Japan’s Golden Cities: Tokyo, Kanazawa & Kyoto

• Enjoy outstanding collections of art and artefacts, from encyclopaedic collections in Kyoto and Tokyo to stunning private foundations such as Tokyo’s Nezu Museum.

• Explore Tokyo’s vibrant and diverse neighbourhoods, from cutting-edge architecture on Omotesandō to the Old Edo style of the Yanaka Ginza district.

• Survey Kenroku-en Garden and wander through samurai villas and restored teahouses in Kanazawa.

• Discover the unique combination of history, religion, art and garden design that underpins Kyoto’s World Heritage-listed temples and shrines.

• Admire the autumn foliage and world class art museums during day trips to Hakone and Toyama

WEDNESDAY 18 NOVEMBER – ARRIVAL (D)
An arrival transfer from Tokyo airport is included in the tour price for all participants; contact us for further information.  The tour commences at 4.00pm in the lobby of our hotel in Tokyo, where we meet tour leader Relle Mott for an orientation stroll around our central neighbourhood before a welcome dinner together in a local restaurant. Overnight Tokyo

THURSDAY 19 NOVEMBER – NEIGHBOURHOODS & NATiONAL COLLECTIONS (B)
This morning we take the subway to the Yanaka Ginza district. It is one of the only surviving areas in Tokyo to indicate what this bustling metropolis looked like before the devastating fires of WWII. Until the seventeenth century, the bay of Edo hosted a humble fishing village, but the Tokugawa shoguns – who ‘unified’ the archipelago under their dynasty and limited the power of the emperor – recognised that Edo was a better geographical capital than Kyoto in the south. The city became the largest in the early modern world and was eventually known only as “Tōkyō” (Eastern Capital), to distinguish it from “Kyōto” (The Capital). Lunch is at leisure before an afternoon in the staggering National Museum, a series of collections that trace the history, archaeology and culture of Japan’s many artforms. After an introduction, there is ample time to focus independently on your interests, from hanging scrolls to kimono, Chinese antiquities and woodblock prints. We return to the hotel by public transport, although you might prefer to continue exploring Ueno Park and return independently. Overnight Tokyo.

FRIDAY 20 NOVEMBER – HAKONE (B)
Today we travel by coach to the Hakone Open Air Museum which uses the concept of a Japanese ‘borrowed garden’ to create a sculpture museum where Japanese and international works interact in harmony with the surrounding valleys and mountains. The museum presents an array of 120 works by modern and contemporary sculptors spread across the vast museum grounds including a large Henry Moore collection and a pavilion devoted to ceramic works by Picasso. The concepts of the coexistence between art and nature continues with our visit to the privately owned Pola Museum which houses a diverse collection of Japanese Western painting, European impressionists, Japanese paintings and prints, Oriental ceramics and glass art. There is free time for lunch in the museum café before we return to Tokyo where the evening is at leisure. Overnight Tokyo.

SATURDAY 21 NOVEMBER – MEIJI TO MODERN (B)
This morning we depart hotel to travel by subway to Harajuku, a neighbourhood associated with an irrepressible and youthful kawaii (cute) style. We stroll down the architecturally significant Omotesandō street, Tokyo’s Champs-Elysées, to visit the Ōta Memorial Museum of Art. This private museum opened in 1980 to showcase the ukiyo-e or woodblock prints of businessman Ōta Seizo V. A small museum, it presents the prints in beautiful, themed displays that allow for close examination and contextualisation of the complex printing process. After time for lunch at leisure, we conclude the day with a visit of the beautiful Nezu Museum. Another stunning private collection, this time of railway magnate Nezu Kaichirō, it narrowly escaped destruction in WWII and the main building was sensitively designed by starchitect Kengo Kuma. The collection focuses on Chinese antiquities and Japanese treasures of the tea ceremony, and the peaceful garden is one of Tokyo’s most memorable. Returning to the hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Tokyo.

SUNDAY 22 NOVEMBER – TO KANAZAWA (B, D)
We check out of the hotel this morning and travel by Shinkansen to Kanazawa. Please note that today you travel with your carry-on luggage only; your large suitcase will be shipped to Kanazawa by truck and arrive tomorrow, so please pack clothing, toiletries and supplies (including medication) for an overnight stay without your main luggage. The bullet train is a very comfortable and smooth journey, with the opportunity to purchase a bento box for lunch in Tokyo station and/or snacks on the train. Upon arrival we transfer to the elegant Edo Period Seisonkaku Villa built for the mother of a feudal Maeda clan lord. The villa is adjacent to Kenroku-en Garden and features a viewing deck with a roof designed to offer uninterrupted views over the garden. Entering directly from the villa, the blazing reds and gold of the autumn foliage elegantly contrast with the symmetry of Kenroku-en Garden’s pine trees that are protected from the heavy winter snow by yukusturi, a conical arrangement of ropes that create a unique sculptural element to the garden. After checking in to the hotel we enjoy a traditional Japanese Kaiseki dinner. Overnight Kanazawa.

MONDAY 23 NOVEMBER – THE SAMURAI DISTRICT (B)
As the seat of the powerful Maeda clan, Kanazawa became one of the most important castle towns in feudal Japan with a large population of samurai to defend the interests of the daimyo. Today, we explore the Nagamachi district where the middle to high-ranking samurai and their families lived. Here, the 16th century Nomura samurai house and garden has been faithfully preserved with elegantly carved cypress panels (ranma), painted screen doors (fusuma) and a full suit of samurai armour. We stroll through the myriads of stalls at Omicho market selling fresh produce and excellent local seafood with free time for lunch to try the local specialities at one of the market restaurants. This afternoon and evening are at leisure. Overnight Kanazawa.

TUESDAY 24 NOVEMBER – TOYAMA (B, L)
This morning we travel to Toyama nestled in the Northern Alps on the coast of Japan and is known for its glass artistry. We visit the Glass Art Museum designed by modernist architect Kengo Kuma with permanent displays of contemporary glass art by international artists and the Glass Garden installation created by Dave Chihuly. After a break for coffee, we head to Toyama Castle Park on the site of former Toyama Castle. The castle keep has been reconstructed and we visit the small museum which recounts the city and castle’s history. There is time to stroll through the traditional style Japanese garden before we visit the Sato Memorial Museum of Art. The museum is dedicated to the founder and wealthy entrepreneur, Sato Sakekuro’s life-long interests in porcelain, tea ceremony, art and calligraphy. After a break for lunch, we gain an insight into life in Toyama during the Edo period at the Municipal Folkcraft Village, a collection of diverse museums including The Museum of Ceramic Art, The Museum of Medicine Peddlers and The Museum of Archaeology. We return to Kanazawa where the evening is at leisure. Overnight Kanazawa.

WEDNESDAY 25 NOVEMBER – KANAZAWA ARTS & CRAFTS (B)
Ohi-ware pottery refers to a distinctive style of uneven pottery used in tea ceremony crafted with hand tools and without the use of a pottery wheel. This 350-year-old technique has been handed down from father to son through 10 generations of the Chozaemon family. We have the privilege of a private tour of the Ohi Museum with Toshio Ohi Chozaemon XI, the 11th generation ceramics master from the family. We continue exploring Kanazawa’s arts and craft at the Museum of Traditional Arts and Crafts which exhibits 36 different crafts native to the Ishikawa area including lacquerware, Kutani porcelain and silk dyeing. After free time for lunch, we visit the D.T Suzuki Museum which interprets the scholar’s Zen philosophy through his writings and the building’s contemplative design before engaging with the exhibitions and modern art installations on display at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art. Returning to the hotel the afternoon and evening is at leisure. Overnight Kanazawa.

THURSDAY 26 NOVEMBER – TO KYOTO (B, L)
After checking out this morning, we depart by shinkansen and local train for Kyoto. On arrival we enjoy lunch together near the station before boarding a coach to the Robert Yellin Yakimono Gallery located in a traditional Kyoto House. A leading foreign expert on Japanese pottery, Robert has resided in Kyoto for decades and will share his encyclopaedic knowledge of ceramics during a tour of the gallery. Following our visit, we head to our hotel and check in. Overnight Kyoto.

FRIDAY 27 NOVEMBER – TEMPLES & TEA CEREMONY (B, L)
The city of Heian-kyō was founded in 794, its name chosen through a poetry competition to signify ‘City of Peace and Tranquillity’. An imperial base for centuries, it later became known simply as Kyoto (‘the capital’). This morning we explore one of Kyoto’s celebrated geisha districts, the well-preserved Gion and call in at Kenninji Temple to see the striking twin dragon artworks painted on the ceiling. After a break for coffee, we stroll down through the Higashiyama district before we continue to Kodai-ji monastery to learn about the tea ceremony and enjoy lunch featuring a local Kyoto speciality. Returning to our hotel, the later afternoon and evening are at leisure. Overnight Kyoto.

SATURDAY 28 NOVEMBER – KYOTO'S ZEN TEMPLES (B, l)
In the sixth century, Chan Buddhism was introduced to Japan from China. Zen, as it was called there, with its focus on discipline, meditation and the mysteries of life – and artforms such as calligraphy, garden design, ink-wash painting and tea ceremony – quickly became one of the most important religious sects in the country. We have an early start today to beat the crowds at a temple more closely associated with Zen than many others. Ryōan-ji, or the Temple of the Dragon at Peace, is surrounded by a large and beautifully-designed ‘stroll garden’, designed for appreciating the seasonal beauty of a small lake, but it’s the karesansui or ‘dry landscape garden’ of stone, moss, gravel and wall that makes Ryōan-ji so famous. Those who can see all of its fifteen stones at once – apparently placed in this meditative arrangement in the fifteenth century – are reputed to have reached enlightenment. Afterwards, we visit a few sub-temples in the vast Daitoku-ji. One of Kyoto’s most important Zen complexes, its monasteries preserve more ‘dry landscape’ or Zen gardens, along with ink-wash screens and hanging scrolls, and it was one of the most important places for the development of tea ceremony under Zen master Sen no Rikyū. Following a shojin ryori-style lunch, the simple but elegant food of Zen monks, we continue to Ginkaku-ji, or the Temple of the Silver Pavilion. Another Zen temple that began life as a pleasure villa, it is nestled in the side of a mountain and its simple wooden building, a paragon of the rustic wabi-sabi style, sits in one of Kyoto’s most beautiful autumn gardens. Later we visit Enkōji, another temple in the area famed for its autumn foliage, maple trees, impressive garden and scenic location. Returning to our hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Kyoto.

SUNDAY 29 NOVEMBER – JAPANESE ARTS & CRAFTS (B, D)
Kyoto is sometimes called the ‘Florence of Japan’, and it prides itself on the preservation of ancient arts and crafts. These are our focus today, as we commence with a visit to the tranquil Kawai Kanjiro House and Studio. Located in a quiet lane of the Higashiyama pottery district, it was the residence and laboratory of one of twentieth-century Japan’s most important potters. Kawai Kanjiro was a significant figure in the mingei movement, which celebrated traditional styles and techniques in the decades following the rapid Westernisation of the Meiji period. Afterwards, we continue to Sanjūsangen-dō, a Buddhist temple founded in the twelfth century and today known for its thousands of statues of gilded wooden Buddhas, Kannon (goddess of mercy), bodhisattvas and other designated National Treasures. This craft, of multiple woodblock statues, is still taught and practised at arts colleges in Kyoto. After free time for lunch in a nearby hotel there is the option to visit Kyoto’s National Museum and explore the collection independently. This evening, we gather for a farewell dinner of fine French cuisine with panoramic views over Kyoto. Overnight Kyoto.

MONDAY 30 NOVEMBER – DEPART (B)
Our tour concludes after breakfast in the hotel. A departure transfer to Osaka airport is included for all participants; contact us for further information.

Hotel Monterey Ginza 4* Tokyo, 4 nights

https://www.hotelmonterey.co.jp/ginza/

ANA Crowne Kanazawa 4* Kanazawa, 4 nights

https://www.ihg.com/crowneplaza/hotels/us/en/ishikawa/qkwja/hoteldetail

Miyako Hotel Kyoto Hachijojo 4* Kyoto, 4 nights

https://www.miyakohotels.ne.jp/kyoto-hachijo/

NB: hotels of a similar standard may be substituted. . For historical reasons, true double-bedded rooms for dual occupancy are rare in Japan; instead, the norm is two generous twin-beds joined together (a so-called “Hollywood twin”).

• Arrival transfer from Tokyo airport (Haneda or Narita) and departure transfer from Kyoto to Osaka airport

• 12 nights’ accommodation at 4* hotels

• All breakfasts and 7 lunches or dinners

• All ground transport, guided tours and entrance fees to sites as mentioned in the itinerary, and tipping

• Transport card (Pasmo) for use on the subway

• Reserved shinkansen and train seats; Tokyo-Kanazawa & Kanazawa - Kyoto

• Luggage transfers; Tokyo-Kanazawa & Kanazawa - Kyoto

• Talks by and expertise of an Australian tour leader throughout

• Services of a Japanese guide throughout, with gratuity for the guide included

A $1,500pp deposit is required at the time of booking to hold your place on tour.

A second deposit of $2,000 is due on 21 July 2026.

We will invoice you for final payment for the tour, due on 04 September 2026.

When you book on one of tours, we ask you to accept our terms and conditions. You can read our terms and conditions here.