Jewels of Japan

Arrive in Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at 17.20 hrs. Transfer to the Hotel New Otani Tokyo Garden Tower where two nights are spent. Located close to the Imperial Palace Gardens in Chiyoda, the capital’s central district, the hotel complex includes a Japanese garden, rose garden, a choice of restaurants, tea house, outdoor swimming pool and spa. Dinner under own arrangements.

Tour of Tokyo beginning at the city’s most famous Shinto shrine, Meiji Jingu, set in a tranquil forest, built in 1922 and dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. Visit the nearby Harajuku area of fashion shops, a hub of Japanese pop culture, and see the famous Shibuya crossing, an iconic junction crossed by one million people daily.

Sushi making class and sushi lunch. Visit Senso-ji Temple, Tokyo’s oldest temple in the old downtown area of Asakusa, and the Nakamise Arcade of small shops and food stalls where you can try the Japanese sweet Ningyoyaki. Remainder of the afternoon at leisure. Dinner at the Skytree restaurant.

Transfer from the hotel to Tokyo Station to catch the Super Express Shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo to Kanazawa (journey time 2½ hrs).

Lunch at local restaurant. Visit the Higashi Chaya district known for its tea houses where geisha perform and many shops including those selling gold leaf goods. Kanazawa is famous for gold and there will be the opportunity to visit a gold leaf craft workshop. Check into Hyatt Centric Hotel where two nights are spent. This stylish hotel is conveniently located next to Kanazawa Station with easy access to plenty of restaurants and bars in downtown Kanazawa. Dinner under own arrangements.

Full day tour of Kanazawa. Visit the Normura Samurai House, a beautiful, old villa which belonged to the Nomura samurai family, in the Nagamachi samurai district. Also visit the Nishi Chaya district, a much smaller and quieter tea house (chaya) area.

Lunch at local restaurant at Omicho Market. Visit Kenrokuen Garden, Japan’s most celebrated landscape garden, followed by Kanazawa Castle which from 1583 to the end of the Edo Period was the seat of the powerful Maeda Clan. Dinner under own arrangements.

Visit Takayama Jinya, an old government house followed by a culinary walking tour of Takayama. Visit the famous Miyakawa morning market on the banks of the Miyagawa River which has been held since the Edo Period and sells local farm produce, flowers and crafts. Stroll around the old town and Sannomachi Street with its Edo period inns, tea houses, shops and merchants’ houses. Visit Harada Sake Brewery and an old-fashioned coffee shop. Sample local foods, such as Hida beef.

Lunch at local restaurant. Afternoon walking tour including Nakabashi Bridge. Dinner under own arrangements.

Transfer to Takayama Station for the Limited Express train to Nagoya and onwards west by Super Express Shinkansen bullet train to Kyoto (total journey time approximately 3½ hrs).

Lunch at a local restaurant. Afternoon tour of Kyoto, exploring the Higashiyama area, one of the city’s best-preserved historical districts with narrow lanes, wooden buildings and traditional merchant shops. Experience a tea ceremony with geisha at a teahouse in Kodai-i Temple. Visit Kiyomizu-dera Temple, one of the most celebrated in Japan, situated on a tree-covered hillside with a waterfall as part of the complex. Also visit the sloping streets of Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka, lined with traditional Japanese-style buildings. Check in at the Hotel Nikko Princess Kyoto where four nights are spent. The hotel is set near Shijo-karasuma in the heart of Kyoto and facilities include various restaurants. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Morning walking tour of Kyoto beginning at Sanjusangendo Temple which is famous for its 1001 human-sized statues of Kannon, the goddess of mercy. Also visit the impressive fortified Nijo Castle, residence of the famous Edo Period shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542- 1616), with its beautiful gardens where camellia, Japanese plum and cherry trees blossom each spring.

Continue by coach to lunch at local restaurant. Visit Kinkaku-ji (Golden Temple), whose top two floors are completely covered in gold leaf, formerly the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. Also visit Ryoanji-Temple whose Rock Garden is one of Kyoto’s most famous gardens. Return to the hotel and dinner under own arrangements.

Full day excursion to Nara, the first capital of Japan. Visit Todai-ji Temple which houses a daibutsu or big Buddha which is hugely impressive as is the huge wooden structure which houses it. Enter the adjacent Nara Park in which a myriad of shrines and temples are all set against the backdrop of the low-lying mountains and which is famously home to a vast population of inquisitive deer. Visit Kofuku-ji Temple which was the family temple of the powerful Fujiwara Family and has a Five-Story Pagoda, a Three-Story Pagoda and a museum housing beautiful collections of priceless Buddhist art and statuary.

Lunch at a local restaurant. Visit Kasuga Taisha, Nara’s most celebrated Shinto shrine which is decorated with hundreds of bronze lanterns. Return to Kyoto via Fushimi Inari Taisha, an important Shinto shrine famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates which straddle a network of trails leading into the wooded forest of sacred Mount Inari. Dinner under own arrangements.

Day at leisure with lunch and dinner under own arrangements. Optional full day excursion to Hiroshima and Miyajima Transfer to Kyoto Station for the Super Express Shinkansen bullet train to Hiroshima (journey time approximately 1½ hrs). Drive to Miyajimaguchi to take the ferry to Miyajima Island, take a cable car ride and visit the Itsukushima Shrine.

Lunch at a local restaurant. Return by ferry from Miyajima Island to Miyajimaguchi. Drive back to Hiroshima and visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and A-Bomb Dome followed by the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. Return to Kyoto by Super Express Shinkansen bullet train and transfer to the hotel. Dinner under own arrangements.

Transfer to Kyoto Station and take the Super Express Shinkansen bullet train to Odawara, along the way enjoying views of Mount Fuji (journey time approximately 2 hrs). Continue by coach to Hakone.

Lunch at local restaurant. Check in at The Prince Hakone Lake Ashinoko where two nights are spent. Located beside Lake Ashinoko, the hotel’s guestrooms have views of the lake and facilities include three restaurants and a hot spring open air pool. Dinner at the hotel.

Full day tour of the Hakone area which is made up of a handful of small villages and hamlets set in the hills and valleys. Take the Hakone Ropeway cable car from Sounzan Station stopping at Owakudani Valley, an area of volcanic hot springs. Continue by cable car to Togendai Station and enjoy a boat trip across beautiful Lake Ashi. Visit Hakone Sekisho, a historical checkpoint from the Edo period, and the remains of the old highway which ran between Kyoto and Tokyo.

Lunch at local restaurant. Visit the Hakone Open-Air Museum, an outdoor sculpture park with views of the surrounding valley and mountains. Within the park is the Picasso Gallery which showcases paintings, sculptures and ceramic works by the artist. Remainder of afternoon at leisure with the option to visit the Okada Museum of Art. Dinner at the ryokan.

Depart by coach for Tokyo. Check in at the New Otani Tokyo Garden Tower where a further night is spent.

Lunch under own arrangements. Afternoon at leisure. Option to visit the gardens of the Imperial Palace, former site of Edo Castle and residence of Japan’s imperial family, and see the famous and beautiful Nijubashi Bridge. Farewell dinner at a local restaurant.

Transfer to Tokyo airport. Suggested flight (not included) Japan Airlines JL 43 departing Tokyo at 09.50 hrs arriving London Heathrow at 15.15 hrs.

For the bullet train journeys between cities you will be required to take a back-pack with items for a one-night stay in the next port of call. Main luggage will be transported separately and will arrive one day later.