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Day 1
Arrival in Tokyo
Arrival at Haneda, transfer to a hotel in Shinjuku and a first dinner together among the lanterns of Omoide Yokocho.
🛏 Hotel in Shinjuku, room with a view · 2 nightsJapan · 13 days
Thirteen days in the season of red maples: Tokyo by night, Mount Fuji from Lake Ashi, the Japanese Alps at Takayama, thatched villages, then four nights in Kyoto in a wooden house in Gion. By train, with a group of no more than twelve and one of us.
Hot bath, kaiseki dinner and futons on tatami, in the old town of Takayama.
Four nights in a restored machiya, a short walk from the lanes of Gion.
Fast trains for the whole trip, luggage sent on between hotels.
Day 1
Arrival at Haneda, transfer to a hotel in Shinjuku and a first dinner together among the lanterns of Omoide Yokocho.
🛏 Hotel in Shinjuku, room with a view · 2 nightsDay 2
Asakusa temple in the morning, Tsukiji market for lunch, the evening from the top of Shibuya Sky.
Day 3
By train to Hakone: a boat on Lake Ashi, the cable car over the steam of Owakudani and, on a clear day, Mount Fuji.
Day 4
Scenic train to Takayama. Evening in the ryokan, with a hot bath and a kaiseki dinner.
🛏 Ryokan in the old town · 2 nightsDay 5
The morning market by the river, the sake merchants’ houses and a free afternoon.
Day 6
The UNESCO-listed thatched farmhouses, then by bus to Kanazawa.
Day 7
Kenroku-en garden, the geisha district of Higashi Chaya and Omicho market.
Day 8
Train to Kyoto and check-in at the machiya. At sunset, on foot through the lanes of Gion.
🛏 Restored machiya in Gion · 4 nightsDay 9
Dawn among the ten thousand torii, before the crowds. Afternoon at Kiyomizu-dera among red maples.
Day 10
The great Buddha of Todai-ji and the deer of the park, then back to Kyoto for dinner.
Day 11
The bamboo grove early in the morning and a Japanese cooking class in the afternoon.
Day 12
A day in Osaka: the castle, then the evening in Dotonbori, Japan’s most famous street food.
Day 13
Transfer to Kansai airport and flight home.
Every day there was a surprise we hadn’t asked for but that was exactly us. We will remember the ryokan in Takayama forever.
My first trip to Japan, on my own in a group: I felt at home from day one.
| 14 November 2026 | €4,180 | last 3 seats · guaranteed | Ask about this trip |
| 24 April 2027 | €4,180 | 9 of 12 seats | Ask about this trip |
Single supplement €690
A passport valid for the whole stay. EU and UK citizens need no visa for up to 90 days.
8 to 12 km a day, on easy streets and paths. Fine for anyone used to walking in a city.
Photos by Denys Nevozhai, Susann Schuster, Jayant, Mlook 124, Winged Jedi, Sorrawis Chongcharoen, Dino Johannes, Fabrizio Chiagano, Nguyen Minh, Howen, Joris Beugels · Unsplash