Japan Harmony

On arrival at Tokyo Narita or Haneda Airport, you will be greeted by our local, accredited, English-speaking guide, who will assist you with the transfer by limousine bus to your hotel. The remainder of the day is at your leisure.

After breakfast, enjoy a full day of explorations around Tokyo with your guide by public transportation. Your tour starts in the exquisitely beautiful Edo period, Hamarikyu Garden, where seawater ponds change with the tides. A traditional teahouse on an island offers visitors a resting place to enjoy the scenery. This traditional green oasis stands in stark contrast to the surrounding skyscrapers of the adjacent Shiodome district. Next, continue aboard a boat for a cruise along the Tokyo River, passing more of the city sights. The boat will dock in Asukasa, where we’ll find the Sensoji Temple, one of Tokyo’s most popular and colourful Buddhist temples. Legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them. Consequently, Sensoji was built nearby for the goddess of Kannon. No visit to Tokyo would be complete without a walk along Nakamise Street, lined with boutiques, souvenir shops and street food outlets. Our final stop is at the spacious Meiji Shrine dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shoken.

This morning your guide will meet you at the hotel, and together you will travel by public transportation to Tokyo Station. From here, you will take the Bullet Train to Kyoto. The train ride will take approximately two hours and 20 minutes.

On arrival in Kyoto, your guide will greet you and assist with your transport to your hotel. Kyoto is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses. It’s also known for formal traditions such as kaiseki dining, consisting of multiple courses of precise dishes, and geisha, female entertainers often found in the Gion district.

Enjoy a full day of sightseeing in Kyoto together with your guide by using public transportation. What better way to start the day than with a nice cup of tea? The Japanese tea ceremony, known as chanoyu or sado, is a custom that dates back thousands of years. The ceremony is a carefully choreographed ritual that offers the ultimate Japanese hospitality. As well as trying out a cup of this delicate green tea, we’ll get a unique insight into the customs and etiquette of traditional tea serving.

Fully refreshed, we’ll visit the Kinkakuji Temple, a Zen temple known for its delicately manicured gardens and floors covered in gold leaf. Formally known as Rokuonji, the temple was the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. A walk through the Bamboo Grove in Arashiyama is next on the itinerary. The walking paths cut through bamboo groves that have been used for centuries to make traditional crafts. Finally, continue across the Togetsukyo Bridge, an iconic landmark, before returning to your hotel for the evening at leisure.

Enjoy today exploring Kyoto together with your guide! The east side of Kyoto beckons today. This is where we’ll find Fushimi Inari Shrine, an important Shinto shrine famous for thousands of bright red torii gates that line the way to the top of the sacred Mount Inari. Continue to Kiyomizu Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which offers incredible views from the 13-metre-high building whose massive veranda was built without using any nails. In the spacious Kyoto Imperial Park, we’ll find the Kyoto Imperial Palace, where Japan’s Imperial Family resided until 1868, when the capital was moved to Tokyo. Returning to central Kyoto, we’ll visit the beautiful Nijo Castle, once the residence of the Tokugawa shoguns.

Our final stop is the Nishiki Market, known as ‘Kyoto’s Kitchen’; this lively retail market specializes in all things food related and is a great place to find Kyoto specialties such as Japanese sweets, pickles, dried seafood and sushi.

Enjoy your final few hours in Kyoto before you meet your guide, who will assist in the transfer to Osaka Kansai International Airport for your onward flight.