The journey
From Tokyo's temples and a cycling tour at the foot of Mt. Fuji to the pine-forested sandbar of Amanohashidate, the boathouse village of Ine, a rural cycling tour near Kinosaki Onsen and Takamatsu's finest garden, fifteen days pairing Japan's classic highlights with its quieter countryside.
Japan: Beyond the Golden Route opens with the country's essential highlights, Tokyo, Mt. Fuji and Kyoto, before turning off the well-trodden path for its second half. Explore Tokyo's Meiji Jingu, Harajuku and the old town of Asakusa, then cycle a flat lakeside path with panoramic views of Mt. Fuji from Kawaguchiko. In Kyoto, walk two of the city's largest geisha districts by lantern light and spend a full day among Fushimi Inari's torii gates and Nijo Castle's chirping floors, with an optional day trip to Nara's tame deer. From there, the journey heads to Kyoto by the Sea: the pine-forested Amanohashidate sandbar, the extraordinary boathouse village of Ine, and the hot spring town of Kinosaki Onsen, reached by a countryside cycling tour. The final days bring Okayama's castle and garden, Takamatsu's Ritsurin Garden and a bonsai farm, and a last evening in Osaka.
Highlights
- Explore Tokyo's Meiji Jingu, Harajuku and Asakusa's Senso-ji temple, with the option to add a backstreet cycling tour or an old-town food walk
- Cycle a flat lakeside path at the foot of Mt. Fuji and wander a flower park framed by the mountain
- Walk Kyoto's two largest geisha districts by lantern light and spend a full day among Fushimi Inari's torii gates and Nijo Castle's chirping floors
- Walk the pine-forested Amanohashidate sandbar, one of Japan's Three Most Beautiful Views, and take a boat tour of Ine's 200 waterside boathouses
- Cycle the rural countryside and coastline near Kinosaki Onsen and sample fresh kamaboko fish cakes
- Stroll Takamatsu's Ritsurin Garden by wooden boat and learn the craft of bonsai at a local farm
Included
Accommodation
14 nights across Tokyo, Kawaguchiko, Kyoto, Amanohashidate, Kinosaki Onsen, Okayama, Takamatsu and Osaka
Activities
Tokyo guided city tour (Meiji Jingu, Harajuku, Omotesando, Koishikawa Korakuen Garden, Asakusa) · Kawaguchiko lakeside cycling and flower park tour · Kyoto guided tour (Fushimi Inari, Sanjusangendo, Nishiki Market, Nijo Castle, Nanzenji) · Amanohashidate Day Pass and Ine village excursion · choice of a silk-weaving or tatami-making workshop near Amanohashidate · Kinosaki Onsen countryside cycling tour · Takamatsu's Ritsurin Garden and bonsai farm
Also included
English meet and greet with return airport transfers · train tickets on Days 5, 8, 10, 11, 12 and 14 · bus tickets on Days 4 and 5 · Amanohashidate Freepass on Day 8 · English-speaking guides on Days 2 and 6 · entrance fees and public transportation on Days 2 and 6 · guide or staff for the Day 10 activity · breakfast daily from Day 2 · self-guide app and travel documentation
The route
Fifteen days across Japan
8 stops · Tokyo to Osaka
Tokyo
Kawaguchiko
Kyoto
Amanohashidate
Kinosaki Onsen
Okayama
Takamatsu
Osaka
Stop 1 of 8
Journey's end
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Day by day
The route in detail
Day 1
Arrival in Tokyo
Arrive in Tokyo, where a local representative will be waiting to help with the transfer into the city, whether by train or shuttle bus. The rest of the day is free to explore independently. Overnight in Tokyo.
Day 2
Tokyo's Shrines & Old Town
Meet a local guide for a full day through the capital. Begin at Meiji Jingu, Tokyo's most iconic Shinto shrine, its approach lined with towering torii gates and a forest of over 100,000 trees. Continue to Harajuku and Omotesando, the former known for quirky street fashion, the latter for its upscale flagship boutiques. After lunch, visit Koishikawa Korakuen Garden, a fine example of traditional Japanese garden design, before finishing in Asakusa, home to Senso-ji, Japan's oldest Buddhist temple, and Nakamise Street's bustling market of traditional snacks and souvenirs. Overnight in Tokyo.
Day 3
Free Day in Tokyo
Today is free to explore independently, with a suggested day trip to Kamakura, one of Japan's former capitals, home to the 13-metre bronze Daibutsu Buddha, or a morning in Akihabara's electronics district and Tokyo's museums and galleries. Two optional add-ons are also available: a cycling tour through Tokyo's backstreets and shotengai shopping lanes in neighbourhoods like Shimo-Kitazawa, or an evening food walk through three restaurants in an old rail-side district, from a standing tachinomi bar to a high-end kappo restaurant and a historic eatery dating to the 1850s. Overnight in Tokyo.
Day 4
Tokyo to Kawaguchiko
Take the bus to Lake Kawaguchi, one of the five lakes at the foot of Mt. Fuji, then meet a local guide for a private car transfer to a remote lakeside with panoramic mountain views. Cycle at a leisurely pace around a nearly-flat shoreline path, watching the reflection of Mt. Fuji ripple across the water. The tour continues to a countryside flower park, its seasonal blooms framing the mountain, from spring tulips and poppies to autumn's fiery maple leaves, before a private car transfer back to Kawaguchiko Station. Overnight in Kawaguchiko.
Day 5
Kawaguchiko to Kyoto
Today is free at leisure until check-in in Kyoto, Japan's cultural capital. An optional evening walk traces the lantern-lit lanes of Kyoto's two largest geisha districts, learning the history of these entertainers and passing the teahouses and training schools where geisha and maiko live and work. The route continues through Higashiyama for nighttime temple views and the illuminated Yasaka Pagoda, finishing in North Gion at the Tatsumibashi Bridge. Overnight in Kyoto.
Day 6
Kyoto's Iconic Sites
A full guided day through Kyoto's most iconic sites, beginning at Fushimi Inari Shrine, its thousands of orange torii gates stretching up the mountainside. Continue to Sanjusangendo, home to 1,001 life-sized golden Buddhist statues inside the world's longest wooden building, then browse Nishiki Market, known as Kyoto's kitchen, before lunch nearby. In the afternoon, visit Nijo Castle, an ornamental palace built for the shogun in the early 1600s and known for its chirping nightingale floors, before finishing at Nanzenji, a quiet Zen temple where monks have lived since 1291. Overnight in Kyoto.
Day 7
Free Day: Optional Nara Day Trip
Today is free, with the option to travel to Nara, Japan's capital for 74 years in the 8th century. Most sights cluster around Nara Park, home to hundreds of tame deer, including Todai-ji Temple, the world's largest wooden building and home to Japan's largest Buddha, and Kasuga Taisha, Nara's most celebrated shrine. Overnight in Kyoto.
Day 8
Kyoto to Amanohashidate
Travel by train to the Sea of Japan coast and Amanohashidate, known as Kyoto by the Sea. Guests receive an Amanohashidate Day Pass covering boat rides, bicycle rental and cable cars, ideal for exploring the Amanohashidate sandbar, a 3-kilometre stretch of pine forest and beach ranked among the Three Most Beautiful Views in Japan. Visit Chionji Temple and browse local shops and cafes, then ride the cable car to a lookout point at either end of the sandbar, where local custom suggests viewing it upside down through your legs for the illusion of a dragon flying skyward. Check into the hotel for a dinner of Miyazu Bay's fresh seafood. Overnight in Amanohashidate.
Day 9
Ine Village Excursion
Board a bus to Ine, a fishing village on the north end of the Kyotango Peninsula and home to over 200 waterside boathouses, a scene found nowhere else in Japan. A self-guided walk winds past rustic boathouses on one side and traditional wooden homes on the other, with a stop at a local sake brewery, one of only a handful in Japan led by a woman master brewer, to taste its distinctive pink-tinted sake. Board a local boat for a sea taxi tour of Ine Bay, seeing the village from the water before the bus returns to Amanohashidate for the evening. A private speedboat transfer between Amanohashidate and Ine can also be arranged on request. Overnight in Amanohashidate.
Day 10
Amanohashidate to Kinosaki Onsen
Enjoy a final morning stroll on the sandbar before choosing one of two cultural workshops: a Chirimen silk weaving experience inside a preserved 19th-century merchant's mansion in a historic silk production district, trying on a chirimen kimono and visiting local weaving workshops, or a hands-on tatami-making lesson in a family workshop, crafting a mini tatami coaster using traditional techniques. After a final few hours for lunch and shopping, board the train to Kinosaki Onsen, a classic Japanese hot spring town. Overnight in Kinosaki Onsen.
Day 11
Kinosaki Onsen to Okayama
Meet a local guide for a cycling tour through the countryside surrounding Kinosaki Onsen, riding past rural homes and rice paddies along the Maruyama River and the Japan Sea coastline. Stop at Futakata Kamaboko to sample handmade Japanese fish cakes in flavours from shrimp to cheese, and pass the Tsuiyama Fishing Port and the Toshima Wetlands for a final look at the rural landscape. In the afternoon, board the train to Okayama. Overnight in Okayama.
Day 12
Okayama to Takamatsu
Today is free at leisure, with a suggested visit to Okayama Castle, known as Crow Castle for its black exterior and reconstructed in the 1960s after wartime bombing, and neighbouring Koraku-en Garden, laid out in 1686 and regarded as one of Japan's three most beautiful gardens. In the afternoon, take the train to Takamatsu. Overnight in Takamatsu.
Day 13
Takamatsu's Gardens & Bonsai
Meet a local guide and travel to Ritsurin Garden, a landscape dating to the late 16th century and once the private garden of a line of feudal lords. Stroll its winding lanes past six ponds and groves of 300-year-old pine trees, then board a wooden boat for a ride through the grounds, and browse the local folk art displayed in the garden's historic pavilions. Continue to a local bonsai farm, where expert gardeners transform pine saplings into miniature works of art, a craft that has made Takamatsu one of Japan's leading bonsai producers. Overnight in Takamatsu.
Day 14
Takamatsu to Osaka
After breakfast, board the train to Osaka, Japan's culinary capital and the laid-back centre of the Kansai region. Recommended stops include Dotonbori, the city's neon-lit entertainment district known for takoyaki and other Osakan street food, and Umeda, home to the Umeda Sky Building's Floating Garden Observatory. An optional add-on threads through three restaurants for a night of Osakan specialities, from a standing tachinomi bar to izakaya skewers and a final round of yakitori. Overnight in Osaka.
Day 15
Departure from Osaka
The rest of the day is at leisure until the scheduled transfer to Kansai International Airport for the departure flight.
Moments
Along the way
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