2024 Garden and Art Spectacular Tour of Japan

Welcome to Japan it is Autumn and the Gardens are spectacular!

On arrival at Narita or Haneda International Airport, you will be met by a Journey to the East guide and escorted to your hotel by private transport.

Today is an arrival day and no group program is scheduled. Your hotel is located right in the middle of Tokyo near the glitzy Ginza. Why not take a stroll, relax and be ready to start the first full day of your 2024 Garden & Art Spectacular Tour of Japan in Autumn. 

*Many of our guests arrive a day or so early to settle in before the tour starts. We can arrange your additional nights accommodation in the same room as the tour.

This morning, you waste no time and go straight into visiting one of the best autumn gardens in Tokyo, Rikugi-en. After strolling the magnificent garden at peak of its fall colours, you continue your journey northwest, to arrive at a suburb in Greater Tokyo, Omiya.

Here you will stop at the Omiya Bonsai Village. Visiting an outer suburb away from the central Tokyo is an interesting experience in itself seeing how ordinary Japanese people live.
After the visit to the Omiya Bonsai Museum, an opportunity opens up where you can learn more about the art of bonsai, the care and preservation of these beautifully manicured miniature trees, and creating your own bonsai in the friendly bonsai workshop. (*You can't take it home for a biosecurity reason, but the skills are yours to keep.)

Tonight, we have a "welcome Japan" dinner is at your hotel.

On this second day of Tokyo, you will see a mix of old and modern-day Japan. The highlights include;

• Visit Meiji Jingu Shrine, a historically significant and magnificent shrine in the thick forest, most surprising in the middle of busy Tokyo,
• Stroll along Omotesando avenue, arguably the most fashionable street in Japan with cutting-edge architecture and the top brands of the world,
• Wander through Ota Memorial Museum which specialises in ukiyo-e (wood print) art, and
• Amble through the wonderful Nezu Museum, designed by Kengo Kuma, where you can enjoy the contemplative Japanese garden and take in one of the finest collections of Japanese and East-Asian pre-modern art.

Tonight, you will experience more casual dining at one of the endless choices of restaurants in upmarket Ginza, near your hotel.

Your adventure begins with a scenic train ride for a lovely overnight trip to Kawaguchiko, a hot springs resort area located at the foot of Mt Fuji. Today you will;

• Visit Muse Museum displaying adorable traditional  Japanese dolls produced by Yuki Atae.
• Admire amazing kimonos made from centuries old tie-dye technique excellently reproduced by master Itchiku at our top pick art venue of Kawaguchiko. The museum building and the garden of the Itchiku Kubota Museum of Art are also worthy of visit in their own right, especially in autumn.
• Have plenty of opportunities to absorb the superb views of iconic Mt Fuji and Lake Kawaguchiko against the backdrop of peak autumn colours.
• Stay at an exquisite boutique hotel with view across the lake to Mt Fuji and experience the best form of Japanese hospitality, soak in a hot-spring onsen bath and a multi course dinner.

After a Japanese style breakfast, you will enjoy a few more moments at Kawaguchiko before making your trip back to Tokyo by highway coach.

The rest of the afternoon and evening is free in Tokyo, offering you a chance take in some personal preferences and to try some of the amazing restaurants of your choice. We are also happy to make recommendations and offer directions.

This morning you will take Japan's impressive shinkansen (bullet train) to the city of Kanazawa on the shores of the Japan Sea.

Kanazawa is commonly known as “Little Kyoto” and is home to many traditional Japanese arts and cultures, history from the samurai era and the outstanding Kenrokuen Japanese Garden. Today you will visit;

• Kenrokuen Garden, originally designed as a castle garden dating back to the 17th century and regarded as one of the three great gardens of Japan,
• 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, noteworthy for the unusual glass cylinder structure which envelopes the building to reduce its environmental footprint designed by SANAA,
• a tea house in a beautiful Japanese garden to experience 'The Way of Tea' one of the most well-known aspects of Japanese culture.

Tonight, you will sample wagyu beef at a teppanyaki restaurant.

This morning you will stroll around the Nagamachi samurai resident district. Your guide will continue taking you on a backstreet walk of Kanazawa exploring some prominent small art galleries including D.T. Suzuki Museum.

Later on, you will visit a tea house in a beautiful Japanese garden to experience 'The Way of Tea' (commonly known as a tea ceremony in English), one of the most well-known aspects of Japanese culture.

The rest of the day is free. You can continue your exploration of Kanazawa checking out many craft shops offering exquisite kimonos, gilded lacquerware and local sake products. You may like to visit the Higashi Geisha District, a well-preserved area of narrow streets. In days gone by, immaculately presented geisha would have entertained wealthy patrons in slatted wooden tea houses. Here you can visit the Gold-leaf Museum, the Kanazawa’s number one traditional craft.

The evening is free tonight. We are more than happy to make dinner recommendations.

After a couple of days in Kanazawa, you head for Kurashiki, which was once a prosperous trading town during the feudal era.

On a way, you stop at Okayama, for a guided tour of the sublime Koraku-en Garden, another one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan.

Initially completed in 1700, Koraku-en is prized for being a great example of the “scenic promenade” garden style, which reveals a new view to the visitor on every turn along its meandering path.

In the afternoon, you will arrive at Kurashiki. It is delightfully historic and picturesque village to walk around.

It has maintained its charming streetscape of traditional black-and-white storehouses, merchant residences and canals lined with willow trees. Here you visit the Ohara Museum of Art, with a superb collection of ceramics, paintings and antiquities from Japan, China and other ancient civilizations.

You will have a French style dinner at your hotel tonight.

Today you take a day trip to Yasugi, a rural town on the western coast of Japan’s main island, to visit the garden at the Adachi Museum of Art.

This garden has been nominated Japan’s most popular garden for 17 consecutive years. Designed in the “borrowed scenery” style, the mountainous backdrop to this extensive garden makes it appear that the mountains are a seamless part of the garden itself.

You will also visit the Photography Museum of an award-winning photographer, Shoji Ueda.

You return to stay in Kurashiki tonight

A minivan ride will take you to the small regional town of Imbe, which has been producing Bizen ceramic for some 1,000 years.

Bizen-ware is still highly prized among pottery enthusiasts both in Japan and overseas. Today you;

• Engage first hand with one of Imbe’s most prominent potters in his own studio and private garden,
• Visit the ancient climbing kilns, and
• Wander through the galleries and craft shops.

Potentially the biggest surprise of your trip awaits this afternoon. You hop on a ferry across Seto Inland Sea to the art island of Naoshima.

Tonight, you stay at a sublime Japanese style ryokan on the island and experience Japanese hospitality at its best!

Once home to just a few remote fishing villages, Naoshima is now known as the "Art Island" in Japan’s magical Seto Inland Sea.

Thanks to the Benesse Corporation and the visionary Naoshima Art Project, Naoshima has been transformed into a cutting-edge contemporary art island and it is visited by leading architects and artists from all over the world. Today you;

• Spend time on the island visiting Chichu Museum, Lee Ufan Museum, and Ando Tadao Museum and Art House Project, 
• Also enjoy the laid-back atmosphere and stunning natural scenery of the Seto Inland Sea,

This evening you will cross back to the mainland, and take a shinkansen to your final destination, Kyoto.

With 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites (at last count!), Kyoto is the historical heart of Japan’s culture and the guardian of many of its ancient traditions.

Originally made capital way back in 794, present-day Kyoto offers an incredible range of contemplative gardens often associated with the ancient temples and shrines.

Kyoto has many iconic sites and flaming autumn colours accentuate them. Our walking guided tour today will focus on hidden treasures not often found in a guide book.

Tonight, a maiko (young geisha) joins us for a private performance during dinner at a shabu shabu hot pot restaurant serving premium wagyu beef.

It is time to explore Kyoto's western suburb, Arashiyama in the peak of autumn colours. At Arashiyama you will;

• Visit superb examples of Japanese gardens at Tenryuji Temple,
• Take a rickshaw, a two-passenger wagon pulled by energetic young men in traditional garb, to go through the iconic bamboo grove,
• Lunch is a classic lunch of tofu, a Kyoto specialty,
• You stop at Kinkakuji Temple, better known as Golden Pavilion. The temple is a stunning three-storied pavilion covered in dazzling gold leaf.

This evening is at your leisure to explore superb selections of restaurants in Kyoto.

This is another very special day. Past guests have said this visit ranks as one of the most impressive days of the tour.

Today you visit the stunning Miho Museum. Here you can experience a thorough immersion into the world of art, architecture and landscape design.

Renowned architect I.M. Pei designed this museum with much of the site built into a forested hillside. Miho was built to house an extensive private collection of some 2,000 antiquities from ancient civilizations.

The contrast of the glass and steel structure of the museum’s roof against the surrounding natural environment is spectacular. It is this seamless integration of the man-made and the natural which creates today's indelible memory.

Back in Kyoto tonight you will gather together one last time for a "farewell Japan" dinner with the group.

This morning after breakfast, your 2024 Garden and Art spectacular Tour of Japan concludes.

You can return to Tokyo by train or air to fly home, or depart from Osaka’s Kansai International Airport.

Perhaps you might like to linger in Japan for a little longer. We will be delighted to plan your personal post-tour extension to show you a different part of Japan. Please see our Model Extension Itineraries for inspirations!

Note: The cost of an escorted transfer to your departure airport is not included in our Small Group Tours (as we found many guests choose to stay in Japan a bit longer), but we will be happy to arrange your transfer to next destination or to exit airport. Please see our FAQ for more details.