island off the main shore famously known as Miyajima. It is the home of the floating torii, which at high tide seems to float on water.

Our day begins in Arita, where we will see some of the finest porcelain creations. Our day then takes us to Nagasaki where we have much to cover. We will head to Glover Garden which exhibits Western style mansions. After viewing these gorgeous mansions, we will continue with our foreign influences to the Oura Catholic Church. The Oura Catholic Church is Japan’s oldest standing Catholic church. Our last stop of the day is the Nagasaki Peace Park which was built to commemorate the Nagasaki atomic bomb. In the park is a large pillar engraved with the names of the victims.

Our day begins in Kumamoto to visit Kumamoto Castle. Kumamoto Castle is considered one of the three premier castles in Japan, along with Himeji Castle and Matsumoto Castle. Thirteen structures in the castle complex are designated Important Cultural Property. Several ancillary wooden buildings remain of the original castle. Then we proceed to Takachiho. Legend states, when Susanoo, god of storm, terrorized Amaterasu, his sister and sun goddess, she hid in a cave plunging the world into darkness. The cave is called Ama-no-Iwato, the heavenly rock cave, exists in Takachiho.

Our morning begins in the hot spring town of Beppu, where we are going for an exciting Tour of Hell. From the eight famous spots, we will visit three: the Sea Hell made up of bright cobalt blue hot water, the Blood Pond Hell where hot water containing red melted clay gushes out, and the Tornado Hell, a fiery geyser that erupts every 20 minutes. After lunch, we will take a boat ride to Matsuyama, a castle city. Following the pattern of hot springs, we will visit one of the oldest hot springs in the world, Dogo Onsen, which is said to have over 3,000 years of history. The onsen is also widely known for welcoming the imperial family as guests and has a room called Yushinden on reserve exclusively for their use. Dogo Onsen's impressive wooden structure served as a model for the famous film Spirited Away.

Traveling East, we will visit one of the most beautiful gardens in Japan that overlooks Mt. Shiun, Ritsurin Garden. Michelin Green Guide graded the garden three stars. Our last stop before hitting Osaka is Naruto, a small town off the coast. Here in Naruto, many hope to observe the large Naruto whirlpools that can be seen under very ideal conditions. (*The whirlpool can only be seen at certain times of the day and thus we cannot guarantee seeing the whirlpool in action.)

Sadly, your pleasant and memorable Japan Tour ends today. Fly home with cherished memories or enjoy your extended stay in Japan or in Asian Cities. **INFORMATION** From Hotel Nikko Kansai Airport to KIX Airport - about 10 mins (Walk) From downtown hotel in Osaka to KIX Airport - about 70 mins (Bus) From downtown hotel in Osaka to ITM Airport - about 30 mins (Bus)