Classic Japan Explorer

ITINERARY

• DAY 1

  Tokyo - Arrival

  You arrive at Haneda Airport and English-speaking tour guide meets and picks you up. The guide helps you exchange your money and will escort you to the hotel by hired car and help you check in at the hotel.

  What's included?

  • Accommodation
  • Transfer
• DAY 2

  Tokyo Historical Tour

  After breakfast, visit Imperial Palace. The current Imperial Palace is located on the former site of Edo Castle, a large park area surrounded by moats and massive stone walls in the center of Tokyo, a short walk from Tokyo Station. It is the primary residence of the Emperor of Japan and he undertakes official duties there. East Gardens of the Imperial Palace are opened to the public.
  
  In the afternoon time, you visit Asakusa the old town of Tokyo. Kaminarimon and Sensoji is a Buddhist temple located in Asakusa that is one of Tokyo's most colorful and popular temples. You walk Nakamise Shopping Street which is located at Sensoji Temple in the Asakusa area. The street is filled with shops and food stalls, and it's a perfect place to enjoy authentic street food from Tokyo. Lots of kimono rental shops are located in this area and you can see many people wearing colorful kimonos in this area. We also go to one of these shops with the best colorful kimonos, to try kimono and take pictures.
  
  In the end, you can take pictures with the view of the Tokyo sky tree a television broadcasting tower, and a landmark of Tokyo. It is the centerpiece of the Tokyo Skytree Town in the Sumida City Ward, close to Asakusa. With a height of 634 meters, it is the tallest structure in Japan and the second tallest in the world at the time of its completion. A large shopping complex with an aquarium is located at its base and you can enjoy the view of the city from the observation platform as an option.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Accommodation
  • Tour
• DAY 3

  Tokyo - Samurai experience and Tokyo Modern site Odaiba Tour

  After breakfast, visit the Samurai museum and learn about brave samurai warriors and their spirit confronted the difficulties in old Japan. There is an Experience & Photo Session that you can try on a samurai helmet and battle coat and take photographs with your camera or cell phone. You can see Sword Performance as well. A sword show will be performed by professional actors who are active on both stage and screen!
  In the afternoon you go to Megaweb Toyota City Showcase. It is the car theme park to 'Look', 'Ride', and 'Feel' automobile. In Megaweb Toyota City Showcase, you wander through the Toyota city car showcase and inspect the latest display models. Please don't miss the chance to test-drive your favorite TOYOTA car, For a more immersive experience. You will be driving a 1.3km long course. Then you have a choice to go to Digital Arts Museum Team Lab Borderless, a place to visit and experience the magic brought to you by light and shade, with the miracle use of reflection, color, and music, get into what it calls ‘borderless’ as an option. It might take you some time to get in as mostly there is a long line you need to queue in. It may take 3~4 hours to discover this place. After that, you enjoy the fascinating atmosphere of Odaiba by watching the Gundam statue and the statue of liberty and going shopping in Shopping malls. At first glance, one might think that the world-renowned Statue of Liberty has been moved to Japan, but it’s just a smaller-sized replica in Odaiba, Tokyo. The Odaiba Statue of Liberty is made to seem much larger than it is in photos due to its proximity to a walkway, and with a suspension bridge in the background, it’s easy for the average person to assume they’re looking at a picture of New York.
  Odaiba's much-loved full-scale replica Gundam is even bigger and better than before. The visual display continues into the night as after the sun sets, the statue lights up, with the Destroyer mode’s panels glowing like beacons in the night.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Accommodation
  • Tour
• DAY 4

  Hiroshima - Transfer to Hiroshima and Hiroshima half day tour

  In the morning after breakfast, depart to Tokyo station to take the train to Hiroshima. You ride in the bullet train, the most high-speed train in the world, and arrive in Hiroshima. Check-in to your hotel and start your half-day Hiroshima tour, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum and Atomic Bomb Dome for about 2 hours. This huge park is located in downtown Hiroshima and used to be the political and commercial heart of the city before the bomb. Now, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site that was a witness to the devastation caused by the first atomic bomb to be used in human history and as a symbol of the pledge for nuclear abolition and world peace. In the museum, the events of August 6, the dropping of the bomb, and its outcome in human suffering are displayed. Bomb dome is one of the few buildings which remained standing and is a tangible link to Hiroshima's unique past.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Accommodation
  • Tour
• "> DAY 5

  Hiroshima Itsukushima Shrine "The UNESCO World Heritage"

  After breakfast, check out the hotel and leave your suitcases there. Then you head to Itsukushima Shrine. You will go there by cruise as it is located on the island. The island is more popularly known as "Miyajima", literally "shrine island" and the shrine is well known in the world for its iconic "floating" torii gate.
  
  The shrine and its torii gate are unique for being built over water, obviously floating in the sea during high tide. The shrine complex consists of multiple buildings, including a prayer hall, the main hall, and a Noh theater stage, which are connected by boardwalks and supported by pillars above the sea. After strolling there for about 1,2 hours you come back to Hiroshima.
  You will go to the Okonomiyaki museum. Okonomiyaki is the recovering symbol of Hiroshima after World WarⅡ when food was scarce. It is like a Japanese-style pizza, a pan-fried dish that consists of wheat-flour-based batter and cabbage. You can select the toppings such as meat and seafood to wasabi and cheese. In the Okonomiyaki Museum, you will learn the history and the secret of the deliciousness of Okonomiyaki.
  After the tour, you get back your suitcases and go to Hiroshima station to get on the bullet train and head to Osaka and overnight.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Accommodation
  • Tour
  • Train
  • Cruise/Boat
• DAY 6

  Kyoto - Kinkakuji - Arashiyama - Kiyomizudera - Fushimi Inari

  Today, visit world heritage sites and other popular spots in Kyoto, starting from the Kinkakuji Temple, Gold Pavilion. The image of the temple richly adorned in gold leaf reflects beautifully in the water of Kyokochi, the mirror pond. It is the most widely recognized image of Kyoto.
  
  Arashiyama is Kyoto's second-most important sightseeing district which is filled with temples, shrines, and the famous Bamboo Grove. The whole thing has a palpable sense of otherness that is quite unlike that of any normal forest we know of. You will enjoy the exotic atmosphere of Arashiyama and then visit Iwatayama monkey park where creatures welcome curious visitors. You can find wild Japanese macaque monkeys which are often seen on popular travel guides and brochures taking a restful dip in onsen during winter. At Iwatayama you can see them fully active, running, and swinging around the park.
  After you move to Kiyomizudera Temple with over 1200 years of history. It is one of the signature World Heritage sites in Kyoto. It is one of the most celebrated temples of Japan and best known for its wooden stage that juts out from its main hall, 13 meters above the hillside below. The stage affords visitors a nice view of the numerous cherry and maple trees below that erupt in a sea of color in spring and fall. The last spot is Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine. It is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates, which straddle a network of trails behind its main buildings.
  
  In the end, you have a memorable Japanese dinner including sushi and have lots of fun.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
  • Accommodation
  • Tour
• DAY 7

  Osaka Half Day Tour - Departure

  After breakfast, explore the Osaka castle which was intended to become the center of a new, unified Japan under the Toyotomi rule. It was the largest castle at the time. The entire Osaka Castle Park covers about 1.24 miles (2 km) with lots of green space, sports facilities, a multi-purpose arena, and a shrine dedicated to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The park is one of Osaka's most popular spots during the cherry blossom season.
  The last spot is Dotonbori scrolling. It is a local shopping street renowned for its gaudy neon lights, extravagant signage, and enormous variety of restaurants and bars. You will visit the Konamon museum, a food theme park where you can create, learn, and eat. There is Takoyaki to taste, take part in Takoyaki cooking classes, make your own food samples, and learn about the history of these foods in the museum. It's a lot of fun for the whole family! Takoyaki is a ball-shaped Japanese snack or appetizer made of a wheat flour-based batter and cooked in a special molded pan. It is filled with minced or diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion. You will enjoy your lunch and go back to the hotel.
  
  It's time to say goodbye, we would like to thank you for traveling with us and warmly welcome you to come again in the future!
  
  Transfer to Osaka International Airport for home flight.

  What's included?

  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Tour
  • Transfer