Top Japan Unique Experiences - page 6

If you’re a fan of Kanji, or Japanese calligraphy, and you want to know how to practice this traditional art form, then this hands-on private lesson shows you how. Instead of watching online videos, learn to master traditional techniques in a modern atelier alongside your instructor: from what tools you need, how to hold the brush, and how to transform your favorite work into a masterpiece on traditional paper or a fan.

Visit the enchanting district of Arashiyama, renowned for its thick bamboo groves, resident monkeys, and well-preserved sacred shrines. On this personalized excursion, you’ll join a local guide to explore the stunning region, which lies at the foothills of the Arashiyama Mountains. Tours include admission tickets to four local temples as well as Okochi Sanso Villa, a traditional Japanese home and garden inscribed as national cultural properties.

The springtime “sakura” season in Kyoto is best celebrated with a personal guide to show you the best spots for “hanami,” or cherry blossom viewing. In local style you’ll head off the tourist trail and join traditional festivities. Feast on typical Japanese snacks and seasonal dishes with a picnic under the drifting blossoms. Then experience “yozakura”— nighttime blossom-viewing of weeping cherry trees illuminated against the sky.

Experience Kamakura’s nature and history in one day, without spending hours on research, with this private day tour with a local host. After a complimentary train ride from Tokyo, enjoy a custom-crafted itinerary in this one-time capital of medieval Japan. Explore beautiful Shinto shrines in the forest, marvel at brilliant cherry blossoms, and admire the “Great Buddha,” a massive, nearly 800-year-old bronze sculpture of Amida Buddha.

Dress in traditional Japanese attire in this kimono and yukata experience in Kyoto. You won’t have to worry about wearing the clothing incorrectly as you’ll have a professional fitting session. Stroll around Gion, and visit nearby shrines such as Kiyomizu-dera and Heianjingu Shrine. The experience is flexible, and different time slots are offered throughout the day. You can also upgrade your experience to include makeup, and hair styling.

Learn the traditional art of Japanese calligraphy, called ‘shodo,’ in Tokyo. Under the expert eye of a master calligrapher, practice using the tools of the trade: brushes, ink, and paper. Settle into a quiet studio, where the ambiance encourages a contemplative mindset, and try your hand at writing Japanese characters in an artistic style once indispensable to nobles and samurai.

City tours are great for first-time visits but often have rigid itineraries and tight schedules. This tour offers the chance to explore Nagoya on a custom itinerary with a guide assigned to you based on your interests. Highlights can include visiting the Atsuta Shrine and its garden of cypress trees, the Edo-period Nagoya Castle, or the Sakae entertainment and shopping district. Once the tour begins, you’re free to change destinations as you see fit.

Sake is a Japanese alcoholic drink that’s also known as rice wine. It can be tricky as an outsider to know which type of sake to order, so eliminate language barriers, and boost your sake knowledge by having a tasting session with a sake sommelier in Tokyo. Try 6–7 types of sake with detailed explanations of the best way to drink them, and the best foods to go with them.

We have everything from cute kimonos to trendy kimonos. Everything you need is available here. Please come home with me. Japanese-style bags and slippers are included in the rental fee. You can also add a hair set as an option.

Feel like you’re big in Japan during this 2.5-hour tour of Ryogoku (sumo town) and the historic Asakusa district led by a sumo wrestler. Follow your hulking host as you check out the Ryogoku kokugikan sumo stadium, see where the wrestlers practice and visit a sumo goods shop. Then head to Asakusa, where you’ll check out the iconic Senso-ji temple, sample some snacks and shopping on Nakamise Street and much more. A translator and sumo guide are both included.

Discover Nagano’s many highlights on this private 2-day tour. You’ll have a guide to show you around on the first day, and then free time to explore on the second day. Overnight stay in a Japanese Ryokan, entrance fees to Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park, Zenko-ji Temple, and a private onsen experience is included, making it the ultimate hassle-free tour.

Explore the magnificent temples and natural wonders of Nagano on a full-day tour and benefit from the undivided attention of a private guide. Visit the famous Zenkoji Temple and Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park, enjoy lunch (own expense) in Obuse Town, then choose a soak in the hot springs at Shibu Onsen.

Tokyo's fashion districts sit close together but cover wildly different styles—Harajuku's street fashion, Shibuya's youth-driven trends, and the upscale international luxury brands of Omotesando and Aoyama—and moving between them without context means missing the contrasts that define each area. A private guide threads the four districts into one route with street food stops including crepes, cotton candy, and shaved ice. Guests customarily cover the guide's fare.

Discover the highlights of Hakone, without the hassle of researching or logistics, on this private day tour from Tokyo. Wnjoy a customized itinerary of this small town in Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, known for its hot springs and excellent views of Mount Fuji. Stroll through the national park, see the red Hakone Shrine, and soak up the rejuvenating waters of a traditional onsen (hot spring bath, own expense).

✨This tour is perfect for families and small groups who want to maximize their time in Hokkaido, ensuring comfort and convenience throughout the day. ✨Explore the stunning landscapes of Biei and Furano on this private one-day sightseeing tour. ✨Enjoy visiting iconic spots like Farm Tomita and the picturesque Shirogane Blue Pond. ✨With a dedicated driver, you'll experience hassle-free transport and valuable insights into the region's beauty. - Personalized private car tour for a relaxed sightseeing experience - Visit top attractions including Farm Tomita, Shikisai no Oka, and Shirahige Blue Pond. - Includes door-to-door pick-up and drop-off at your Sapporo accommodation - Tour duration is approximately 10 hours, allowing ample time at each location

Do you know that Nagoya was once the center base of Samurai culture? During the Sengoku period in the 16th century when Samurai played an active role, the Owari district including Nagoya is known as the place where the most famous “Sengoku Daimyo”, powerful Japanese feudal lord, were from, such as “Oda Nobunaga”, “Toyotomi Hideyoshi” and “Tokugawa Ieyasu”. Why don’t you experience Japanese culture such as Japanese calligraphy and tea ceremony with English in a Kominka house in the city of Samurai culture “Nagoya”? We will welcome you at a special place where people actually used to live, not sightseeing facilities. Once you step inside, you will see the good old days of Japanese houses such as tatami mats, Shoji (paper walls) and traditional Japanese gardens which are rare today. With this quiet space, you can experience Japanese culture such as Japanese calligraphy and tea ceremony while understanding the history. This would be the special experience for your visit to Japan.

Dressing in a kimono is the quintessential traditional Kyoto experience but they are very expensive to buy and difficult to put on. With this experience, an expert will dress you in a kimono and set your hair then you can stroll around the ancient city at leisure.

It will be a private experience. ① Experience at a "real soba restaurant" that is not for tourism This experience is not held in a dedicated experience facility, but in a real hand-made soba restaurant that is actually open. The soba chefs who make and serve soba noodles on a daily basis give direct instruction, so you can learn about Japanese soba culture "in the real world."It is not simplified for sightseeing, but a major feature of soba is that you can experience the same process and way of thinking as Japanese people usually eat soba. ② Experience the "complete soba making process" from start to finish While many cooking experiences experience only a part of the process, in this plan, Mix buckwheat flour → Put dough together → Stretch → Cut You will experience the whole sequence of:It is a composition that allows you to experience the delicacy of soba making and why craftsmanship is required. ③ The luxury of tasting freshly beaten and boiled The experience is unique in that you can taste your own soba noodles at the most delicious time. Freshly made and boiled, soba has a completely different aroma and texture than the soba eaten in restaurants.In order to bring out the original flavor of soba, we offer a variety of Japanese-style dishes such as warm soba sauce and tenkasu. ④ Hokkaido's seasonal tempura and sake close to soba The tempura served with soba noodles is mainly made from seasonal ingredients from Hokkaido. It is simple cooking that utilizes the taste of the ingredients, and emphasizes compatibility with soba. Sake is three types of local sake from Hokkaido carefully selected by the dominant sake master. By comparing two types of cold sake and one type of warmed sake, you can experience the change in aroma and taste depending on the temperature. By pairing it with soba noodles and tempura, you can realize that sake is “sake to enjoy with meals.” ⑤ Premium Experience with Small Groups Because it is a private experience for a small number of people, you can enjoy learning because you are close to the craftsmen. You can enjoy the experience and the meal in a calm space. It's not mass acceptance, so we focus on politeness and quality experiences. ⑧ "Memorable Experiences" of Travel in Japan This experience is more than just cooking classes and meals. It is the very time to experience authentic soba and sake culture that can only be done in Japan. "Not only photos and videos, but also ""memories made and tasted with my own hands"" will be a special memory of my trip to Japan."

Trade Kyoto's crowded streets for a relaxed, private sake tasting in one of Japan's most important brewing regions. Learn about the different grades of sake, visit a 400-year-old historic brewery as well as a more modern one, to see how the drink has evolved over the centuries. Learn about aromas, flavors, and brewing techniques as you sample a variety of sake with insights from an expert.

If you’re short on time in Tokyo, don’t spend hours walking between sights. Instead, get a birds-eye view of Japan’s capital during a helicopter ride that lets you appreciate the scale of the metropolis. Your captain points out landmarks such as Tokyo Skytree, Imperial Palace, and Tokyo Station as you soar.

You will realize what happened to the people living an ordinary life here, and how they survived after being deprived of the future they had envisioned. You will walk around Hiroshima, a beautiful and peaceful city reborn, and feel the underlying strength of the people who rose from the ruins. I worked as a local government official in the Hibakusha (A-bomb survivors) Support Division for 12 years and continue interacting with Hibakusha. Therefore, I can accurately convey things about A-bomb survivors, the reconstruction of Hiroshima, and the effects of radiation on the human body to you. The Tower of Hiroshima Castle is a museum where you can learn about the history and culture of Hiroshima. Also near the castle are the A-bombed trees and the remains of the communications room where the first news of the atomic bombing was transmitted. Soothe your tour fatigue at the beautiful Shukkeien, a Japanese garden.

Explore recent Japanese military history on this guided excursion in Tokyo. After meeting your English-speaking guide at Kudanshita Station, experience the lives of everyday people and soldiers during World War II at Showa-kan Museum, learn about military practices like Kamikaze attacks from an expert guide, and stop by a shrine that commemorates Japan’s 2.5 million victims of war since 1869.

On this tour, you can visit the ruins of the Great East Japan Earthquake with a local licensed guide. On March 11 th 2011, the magnitude-9.0 earthquake occurred in Japan’s Tohoku region. Many people in Fukushima lost their lives to this earthquake and the subsequent large tsunami, and scores of homes were destroyed. In addition, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Disaster resulted in leaving many people with no choice but to evacuate their homes. The effects of these multiple disasters remain to this day. This tour offers you the opportunity to see the places where the effects of the earthquake and nuclear disaster remain, as well as the places where revitalization efforts are taking place. All tour sales go to donations for the affected areas. The radiation level of places you will visit on this tour does not exceed 0.05 mSv per hour. Please note that You are not allowed to enter the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

Get an in-depth experience of life during Japan's Edo period on this private tour, exclusively for your party. Visit the seven temples and shrines where The Seven Gods of Fortune are worshipped and collect stamps along the way to mark your journey.