Special Interest Japan

We start by enjoying a trail to the east of Nara, the Yagyukaido, which leads us through beautiful local landscape, past shrines and through local villages giving us a flavour of life in the Japanese countryside. We then travel further a field away from the large towns and into the surrounding mountains where we walk the Old Mountain Road which takes us to the well known 9th century Murouji Temple – also known as Nyonin Koya, which literally means ‘Mount Koya for women’. We then spend two nights in Akame where we have a full day spent enjoying walks along the beautiful Akame 48 Waterfalls before continuing to one of Japan’s best known ancient routes, the Nakesendo Way. Here we spend three days finest hiking sections of the Nakesendo Way passing through well preserved postal towns and following in the footsteps of merchants, samurai and other travellers of the Edo period who once traversed this famous ancient road between Edo and Kyoto.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November

Japan has a long tradition of brewing sake, an alcoholic rice beverage that is brewed using rice, koji, a mold instrumental the process, and water. The production of sake takes place nationwide and there is a nuance to the brewing of sake that is every bit a complex and nuanced as the production of single malt whiskies. The koji, the strains of rice selected, and even the very building or vats that the sake is brewed in can have an impact on its flavor. The geography and terroir of the sake producing area - drawing from its water and the climate of the producing area - also have a bearing on the taste of the final product. There are sake breweries nationwide. While some cities with fresh water sources have a strong sake producing tradition such as the Nada area of Kobe and the Fushimi district in Kyoto, as well as Hiroshima, more sake producing regions are located in the countryside away from the cities. Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, and Miyagi in Tohoku are renowned for their sake production. In central Japan, Nagano, Niigata, and Shizuoka are known for their sakes. Western Japan regions of Shimane, Kochi, Okayama, and Fukuoka also produce sakes characterized by the influences of their more moderate climates. Sake breweries often have many generations of tradition, though some new entrants to the market have come from those with a passion for the beverage. We are happy to arrange brewery visits, sake tastings, dinners at sake pairing restaurants and allow you to see the production of sake up close; Sake is a very accessible tipple in Japan - even the most revered varieties are accessible to most drinkers, without the same spread of pricing as is found in wine. In Okinawa, awamori is the drink of choice and differs in being a stronger alcohol - distilled rather than brewed. Learn more about Japanese sake on our website here. Contact us today to begin planning your sake tour.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November

We start by enjoying a trail to the east of Nara, the Yagyukaido, which leads us through beautiful local landscape, past shrines and through local villages giving us a flavour of life in the Japanese countryside. We then travel further a field away from the large towns and into the surrounding mountains where we walk the Old Mountain Road which takes us to the well known 9th century Murouji Temple – also known as Nyonin Koya, which literally means ‘Mount Koya for women’. We then spend two nights in Akame where we have a full day spent enjoying walks along the beautiful Akame 48 Waterfalls before continuing to one of Japan’s best known ancient routes, the Nakesendo Way. Here we spend three days finest hiking sections of the Nakesendo Way passing through well preserved postal towns and following in the footsteps of merchants, samurai and other travellers of the Edo period who once traversed this famous ancient road between Edo and Kyoto.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November

We start by enjoying a trail to the east of Nara, the Yagyukaido, which leads us through beautiful local landscape, past shrines and through local villages giving us a flavour of life in the Japanese countryside. We then travel further a field away from the large towns and into the surrounding mountains where we walk the Old Mountain Road which takes us to the well known 9th century Murouji Temple – also known as Nyonin Koya, which literally means ‘Mount Koya for women’. We then spend two nights in Akame where we have a full day spent enjoying walks along the beautiful Akame 48 Waterfalls before continuing to one of Japan’s best known ancient routes, the Nakesendo Way. Here we spend three days finest hiking sections of the Nakesendo Way passing through well preserved postal towns and following in the footsteps of merchants, samurai and other travellers of the Edo period who once traversed this famous ancient road between Edo and Kyoto.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November

We start by enjoying a trail to the east of Nara, the Yagyukaido, which leads us through beautiful local landscape, past shrines and through local villages giving us a flavour of life in the Japanese countryside. We then travel further a field away from the large towns and into the surrounding mountains where we walk the Old Mountain Road which takes us to the well known 9th century Murouji Temple – also known as Nyonin Koya, which literally means ‘Mount Koya for women’. We then spend two nights in Akame where we have a full day spent enjoying walks along the beautiful Akame 48 Waterfalls before continuing to one of Japan’s best known ancient routes, the Nakesendo Way. Here we spend three days finest hiking sections of the Nakesendo Way passing through well preserved postal towns and following in the footsteps of merchants, samurai and other travellers of the Edo period who once traversed this famous ancient road between Edo and Kyoto.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November

We start by enjoying a trail to the east of Nara, the Yagyukaido, which leads us through beautiful local landscape, past shrines and through local villages giving us a flavour of life in the Japanese countryside. We then travel further a field away from the large towns and into the surrounding mountains where we walk the Old Mountain Road which takes us to the well known 9th century Murouji Temple – also known as Nyonin Koya, which literally means ‘Mount Koya for women’. We then spend two nights in Akame where we have a full day spent enjoying walks along the beautiful Akame 48 Waterfalls before continuing to one of Japan’s best known ancient routes, the Nakesendo Way. Here we spend three days finest hiking sections of the Nakesendo Way passing through well preserved postal towns and following in the footsteps of merchants, samurai and other travellers of the Edo period who once traversed this famous ancient road between Edo and Kyoto.

Highlights	Trip Level	Availability
Village to village walking on enchanting sections of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail Bathe in the thermal waters at hot-spring inns on at least 5 nights Enjoy wonderful views over the valleys, mountains and the Pacific Ocean See the Grand Shrines at Hongu and Nachi, along with Nachi-taki waterfall Stay at an authentic Shukubo pilgrims lodging on Mount Koya Explore Kii-Katsuura's lively fishing port where you can join the tuna auction in the early morning	Challenging	Recommended from April to November