Essential heritage sites of Japan - 15 days

For those travelling for the very first time in Japan, this self-guided tour will lead you through your journey across the essential attractions of the archipelago.
Discover the strong contrast between tradition and modernity, by visiting big metropolis such as Tokyo and Osaka and passing through places full of story and traditions. Explore one of the most unspoilt castle of Japan in Himeji; old temples in Kyoto, Kamakura and Nara; sacred places surrounded by nature in the middle of the Seto inland Sea in Miyajima. Spend a night on a lake shore with a view on the famous Mount Fuji or at a ryokan (traditional japanese hostel) and immerse yourself into an old Japan. Learn about japanese tea's mysteries in Kyoto's countryside to break the myth of "matcha" and discover all the other types of tea.

A standard itinerary but at every steps, takes you closer to traditional habits and world heritages.

Essential places to visit during your journey :

- The current and tremendous capital of Tokyo
- One of ther former capital, Kamakura
- The beautiful lake at the bottom of Mount Fuji
- Wazuka tea fields
- Himeji and its white castle
- Miyajima and its famous torii in the sea
- Hiroshima and the Peace memorial park
- Kyoto and the old districts
- Nara, the very first capital of Japan
- The originality of Osaka

This tour can be customized. If you would like to change it, please select your date of departure on the schedule at the bottom of this page and fill in the request form.

 Contact us here

- Travel in Japan with Peak Experience Japan - 

After hours of flight and the time difference

Landing at Tokyo airport (Narita or Haneda): Nippon he yôkoso ! 🗾

Drop your luggage at the hotel and take your first steps into the metropolis to find a good restaurant (we also have suggestions).
Don't get too impressed, the journey has just begun !

If you chose to rent a pocket WIFI, please pick it up either at the WIFI rental service of the airport or at your hotel, according to your preivous choice.

Check-in at the hotel.
Depending on your time of arrival, freely explore your neighbourhood and get accustom to japanese convenience stores !

Let's visit the capital!

Enjoy a comfortable first day of discovery in Tokyo.
Through its most oldets witnesses: buddhists temples and shinto sanctuaries, why not start to familiarize with this dynamic capital by admiring the prominence of red colors at the Sengakuji temple while enjoying their peacefulness, and by discovering the japanese habit of paying your respect at temples?
You will slowly get used to tokyo's busy daily life and will relax into green spaces such as the giant garden of the Meiji-jingu sanctuary.

To do so, follow the guidance of a native or adopted Tokyoite who will tell you the story of an old Japan.
You can choose between the two following excursions inside the city:

• Tailor-made excursion with a private French-speaking guide (1 day/half day, according to your wishes)
• Private bike tour (1 day/half day)

Between feudalism and modernity: thorough discovery of Tokyo

According to your wishes, you could dive into the past of the former Edo city by exploring the districts of Ya-Ne-Sen and the Ueno district. Or maybe you are more into discovering the hyper-modernity of the capital and you could head to the famous Shibuya Crossing, then go on to the trendy area of Omotesando and its fancy shops, to eventually end up having dinner in Shinjuku, a mix of skyscrappers and intimate bars.
Tokyo is overflowing with unexpected places that are waiting for you, such as the vast duck-hunting ground of the Hamarikyuu garden or the otaku district of Akihabara.
Don't go to bed too late, you could have a long day tomorrow!

You are free to expand your stay in Tokyo. To do so, please fill in the request form.
You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

Outside the wall of the capital

You should have had plently of the heart of Tokyo. What about the surroundings? Why not going behind the wall of the capital?
You could take a leap into China by tasting Chinese foods at Yokohama's China Town and enjoy the famous view on its bay with the big wheel.
You could also push further South, searching for a gigantic sitting buddha and penetrate a temple from the 8th century in Kamakura.
For those missing Nature, we can suggest you to walk at one your own pace, on one of the nu,erous hiking tracks of Chichibu-tamakai National Park or at the Nokogiri Mount.
You could also visit the peaceful town of Kawagoe with its historical charm, and get lost into the Edo streets.

 Discover our day trips from Tokyo

You are free to expand your stay in Tokyo. To do so, please fill in the request form.
You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

Last day into Tokyo crowd

Check-out.

For your last morning at the capital, take your time to do some shopping and buy souvenirs or wander around the Tokyo streets according to your desire. You will be able to explore the last nooks of the city.
At the beginning of the afternoon, head towards Shizuoka prefecture, by express bus. You can also leave earlier if you want to quickly enjoy the quietness and the serenity of the shores of Lake Kawaguchi.

Towards the village of Lake Kawaguchi located in Shizuoka prefecture, by express bus.

Check-in at the hotel. 

On the North shore of Kawaguchi lake, you will find the best spots to gaze at Fuji Mount.

Dreaming at the foot of the Fuji Mount

Walk around one of the most beautiful lakes of Japan, Lake Kawaguchi.
If the weather is good, you could even see its reflection on the lake. It is hard to have this chance in Summer, but with April comes the cherry blossom season. And from June to July, you can enjoy the colors of lavanda fields and participate to the grass festival. In November, the lake is surrounded by kôyô (autumn levaes) with the bright red and yellow colors of trees.

What about riding the panoramic ropeway to contemplate the view that was used as a set for the tale Kachikachiyama, from the famous 20th century writer Dazai Osamu? Like the talented artist Hokusai, you will enjoy the gorgeous views upon this symbolic volcano of Japan... and taste a delicious local sake. You can also enjoy this experience on the seat of your bike (see below)!
There are many museums and events too, as well as lovely walking paths.

 Learn more about Yamanashi Prefecture

We offer to enjoy this experience in a more efficient but ecological way, behind handlebars! More informations here.

Himeji and the White Egret Castle

Check-out. 

Leaving Lake Kawaguchi in the morning, riding a bus then a Shinkansen (express bullet train) bound for Himeji🚅

From the windows of a train running faster than 250km/h, you will have your first encounter with the region of Kansai.
Your first steps will be colored in white. After this long ride, you will enter a site listed at UNESCO World Heritage, the Himeji castle. If you are travelling in Spring, you will enjoy the pink colors of the surroundings cherry trees too.

Himeji castle, a symbolic icon of Himeji city in Hyogo prefecture having the outstanding strong presence is one of the most beautiful castles in Japan and retains its original shape until today. The castle covered with white stucco shining beautifully, looks like a white egret about to fly away by the small tower, the turret connecting other building, the castle compound, and the moat surrounding the castle, which made the castle earn the sobriquet of Hakuro-jo (Egret Castle). Himeji castle is registered as a first UNESCO World Heritage site in in December 1993 with the temple of Horyu-jin in Nara.

Take also some time to meander ancient samourai districts at a garden with falls: Kokoen.


Learn more about Himeji

Boat, island, hiking: ahoy sacred island!

An other step on the UNESCO's list. Before more exploring the Kansai, make a detour to the Chugoku region. You will have the oppportunity to sail towards the sacred island of Miyajima and meet with its local population of deers. Before setting your feet on the ground, you will enjoy the sight of the famous floating torii from the ferry and will discover the beauty of Itsukushima-jinja, a shrine that looks like it's floating depending on the tide. 


Learn more about the beautiful island Miyajima


Check-in at the hotel.

Hiroshima memory

Tragically famous, Hiroshima has a number of monuments and memorials that reminds us of this gloomy day. You can still see the dome, that remained despite the impact and visit the museum dedicated to it, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, designed by Kenzo Tange. Don't be sad! Nevertheless, Hiroshima remains a culturally and artistically rich city, which delicious food like its own okonomiyaki, that you will quietly discover while remembering the history.
You will also be able to enjoy one of the Hiroshima bay evening cruises from which you can admire the city lights between the mountains. In the south part of town, have a walk in the beautiful Japanese garden Shukkei-en which construction started in 1620, a real haven of peace in the middle of the city.

Learn more about Hiroshima

🚅 Riding a Shinkansen, arrive at the former capital of Kyoto to sleep.

Check-in at Enso Ango Hotel .

Looking for traditions at Kyoto former capital

Wake up early to enjoy the former capital in the morning, when most of the crowd is still away.
Wherever you go, you will find a gorgeous temple, a magical verdant place or an historical remain. Here are a few ideas.
You could wander into the rich nature of Arashiyama and at the shores of the Hozu river, and into the fascinating flora of the Gio-ji moss temple.
You could rather choose to go to admire the vivid colors of the famous Golden pavillon called Kinkaku-ji or visit the former residency of the Tokugawa shogunate in Nijo castle.

Learn more about Kyoto and its surroundgings

You are free to expand your stay in Kyoto. To do so, please fill in the request form.
You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

Lost in transition in the North of Kansai

Enjoy a free day to meander in the commercial and historical streets of Kyoto. The structure of the streets is the closest you can find to our occidental ones' so you should easily find your way around. If at a corner you catch a glimpse of marvelous colors and intriguing motif on a kimono, fitted with a white face with vivid red lips, don't bother its owner...This geisha is working!

Amongst the numerous essential experiences offered in Kyoto, you could: pay your respect to the Fox God at the Fushimi Inari Taisha sanctuary, study the astonishing architecture of the temple on stilts Kiyomizu Dera, or step into one of the oldest shinto sanctuary in Japan, the Kamo-mioya-jinja.
You could also explore remote places such as the Amanohashidate bridge linking Heaven and Earth or the fishing village of Ine.

Discover our excursions from Kyoto

You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

A day for exploring the very first capital of Nara

Check-out. 

Leaving in the morning on a train bound for Nara. 

At a park where you will find it difficult not to bump into a deer, let's meet at the feet of a 16 meters high Buddha that sits in the Todai-ji temple; protected by an ancient wooden building. You could then enjoy the many others UNESCO World Heritage buildings and the quiet walking paths at the Mount Wakakusa. If you are travelling at the end of january, you could be attend the impressive Wakakusa Yamayaki festival, during which the Mount is partially put on fire.
First permanent capital in the History of Japan, the small size of Nara city lets you visit its essential places peacefully.

Learn more about Nara

After a long day, jump into a train until Kamo station where you will change for a bus
In the small village of Wazuka, discover the Japanese countryside hospitality.

Check-in in homestay accomodation.
It is possible to stay at a traditional hotel for those who wish to.

Getaway into tea paradise in the South of Kyoto

Check-out.

Let's discover the peaceful Japanese countryside at a tea village in Kyoto prefecture, while experiencing agritourism.
You will share farmers' daily life and learn all the secrets of Japanese tea, into one of the most major exploitation of Japan.
Depending on the season, we offer the following experiences. Lovely stroll with an English-speaking local, tea picking by hands (May and June), Japanese tea lessons (July and April), shopping into a local coffee shop, and Japanese tea ceremony sadô.

*The experiences above can differ according to the seasons and the availabilities. 

You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

Leave by bus then train to reach the Osaka.

Check-in at Osaka hotel.

Culinar delight and visual feast at the octopus heaven

The last day of your trip deserves to be celebrate. Freely enjoy the colorful and thrilling metropolis of Osaka by getting to know the local Kansai culture. Taste the famous octopus balls takoyaki in the very lively area of Dotonbori while discovering places marked by both modernity and traditions: psychedelic commercial streets and old castles will be part of our recommendations.
If you have some time left, explore the gigantic Kaiyukan aquarium.

Click here to discover our suggested itineraries of Osaka!

You can also hire a private English-speaking guide, for an extra fee.

See you !

Check-out.
Take the free shuttle bus of your hotel or ride on a train from a local station, to arrive at Kansai international airport in advance. 

Flight check-in and luggages dropping.

Your jouney comes to an end. you are bringing back many souvenirs...of all shapes.
The country of the Rising Sun hopes to see you again.

We wish you a safe trip home !! 👋

If you rented a Pocket WIFI, return it to the WIFI rental service counter, at the station of the airport or directly at Kansai airport.