Japan Wanderlust Group Trips
Japan: Wanderlust Group Trips
2023 Highlights
After falling in love with Japan during my own travels, I was SO excited to return with my company, Wanderlust Group Trips!
We had a jam-packed itinerary full of inclusions that took us all around Japan for 11 amazing days.
Read: WANDERLUST GROUP TRIPS: 10 REASONS TO JOIN A TRIP
Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo
Everyone flew into Tokyo for the start of our trip.
A little jetlagged, we all met up at our hotel in the Asakusa neighborhood to go to our first dinner together as a group with our guide, Mike!
After dinner, we headed to Senso-ji Temple at night to see it lit up and without the crowds.
Day 2:
We woke up the next day and headed to Senso-ji Temple again to see it during the day. Since it’s located just a 4 minute walk from our hotel, it was the perfect start to our day exploring Tokyo.
We had some free time to shop on the historic Nakamise-dori Street for beautiful Japanese-made souvenirs.
After our temple exploration, we met back at the hotel for a quick debrief on Japanese culture and customs before heading out to the Harajuku district.
Read: 33 BEST JAPAN TRAVEL TIPS – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOUR TRIP
Once we finished with the hustle and bustle on Takeshita Street, we walked to the nearby Meiji Shrine.
After the temple, we went to observe the famous Shibuya Crossing during the day. We had, in my opinion, the best ramen in the world for dinner before heading out to Tokyo’s electric town.
That evening we visited Japanese arcades before ending the night at a quirky maid cafe where we celebrated Noah’s birthday!
Day 3: Sushi & TeamLABS
The first activity of the day was a sushi making class!
When we finished our sushi class, we made our way over to the Instagram-famous digital art exhibit, teamLab Planets.
After the dazzling art exhibit, we went to an observation deck for views over Tokyo before continuing on to “Piss Alley”, a historic row of tiny restaurants along a super atmospheric street.
Day 4: Hakone & Mt Fuji Views
As we left Tokyo, we headed to Hakone, a smaller mountain town famous for its Mount Fuji views.
Upon arrival, we checked into a traditional guesthouse then began our journey up the mountain via cable cars and trains.
We were super fortunate and had amazingly clear views of the mountain!
After the cable car up to see Mount Fuji, we took a scenic boat ride before returning to our traditional guesthouse where we had dinner together as a group.
Day 5: Takayama
In the morning, we departed towards Takayama via the scenic train! The views as we traveled along were absolutely stunning. We saw fantastic fall colors along the river and at one point even found ourselves in a winter wonderland of a lansdcape covered in snow!
By the time we reached Takayama, it was sunny and there was no snow in sight. So we checked into the historic temple where we would be spending the night before heading to the stunning little main street of the town.
Read: TAKAYAMA, JAPAN – 13 BEST THINGS TO DO IN THIS JAPANESE FAIRYTALE TOWN
Mike led us on a mini-food tour through Takayama so everyone could have the chance to try the famous hida beef that comes from this region and the best ice cream in Japan.
That evening, we had free time to explore! Some of the group went to an onsen (a Japanese bath) while others tried Japanese archery.
Later in the evening, we visited a sake bar before heading to a local bar that we had open just for our group!
Day 6: Morning markets & Kyoto
Each morning, the temple hosts prayer and meditation sessions that are open to guests to attend.
Some of our group joined in on the optional mediation and prayer while I captured photos of everyone around the temple.
After the mediation activity and photos, we headed to the Takayama morning market.
Around noon, we headed to the train station to take a bullet train to our next destination: Kyoto!
We checked into our hotel and met up that evening for a walking tour of the Gion District. (The geisha district of Kyoto!)
During our tour, we had a working geisha pass right by us, the excitement in our group was off the charts as she went by! But we all quietly stepped aside and let her pass by uninterrupted, even though we were bursting with joy at our first spontaneous run in with a working geisha. (Or Gaiko as they are known in Kyoto!)
Following our tour, a handful of us wound up going to a super traditional 10-course Japanese meal along the river. It was my favorite meal of the trip!
Day 7: Tori Gates & Kimono Rental
It was a very early start to our day as we headed towards Fushimi Inari Shrine, the famous 10,000+ torii gates. Worth the super early wake up because when we got there, we nearly had the place to ourselves and this place can get PACKED.
From there, we visited the iconic Kiyomizu-dera Temple with jaw-dropping views over Kyoto.
We wandered through the temple gardens before heading to our kimono rental appointment.
Everyone in the group opted for the kimono rental and we had a blast doing so!
How great does everyone look in their traditional kimono?!
Following our kimono rentals, we had free time to explore Kyoto. Some of us ladies went to K36 Rooftop for incredible views over Kyoto! That night we all met up at a quirky, but fun, rock bar for drinks.
Day 8: Golden Pavilion & Kendo
The stunning Golden Pavilion was the first stop of the morning!
Afterwards, we stopped by the oldest zen garden/traditional temple in Kyoto.
Grabbing some food in Kyoto, we then headed to our Kendo martial arts class after lunch with the descendant of a real Japanese samurai.
The kendo workshop is an amazing and unique look into Japanese culture and history.
That evening, some of the group opted to go to dinner with a true Geisha apprentice, a Maiko.
It was once-in-a-lifetime to meet an actual working Maiko. We had a Q&A session before she performed a number of songs and games with us.
Day 9: Bamboo Forest & Monkey Mountain
Our first stop of the morning was Kyoto’s famous bamboo forest in the Arashiyama district.
From there, we hiked up the nearby hill to “Mountain Monkey” where about 120 snow monkeys (or Japanese Macaque) live on the scenic mountain top.
Once we finished photographing, feeding and observing the playful clan of monkeys, we continued on to take a traditional boat ride on the Katsura River.
This scenic and calming boat ride was a highlight for me personally. We had beautiful fall colors as our guide rowed us along the river.
Along the way, a market boat pulled up and tethered to our boat. All sorts of drinks, snacks and food were available for purchase. Soon many of us were sipping on a cold beer or soda while snacking on some Japanese rice balls as we floated along.
When we finished our boat ride, we made our way back to the main area of Kyoto for lunch. After, we took one last train to head to our final destination: Osaka!
For our first night in Osaka, we had a family dinner at a delicious Japanese restaurant where we could order small plates off an ipad to the table over the course of our dinner. It was a super fun environment and great food!
Day 10: Nara Park & Osaka
On our final full day, we visited the famous bowing deer in Nara Park.
Just a short train ride away from our hotel in Osaka, this was the perfect morning trip!
The fall colors were stunning and the temple inside Nara Park was my favorite temple of the entire trip.
When we finished at Nara Park, we headed to the stunning Osaka Castle. Mike brought us to a beautiful vantage point before we headed up to the rooftop bar overlooking the castle.
That evening, we gathered in our hotel lobby to head out on a street food tour led by our guide.
After trying all the unique and interesting Osaka eats, we went for karaoke + unlimited drinks, a huge trend in Japanese nightlife!
When the group finished at karaoke, we went to one last dance club to toast farewell to our trip together!
Japan Wanderlust Group Trips
Day 11
After a fun and busy trip, it was time to head for home!
Huge thank you to Mike for so expertly navigating us throughout Japan. And thank you to everyone in the group for making this such an unforgettable trip.
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Japan Wanderlust Group Trips
