PLACES WE STAY

Keio Plaza, Tokyo (4 +1 nights) in Shinjuku, one of the famous shopping, entertainment and business districts in Japan, about 10 minutes from JR Shinjuku Station. Guests can enjoy the free shuttle bus to Tokyo Disney Resort, fitness room, sky pool and the rich heritage of Japanese culture.

Hyatt Centric, Kanazawa (3 nights) the best hotels in the city. Conveniently located next to the famous Kanazawa Station, it has been selected as one of the 14 most beautiful stations in the world! The glass ‘Motenashi Dome’ shields the station from rain and snow and represents the spirit of hospitality.

The Thousand, Kyoto (4 nights) one of Kyoto’s top hotels. Opened in January 2019, the hotel offers impeccable service, and gorgeous interior design and is located next to JR Kyoto Station with lots of local restaurants and shopping malls nearby.

Kowaki-en Tenyu, Hakone (2 nights) star luxury hotel in Hakone. Opened in April 2017, the hotel offers Japanese-style rooms with tatami flooring with an open-air bath or ceramic open-air hot springs bath made with Shigaraki pottery in each room.

Transport

In Japan we travel by coach within the cities and shorter distances in the countryside and often by Shinkansen (bullet train) between cities. Over the past half century, the made-in-Japan technology behind these sleek trains has continued to evolve. Top speed has risen from 210 km/h (130 mph) to 320 km/h (200 mph), and ridership is now 1 million passengers per day. Please note: Our luggage will not travel with us on the train. We will charter a luggage truck to drive our luggage between cities so you just need a day bag on the train which will be more convenient and safer getting on and off and travelling by train.

Japan is highly regarded for its wealth of both traditional and modern arts and crafts and on this journey we will experience the full spectrum. From the meticulous rituals of the tea ceremony to the mysteries of a geisha performance; the flawless art of origami to refined garden design; dramatic and thought-provoking contemporary sculptures and light installations to a collection of world class galleries and museums. Our Operatunity tour also pays homage to Japan’s ancient samurai, its rich Buddhist and Shinto heritage and its elegant and refined culinary traditions. Stay in supreme comfort at a range of luxury hotels and travel swiftly between destinations by bullet train. We will be mesmerised by all you see.

SUNDAY 26TH MAY 2024 (D)

TOKYO - Keio Plaza, Tokyo (4 nights)

Capital of Japan since 1889 and with a population of 38.1 million, Tokyo is the dynamic epicentre of 21st century Japan. A dazzling fusion of ancient and modern, traditional and avant-garde, the city pulsates with promise. Asia’s financial centre and one of the world’s alpha cities, Tokyo offers the traveller a myriad of activities that draw on the city’s imperial history, innovative technology, exciting art and design, and the charm of her people. For food, fun, and fashion there is no city quite like Tokyo.

YO KO SO!!! (Welcome!!). We arrive at Narita Airport and transfer to our hotel in Tokyo city for check in.

Buffet dinner at the hotel, so we can go for dinner casually before resting this evening.

MONDAY 27TH MAY 2024 (B, Sushi Making, L, D)

Highlights Include:

• Imperial Palace Ground & East Garden, landscaped gardens in the grounds of a palace first built in 1888, with some Edo castle ruins.

Tsukiji Fish Market, where one can encounter all kinds of traditional Japanese foods in a mixture of wholesale and retail shops.

• Private Sushi Making Lesson with lunch.

• Sumida River Cruise, which takes us from Shinagawa to Rainbow Bridge, Sumida River, Tokyo Sky tree, and Odaiba, with panoramic views of Odaiba and Tokyo Skytree from the observatory deck on top of the boat.

• Senso-ji & Nakamise Street, a quintessential Japanese shopping arcade right by Sensoji Temple with old-school Tokyo at one of Japan’s oldest shopping streets.

• Yakatabune private cruise this evening with welcome dinner and music from our artists.

TUESDAY 28TH MAY 2024 (B, L)

Highlights Include:

• Omiya Bonsai Village with six gardens and an art museum dedicated to bonsai.

• Meiji Shrine, with its daily ceremonies, incredible architecture, and scenic grounds. The relatively recent shrine was built in 1920 to commemorate Japan’s first modern emperor and empress, Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken.

• Omotesando, Harajuku. Known as the Champs-Élysées of Tokyo, Omotesando’s tree-lined streets are filled with beautiful shops, funky cafes and great restaurants.

• Kabuki Performance, which is an art form rich in showmanship. It involves elaborately designed costumes, eye-catching make-up, outlandish wigs, and arguably most importantly, the exaggerated actions performed by the actors.

WEDNESDAY 29TH MAY 2024 (B, L)

Highlights Include:

• National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation to explore the innovative aspect of Japanese life, research and sciences.

• Visit to the observation deck Skytree, an iconic landmark in Tokyo. With a whopping height of 634 metres, Tokyo Skytree was recognised as the world’s tallest tower by Guinness World Records on November 11, 2011.

• Concert or opera performance (depending on availability).

For more information ring our office or visit our website

THURSDAY 30TH MAY 2024 (B, D)

Transfer on Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Kanazawa

KANAZAWA - Hyatt Centric, Kanazawa (3 nights)

Kanazawa, said to rival Kyoto as the historical jewel of mainland Japan. You are met on the platform and escorted on foot to your hotel nearby. Set at the southern end of the Noto Peninsula along the coast of the Sea of Japan, Kanazawa is Japan’s hidden secret. Authentically Japanese, the city is home to one of the country’s three most beautiful classical gardens, a historic samurai quarter, a traditional geisha district and a number of elegant handicraft workshops.

Highlights Include:

•Explore the Kenrokuen Garden which is considered one of the three finest “classical” gardens in all of Japan. The garden, which is located to the southwest of Kanazawa Castle, was begun in 1676 and restored again in 1759. It covers an area of 25 acres and includes over 8,000 trees and plants representing 183 different species.

•The highlight of this visit is Seisonkaku Villa, a beautiful samurai home located in the southwest corner of the garden.

•Kutani Pottery Kiln, which offers an exclusive look into the making of these delicate ceramic wares, from their formation on the potter’s wheel to final hand-painted flourishes. Try your skills with a hands-on pottery and painting experience, marking your day in Kanazawa.

FRIDAY 31ST MAY 2024 (B, L, D)

Highlights Include:

•Omicho Ichiba, the largest covered market in the city. In business since 1721 this lively market comprises 186 shops and stalls selling fresh seafood and locally grown fruits and vegetables. We will have time to sample local delicacies cooked fresh before your eyes.

•Gold Leaf workshop with a ‘hands on’ lesson in gold leaf work.

•21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, which exhibits art from Japan and around the world.

•Higashichaya District, which includes traditional tea houses and gold leaf shops and demonstrations.

•Visit Kanazawa’s sake brewery.

•Private dinner this evening with music from our artists.

SATURDAY 1ST JUNE 2024 (B, L)

Full day excursion to Shirakawago

Shirakawa is a village located in Ōno District, Gifu Prefecture. It is best known for being the site of Shirakawa-gō, a small, traditional village showcasing a building style known as gasshō-zukuri and is a UNESCO world heritage site.

Highlights Include:

•Shirakawago Village, famous for the “Gassho Zukuri” houses preserved for hundreds of years.

•Takayama Morning Market, one of the biggest morning markets in Japan.

•Walk down Kami Sannomachi in Takayama’s old town, and you’ll feel like you’ve stepped back into the Edo Period (1600-1868).

• Shirakawago Observatory with views over the village.

SUNDAY 2ND JUNE 2024 (B, D)

Highlights Include:

•Tours of Kanazawa including:

•Nagamachi District, a village featuring cobblestone streets & former samurai homes, plus shops & restaurants.

•Visit Nomura-kem, an old villa with beautiful gardens that originally belonged to a samurai.

•Visit to a Silk Dyeing Studio to learn about silk dyeing.

Transfer on Shinkansen (bullet train) from Kanazawa to Kyoto

KYOTO - The Thousand, Kyoto (4 nights)

Kyoto, once the capital of Japan, is a city on the island of Honshu. It is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses.

MONDAY 3RD JUNE 2024 (B, L, D)

Highlights Include:

•Visit Kinkakuji, a magnificent Zen temple which overlooks Kyokochi Pond. Originally conceived as a warlord’s retirement villa, Kinkakuji is also known as the Golden Pavilion, thanks to the layers of gold leaf which adorn the top two floors.

•Visit the Bamboo Forest, Arashiyama Bamboo Grove or Sagano Bamboo Forest which is a natural forest of bamboo. The forest consists mostly of mōsō bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) and has several pathways and a train for tourists and visitors.

•Tenryu-ji is a major Rinzai Zen temple complex located in the scenic Saga Arashiyama area, founded in 1339.

•Togetsu Bridge, a famous wooden bridge.

•Visit Monkey Park Iwatayama. This park is on Mt Arashiyama, on the opposite side of the Ōi River and is inhabited by a troop of over120 wild Japanese macaque monkeys.

•This evening we enjoy a private dinner and a chance for our artists to perform.

TUESDAY 4TH JUNE 2024 (B, L, tea ceremony)

Highlights Include:

•Tour of Kiyomizudera, which is best known for its wooden stage that juts out from its main hall, 13 metres above the hillside. The stage offers nice views of the trees below, as well as of the city of Kyoto in the distance.

•Cultural immersion afternoon which includes private Tea Ceremony, Kimono Wearing, Origami Experience in Machiya and Kyo-Yuzen Dyeing Workshop!

WEDNESDAY 5TH JUNE 2024 (B, L, D)

Excursion to Nara and Fushimi with tours and visits.

Highlights Include: ring our office or visit our website

• Nara Park, which is home to over 1,000 free-roaming deer, considered in Shintoism as messengers of the gods.

• Head to Todaiji, a temple founded in 752 and home to Daibutsu, or Great Buddha, the world’s largest bronze casting. Marvel at the size of the Buddha’s open hand, which alone is the height of a person. This is believed to be the largest wooden structure on earth.

• Kasuga Taisha is a large shrine complex, dating back over 1300 years.

• Fushimi is Kyoto’s sake district. Stroll around the delightful tree-lined canals, past historic sites and among beautiful wooden brewery buildings.

• Visit a Sake brewery with sake tasting and learn about the process and how brewers balance the main ingredients of water, rice, malt and yeast, and how the taste of sake changes according to the ingredients.

• This evening, back in Kyoto, we enjoy a private dinner with Maiko (apprentice to the Geisha who performs art and dance) and Geisha performances.

THURSDAY 6TH JUNE 2024 (B, D)

Highlights Include:

•Tour to National Museum of Modern Art, a national institution devoted to the collection and preservation of artworks and related reference materials of the 20th century in Japan and other parts of the world. Particular emphasis is placed on artists or artistic movements in Kyoto and the Kansai area (the western region of Japan), such as paintings from the Kyoto School.

This afternoon we transfer by Shinkansen (bullet train) from Kyoto to Odawara (Hakone).

HAKONE - Hakone Kowaki-en Tenyu (2 nights)

Hakone, in Japan’s Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park west of Tokyo, is a mountainous town known for its hot springs resorts (onsen) and views of the iconic volcano Mount Fuji.

FRIDAY 7TH JUNE 2024 (B, L, D)

Highlights Include:

•Hakone tours including to:

•Hakone Open Air Museum featuring over 1000 sculptures and artworks including the Picasso Pavilion.

•Hakone Ropeway, as we glide through the skies in the world’s second-longest cable car, whose 13-passenger gondolas offer breathtaking panoramic views including to Mt Fuji.

•Owakudani Valley is one of the most famous tourist attractions in Hakone due to its volcanic activity and striking scenic views.

•Boat ride on Lake Ashinoko, that offers the best views of Mount Fuji.

• This afternoon we enjoy the hot spring at our hotel before dinner this evening.

SATURDAY 8TH JUNE 2024 (B, L, D)

TOKYO - Keio Plaza, Tokyo (1 night)

Transfer overland from Hakone to Tokyo via Kamakura.

Highlights Include:

•Transfer from Hakone to Tokyo with en-route visit to Kamakura with visits to:

•Great Buddha in Kotokuin Temple.

•Hase Kannon Temple.

•Komachi-dori, a 600-metre-long shopping street crowded with stores representing local culture.

•Tsurugaoka-Hachimangu, the most important Shinto shrine.

• This evening we wander around the gardens, followed by our final private dinner in a lovely pavilion, enjoying a final night of music, culture, great food and company in this magnificent setting.

SUNDAY 9TH JUNE 2024 (B)

Highlights Include:

•Day at leisure to enjoy shopping on your own before mid afternoon transfer to Narita Airport for our flight home.

MONDAY 10TH JUNE 2024

Arrive home, following our Journey to Japan, filled with wonder, knowledge and enjoyment of this amazing land.