TouringForLess

Trafalgar Tour Map

Trafalgar - Splendours of Japan (04/2023 - 04/2024) (JPNLN18)

9 Days From Tokyo to Osaka
Tour Style: Asia
Trafalgar Brochure Price from $3,761.00
Brochures: Asia 2022, Asia 2023 v1
Visits: Japan

At Kyoto’s Fushimi Inari Shrine, climb the extraordinary path lined with hundreds of orange torii gates that snake through the forest up into the mountains above the city. Indulge in a delicious kaiseki lunch at a traditional ryokan and gain an insight into Japanese customs.
Choice Highlights

Must-see Highlights
  • : View Mt. Fuji
  • : Explore Tokyo and Kyoto
  • : Visit the Sensoji Temple, the Skytree Observation Tower, the Edo Tokyo Museum in Tokyo, Mt. Fuji 5th Station, the Kinkakuji Temple and Fushimi Inari Shrine and Sanjusangen-do Hall in Kyoto
  • : See the traditional Gassho-zukuri houses in Gokayama and the beautiful gardens of Kenrokuen in Kanazawa

Dive Into Culture
  • Takayama: Sample Japanese sake during a walking tour in the Edo-style streets of Takayama Old Town.

MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®
  • Gokayama: Help support a local business with a visit to a washi paper workshop. You'll watch the family at work, and test your paper-making skills for yourself.

Be My Guest
  • Kyoto: Enjoy a kaiseki lunch at a traditional Japanese ryokan home near Kyoto where you will learn about local customs.

Trafalgar Tour Itinerary

Day 1Konnichiwa Tokyo
Your in-depth exploration of Japan begins in Tokyo. On arrival at Narita or Haneda Airport, take a shuttle bus transfer to your centrally located hotel, where you’ll join your Travel Director and fellow guests for a Welcome Reception drink and local appetisers.
Visits: Tokyo
Meals: Welcome Reception
Accommodation: New Otani Garden Tower
Day 2Explore Vibrant Tokyo
We launch our City Tour in the old-time entertainment centre of Asakusa, where we’ll encounter the Sensoji Buddhist Temple. One of Tokyo's most colourful and popular temples, Sensoji has been rebuilt countless times since it was founded in 628, making it Tokyo's oldest temple site. Strolling down Nakamise next, we immerse ourselves in the sights and sounds of shitamachi (downtown Tokyo), admiring the wooden dolls, colourful chiyogami (origami paper) and traditional Japanese sweets. We’ll ascend Tokyo Skytree, the world's highest free-standing broadcasting tower for panoramic views of the city, then enjoy the rest of the day at leisure or on an Optional Experience where a professional stylist will dress you in a traditional Japanese kimono.
Visits: Tokyo
Meals: Breakfast
Accommodation: New Otani Garden Tower
Day 3Off to the Five Lakes District
Our first stop today is the Imperial Palace Plaza from where the two bridges that form the entrance to the inner grounds of the Imperial Palace can be viewed. We'll have the opportunity to explore the leafy Imperial Palace East Gardens before continuing our City Tour. At the Edo-Tokyo Museum, we delve into the history and culture of Tokyo’s Edo era, then continue to the Ginza district where we’ll learn how to make sushi with a Local Specialist. We venture to the Five Lakes District next, keeping a keen eye out for the UNESCO listed Mt. Fuji which dominates the landscape.
Visits: Tokyo, Yamanakako
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Fuji Marriott Yamanakako
Day 4Majestic Mt. Fuji and Timeless Takayama
Visit Oshino Hakkai, a small rural village in the Fuji Five Lakes district, renowned for eight natural spring water ponds that are fed by melted snow from Mt. Fuji. Admire the reflections of the sky and landscapes in its clear waters, then ascend Mt. Fuji by road to 2,300 metres at the 5th station. Ride up Mt. Tenjo on the Kachikachiyama Ropeway next, for jaw-dropping views (weather permitting) of Mt. Fuji and Lake Kawaguchiko. Then, journey through the Japanese Alps to the beautiful hillside town of Takayama, before enjoying dinner at the hotel.
Visits: Yamanakako, Mt. Fuji Panoramic Ropeway, Takayama
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodation: Associa Takayama Resort
Day 5Experience Gokayama and on to Kanazawa Dive Into Culture Make Travel Matter
Immerse yourself in tradition as you walk through the Edo-style streets of Takayama's Old Town. Indulge a lunch of Japanese Hida-gyu – beef from a black-haired Japanese cattle breed, renowned as one of the finest quality varieties of beef. Journey back in time this afternoon during a visit to the peaceful UNESCO-listed Gokayama, a mountain village set amidst five valleys. Admire the unique construction of the local Gassho-zukuri wooden houses that have been built without the use of nails with steeply sloped thatched roofs to prevent snow from building up on them. Next, meet a local family in one of these houses to observe local artisans making washi paper and trying your hand at making your own. Make a difference to the sustainability of this small business during this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience. Stay overnight in Kanazawa.
Visits: Takayama, Kanazawa
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Kanazawa Tokyu
Day 6Traditional Kanazawa
Join a Local Specialist this morning to learn the secrets of painting gold leaf, a delicate craft the Japanese have been perfecting since the 16th century. Continue to the tranquil gardens of Kenrokuen, which took shape over a hundred years to emerge as one of Japan’s most beautiful gardens. Connecting with your exquisite natural surrounds, you’ll stroll through ornate landscapes and past ponds and temples. Take a short walk through the Omicho market next to see the local fish catch and enjoy an insider’s view of everyday life in a busy coastal town. Then, visit the Nagamachi District with its beautifully preserved samurai houses that line the traditional stone streets. Here you will gain first-hand insights into samurai life during a visit to the Nomura house, an elegant samurai mansion.
Visits: Kanazawa
Meals: Breakfast
Accommodation: Kanazawa Tokyu
Day 7Onwards to Kyoto Connect with Locals
We board an Express train this morning to Kyoto, where we’ll Connect With Locals at a traditional ryokan, built in 1932 to serve as the second residence of Emperor Akihito’s uncle. We’ll enjoy a Be My Guest lunch and learn about local Japanese customs as our hosts welcome us into their beautiful home. After lunch, we visit the UNESCO-listed Kinkakuji Temple with its famous Kinkaku (Golden Pavilion), the proud symbol of Kyoto and a Zen temple, which has its origins as a 14th century villa.
Visits: Kanazawa, Kyoto
Meals: Breakfast, Be My Guest
Accommodation: Nikko Princess
Day 8Discover Enchanting Kyoto
The blazing orange torii gates of Fushimi Inari Shrine guide our path through the forest, up into the mountains and to a sacred site that has heard prayers for prosperity and happiness since the 8th century. We continue to Sanjusangen-do Hall and admire the minute detail of each of its 1,001 “thousand-handed” goddesses of mercy statues, then enjoy a walking tour of the Gion area. This evening, we indulge in a Farewell Dinner with your Travel Director and fellow guests.
Visits: Kyoto
Meals: Breakfast, Farewell Dinner
Accommodation: Nikko Princess
Day 9Sayonara Japan
Our encounter with Japan’s age-old traditions and modern cityscapes at its end, we take a transfer by airport shuttle service to Kansai International Airport or Osaka Itami Airport for our onward flight. Alternatively, continue to Hiroshima by choosing the 13 day Splendours of Japan with Hiroshima itinerary.
Visits: Kyoto
Meals: Breakfast


Available Room Types: Single, Twin
Child: ages 5 to 11

Click Quote for a Tour Date to receive our low price tour quote


Trafalgar Tour Dates


Guaranteed Departure  indicates Guaranteed Departure
*Tour StartRetailQuote
Sun 03/31/24 $4,950.00
Wed 04/03/24 $4,950.00
Sun 04/07/24 $4,950.00
Sun 04/14/24 $4,895.00
We Sell the Same Escorted Tours. What makes us different is we sell to you for LESS!

Share Trafalgar's Splendours of Japan (04/2023 - 04/2024) Tour