Sample — Tokyo to Kyoto, the slow way
Nine days, two cities, one mountain valley
- Length
- 9 days / 8 nights
- Group size
- 6–12 travellers
- From
- $3,450
About this journey
This is a sample tour. Edit it to see how the pieces fit together, then delete it before you launch.
We start in Tokyo, where the point is not to see everything — it is to pick one neighbourhood a day and actually be in it. Then the train west, a night in the Alps where the valley goes quiet after four, and finally Kyoto, arriving late enough in the trip that its stillness lands the way it should.
Groups stay under twelve. Your guide speaks English and Japanese, and travels with you the whole way.
Day by day
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Day 1
Tokyo
Arrive Tokyo
Airport transfer, then nothing scheduled. Sleep when your body says to. Dinner together at seven for anyone awake.
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Day 2
Tokyo
Yanaka and the old east side
The Tokyo that survived the war. Wooden houses, a cemetery full of cherry trees, and the best croquette in the city from a shop with no sign.
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Day 3
Tokyo
Tsukiji, then free afternoon
Breakfast where the chefs eat. Afternoon is yours — we will give you three suggestions and get out of the way.
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Day 4
Kamikochi
Train to the Alps
Three hours west and eleven degrees cooler. Riverside walk in the afternoon, onsen before dinner.
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Day 5
Kamikochi
Valley walking
A full day on foot, flat the whole way, with the Hotaka range on your right. Lunch is carried.
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Day 6
Takayama
Takayama morning market
Pickles, apples, and woodwork sold by the people who made it. Sake tasting after, at a brewery run by the same family since 1695.
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Day 7
Kyoto
On to Kyoto
Arrive early afternoon. Walk the Philosopher's Path at the hour the day-trippers leave.
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Day 8
Kyoto
Temples, at the right time of day
Two gardens, both before nine. Afternoon free, or join the tea ceremony we have booked.
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Day 9
Kyoto
Depart Kyoto
Transfer to Osaka or Kansai airport, whenever your flight needs.
Questions
How fit do I need to be?
If you can walk 8km on flat ground without dreading it, you are fine. The one hill day is optional and there is a bus.
Is this suitable for a first trip to Japan?
It is designed for one. You get the two cities everyone comes for, plus the countryside most first-timers miss because they do not know it is reachable.
What about dietary requirements?
Tell us when you enquire. Vegetarian is straightforward. Halal and coeliac need more notice but we arrange both regularly.
When do I pay?
Nothing at enquiry. A deposit holds your place once we have agreed the dates, and the balance is due sixty days before departure.
From
$3,450
Twin share. Single supplement $780. Flights not included.
- Group size
- 6–12 travellers
- Best season
- April–May, October–November
We reply within one working day.
Love this route but want to change it? We can.
- Length
- 9 days / 8 nights
- Starts and ends
- Starts Tokyo · Ends Kyoto
- Pace
- Unhurried — two to three stops a day
- On foot
- Easy — 5–8km on foot most days
- Guided in
- English, 日本語
We are in Japan, nine hours ahead of London.