Country
Japan
Duration
10 Days/9 Nights
Travel Type
Rail
Japan was the first country to build dedicated railway lines for high-speed travel. You will experience the legendary bullet train when traveling in Japan.
Experience Tokyo Metropolis
The capital of Japan mixes the ultra-modern and the traditional, from neon-lit skyscrapers to historic temples. Explore one of the most vibrant cities on earth and enjoy a cruise along the Tokyo River.
Discover Kyoto
Kyoto, once the capital of Japan, is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses.
Inclusions
JR-Pass (ordinary class)
Accommodation including breakfast
Meet and greet and introduction assistant upon arrival in Tokyo to explain how to use the Japan rail pass
Exclusions
Flights – Gratuities to hotel staff – Meals (other than those mentioned) – Beverages – Travel insurance – Optional excursions – Local city tax (if applicable), varies from city to city, to be paid directly to the hotel in destination – Visas (if required) – All other item not mention in the inclusions section.
Additional Information
Note
Please note that this program includes accommodation and train pass. All other activities in the itinerary are suggestions to do on your free days. No entrance fees are included.
1
DAY 1 ARRIVAL IN TOKYO
Welcome to Japan! Upon your arrival in Tokyo, you will be greeted buy an English-speaking assistant for further information about your “Free & Easy” Tour in Japan. The assistant will explain how to use your JR pass to get to your hotel.
The rest of the day is at your free disposal. We recommend a first exploration on foot in the vibrant neighborhood of Shinjuku. It is a major commercial and administrative centre and also encompasses the buzzing clubs and karaoke rooms of neon-lit East Shinjuku and upscale bars and restaurants in the Skyscraper District.
The rest of the day is at your free disposal. We recommend a first exploration on foot in the vibrant neighborhood of Shinjuku. It is a major commercial and administrative centre and also encompasses the buzzing clubs and karaoke rooms of neon-lit East Shinjuku and upscale bars and restaurants in the Skyscraper District.
Accommodation : Tokyo for 2 nights
2
DAY 2 TOKYO
Time at leisure in Tokyo. Enjoy a full day of explorations around Tokyo by using public transportation.
We recommend a visit to the Hamarikyu Garden where seawater ponds change with the tides. A traditional teahouse on an island offers visitors a resting place to enjoy the scenery. This traditional green oasis stands in stark contrast to the surrounding skyscrapers of the adjacent Shiodome district.
You should also visit Asukasa and the Sensoji Temple, a very popular and colourful Buddhist temple. It is one of Tokyo’s most colorful and popular temples. The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them. Consequently, Sensoji was built nearby for the goddess of Kannon.
No visit to Tokyo would be complete without checking out the shops! Take a walk along Nakamise Street, lined with boutiques, souvenir shops and street food outlets.
Your final stop should be the spacious Meiji Shrine.
We recommend a visit to the Hamarikyu Garden where seawater ponds change with the tides. A traditional teahouse on an island offers visitors a resting place to enjoy the scenery. This traditional green oasis stands in stark contrast to the surrounding skyscrapers of the adjacent Shiodome district.
You should also visit Asukasa and the Sensoji Temple, a very popular and colourful Buddhist temple. It is one of Tokyo’s most colorful and popular temples. The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them. Consequently, Sensoji was built nearby for the goddess of Kannon.
No visit to Tokyo would be complete without checking out the shops! Take a walk along Nakamise Street, lined with boutiques, souvenir shops and street food outlets.
Your final stop should be the spacious Meiji Shrine.
3
DAY 3 TOYAMA
Check-out from the hotel. You proceed to Tokyo Station on your own, where you will take the bullet train to Toyama. Your 7 days JR Pass will start on this day.
Upon arrival, you proceed to your hotel for check-in. Time for leisure.
Toyama is a coastal city on Japan’s main island, Honshu. In the center, Toyama Castle Park has a restored castle dating to the 1500s, plus small museums of history and art. The nearby Toyama Glass Art Museum displays striking contemporary works. Rakusui-tei is an art museum in a traditional home with a formal garden. On the Fugan Canal, Kansui Park offers views of the distant Tateyama mountains.
You should also visit Takaoka. Takaoka’s emblematic Great Buddha is one of the three Great Buddha statues of Japan alongside the one at Nara’s Todaiji Temple and the Kamakura Daibutsu. The statue was completed in 1933 after three decades of work, utilizing local bronze casting techniques.
Upon arrival, you proceed to your hotel for check-in. Time for leisure.
Toyama is a coastal city on Japan’s main island, Honshu. In the center, Toyama Castle Park has a restored castle dating to the 1500s, plus small museums of history and art. The nearby Toyama Glass Art Museum displays striking contemporary works. Rakusui-tei is an art museum in a traditional home with a formal garden. On the Fugan Canal, Kansui Park offers views of the distant Tateyama mountains.
You should also visit Takaoka. Takaoka’s emblematic Great Buddha is one of the three Great Buddha statues of Japan alongside the one at Nara’s Todaiji Temple and the Kamakura Daibutsu. The statue was completed in 1933 after three decades of work, utilizing local bronze casting techniques.
Accommodation : Toyama for 2 nights
4
DAY 4 KANAZAWA
Time for Leisure. We recommend that you use the bullet-train in order to visit Kanazawa today.
Kanazawa is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture. It’s known for well-preserved Edo-era districts, art museums and regional handicrafts. Kenrokuen Garden, begun in the 17th century, is celebrated for its classic landscape designs incorporating ponds and streams. Adjacent Kanazawa Castle was built in the 1580s, after the defeat of the Peasant’s Kingdom, Japan’s only Buddhist fiefdom.
Back to Toyama in the evening.
Kanazawa is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture. It’s known for well-preserved Edo-era districts, art museums and regional handicrafts. Kenrokuen Garden, begun in the 17th century, is celebrated for its classic landscape designs incorporating ponds and streams. Adjacent Kanazawa Castle was built in the 1580s, after the defeat of the Peasant’s Kingdom, Japan’s only Buddhist fiefdom.
Back to Toyama in the evening.
5
DAY 5 TAKAYAMA & NAGOYA
Check-out from the hotel. You proceed to Toyama Station on your own, where you will take the express train to Takayama.
Enjoy a full day of sightseeing in Takayama, before you proceed by express train to Nagoya. The narrow streets of Takayama’s Sanmachi Suji historic district are lined with wooden merchants’ houses dating to the Edo Period, along with many small museums.
Arrival in Nagoya and hotel check-in. Time for leisure. Enjoy the hotel or venture out on your own to discover the town. The city’s Naka ward is home to museums and pachinko parlors (gambling machines). Naka also includes the Sakae entertainment district, with attractions like the Sky-Boat Ferris Wheel, which is attached to a mall. In northern Naka you will find Nagoya Castle, a partly reconstructed 1612 royal home displaying Edo-era artifacts.
Enjoy a full day of sightseeing in Takayama, before you proceed by express train to Nagoya. The narrow streets of Takayama’s Sanmachi Suji historic district are lined with wooden merchants’ houses dating to the Edo Period, along with many small museums.
Arrival in Nagoya and hotel check-in. Time for leisure. Enjoy the hotel or venture out on your own to discover the town. The city’s Naka ward is home to museums and pachinko parlors (gambling machines). Naka also includes the Sakae entertainment district, with attractions like the Sky-Boat Ferris Wheel, which is attached to a mall. In northern Naka you will find Nagoya Castle, a partly reconstructed 1612 royal home displaying Edo-era artifacts.
Accommodation : Nagoya for 2 nights
6
DAY 6 NAGOYA
Time for leisure in and around Nagoya. We recommend a one-day tour to Ise-Shima & Toba.
We recommend a visit to the Futami Okitama Shrine, located in a phenomenal location with a fantastic view of the ocean. Stroll the shrine grounds and be greeted with the fresh breeze off the waves and the sound of the splashing tide, soothing body and mind. The shrine is extremely popular as it is believed to bring good luck in matchmaking and marital harmony.
Meoto Iwa has become a classic Ise destination. The two rocks of Meoto Iwa are tied together by large shimenawa, giving the appearance that they are close companions.
We recommend a visit to the Futami Okitama Shrine, located in a phenomenal location with a fantastic view of the ocean. Stroll the shrine grounds and be greeted with the fresh breeze off the waves and the sound of the splashing tide, soothing body and mind. The shrine is extremely popular as it is believed to bring good luck in matchmaking and marital harmony.
Meoto Iwa has become a classic Ise destination. The two rocks of Meoto Iwa are tied together by large shimenawa, giving the appearance that they are close companions.
7
DAY 7 KYOTO
Check-out from the hotel. For today, we either suggest a sightseeing tour in Nagoya or Inuyama or a visit to the Nagashima Spa land.
Proceed to the station and take the bullet-train to Kyoto.
Kyoto hotel check-in and time for leisure. Enjoy the hotel or venture out on your own to discover the city. Kyoto is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses. It’s also known for formal traditions such as kaiseki dining, consisting of multiple courses of precise dishes, and geisha, female entertainers often found in the Gion district.
Proceed to the station and take the bullet-train to Kyoto.
Kyoto hotel check-in and time for leisure. Enjoy the hotel or venture out on your own to discover the city. Kyoto is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses. It’s also known for formal traditions such as kaiseki dining, consisting of multiple courses of precise dishes, and geisha, female entertainers often found in the Gion district.
Accommodation : Kyoto for 2 nights
8
DAY 8 KYOTO
Free leisure in Kyoto. Enjoy the hotel or venture out on your own to discover the city. Kyoto is famous for its numerous classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses. It’s also known for formal traditions such as kaiseki dining, consisting of multiple courses of precise dishes, and geisha, female entertainers often found in the Gion district.
9
DAY 9 HAKONE & TOKYO
Check-out from the hotel. You can either drive back to Tokyo or enjoy some touring in Hakone on the way. For Hakone, take the express train to Hakone-Yumoto. The train ride will take approximately four hours.
Explore the beautiful Fuji Hakone Izu. This national park is home to incredible scenery including the famous Mount Fuji. Sit back and soak in the natural scenery of Lake Ashi on the Pirate Cruise Ship. From here you will get wonderful views and photos of Mount Fuji.
You can also use the cable-car known as the Hakone Ropeway. This gives us the chance to glide through the skies looking down on the Japanese countryside. Get off in Owakudani – an active volcanic zone of sulfurous fumes, hot springs and rivers.
Take the bullet-train to Tokyo. Check-in and time for leisure.
Explore the beautiful Fuji Hakone Izu. This national park is home to incredible scenery including the famous Mount Fuji. Sit back and soak in the natural scenery of Lake Ashi on the Pirate Cruise Ship. From here you will get wonderful views and photos of Mount Fuji.
You can also use the cable-car known as the Hakone Ropeway. This gives us the chance to glide through the skies looking down on the Japanese countryside. Get off in Owakudani – an active volcanic zone of sulfurous fumes, hot springs and rivers.
Take the bullet-train to Tokyo. Check-in and time for leisure.
Accommodation : Tokyo for 1 night
10
DAY 10 DEPARTURE FROM TOKYO
Check-out and time for leisure. Sadly it’s the end of the tour and time to say goodbye to Japan. Proceed to the airport for your departure flight.
HOTEL OPTIONS OR SIMILAR
Tokyo
Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyobashi, 4* – Moderate Queen
Toyama
DoubleTree by Hilton Toyama, 4* – Premium King
Nagoya
Mitsui Garden Hotel Nagoya Premier, 4* – Moderate Double
Kyoto
RIHGA Royal Hotel Kyoto, 4* – Wide King Double
Tokyo
Grand Prince Hotel Takanawa, 4* – Superior King
| Rates in $CA, per person, starting from, in double occupancy | Land Package | |
| Departures 2023 | Double Occupancy | Single Occupancy |
| High Season* | 4205 | On request |
| Low Season | 3299 | On request |
*High Season:
2023/03/18 – 2023/05/10
2023/08/10 – 2023/08/20
2023/10/15 – 2023/11/30
2023/12/20 – 2024/01/07
**Prices in this document are for information only; they were issued at press time, for the current year. Please note that due to exchange rates and temporary promotions, they can increase or decrease at any time. Contact your travel agent for the price and promotion of the moment The prices indicated exclude the contribution to the Customer Compensation Fund of $3.50 per $1,000 of tourism product or service purchased from a travel agent in Quebec.
Japan – Free and Easy – Promotional flyer
Japan – Free and Easy – Promotional flyer
