2008 SUMMER TOKAIDO ODYSSEY

Thursday, June 12 (Day 01)
HONOLULU TO NARITA
Our tour commences this morning when we assemble at the Japan Airlines lobby at the airport for check-in procedures. We will depart Honolulu on Japan Airlines for Narita International Airport. Lunch and a snack will be served on board the flight.

Friday, June 13 (Day 02)
NARITA - TOKYO (D)
We’ll arrive Narita International Airport in the early afternoon and after completing entry and customs formalities, transfer to our hotel in Tokyo for the next two nights. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.

Accommodations at SUNSHINE CITY PRINCE HOTEL or similar

Saturday, June 14 (Day 03)
TOKYO (B)(L)
After breakfast, we will embark on a full day of sightseeing in this exciting metropolitan city. We’ll visit Sensoji - also known as Asakusa Kannon Temple, Tokyo’s oldest Buddhist temple built for the goddess of Kannon. Enjoy strolling through “Nakamise-dori”, a shopping street with many shops offering typical Japanese souvenirs and various traditional local snacks located adjacent to the temple. We’ll take a tour of the Edo-Tokyo Museum showcasing exhibits and artifacts relating to the historical heritage of Edo-Tokyo. The museum is divided into three major sections, the “Edo Zone”, the “Tokyo Zone” and the “History Zone”, and at the entrance is a replica of the “Nihonbashi Bridge”. We’ll drive by the famous “Ginza” - a world-renowned entertainment and shopping district and stroll through “Ameyokocho”, a busy wholesale district with many vendors offering a variety of food products and various merchandise at discounted prices. Tonight, enjoy dinner on your own at one of the restaurants in the shopping mall located adjacent to the hotel.

Accommodations at SUNSHINE CITY PRINCE HOTEL or similar

Sunday, June 15 (Day 04)
TOKYO - HAKONE - FUJI FIVE LAKES - LAKE YAMANAKA (B)(D)
This morning we’ll travel to Hakone - part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and famous for its volcanic hot springs and natural beauty. Enjoy a relaxing boat cruise on scenic Lake Ashino-ko with breathtaking view of Mt. Fuji - Japan’s highest and most sacred mountain. (weather permitting). Hakone was once an important checkpoint for the ‘Old Tokaido Highway’, the old road that linked the ancient capital - Kyoto to Edo (now known as Tokyo) during the Edo period. We’ll continue on past the scenic area of Fuji-Go-Ko (Fuji Five Lakes) scattered around Mt. Fuji to spend the night at a hotel overlooking Lake Yamanaka, the largest of the Fuji Five Lakes offering a close-up view of the mountain. (weather permitting) Dinner will be provided for you this evening.

Accommodations at HOTEL MT. FUJI or similar

Monday, June 16 (Day 05)
SHIZUOKA - NAGOYA (B)(D)
After breakfast, we’ll drive half-way up Mt. Fuji to the “go-go-me,” (Fifth Station) to enjoy a breathtaking view of the mountain and surrounding valleys (weather permitting). Enjoy a spectacular display of various flowers in bloom at the Fuji International Flower Garden. We’ll drive through the city of Shizuoka, the largest tea producing region in Japan and once home to the first Tokugawa Shogun Ieyasu. The scenery of Shizuoka prefecture includes a view of the Southern Japan Alps, a different view of Fuji-san, and miles of scenic coastline along Suruga Bay and the Pacific Ocean. We’ll continue on to the castle town of Nagoya - the capital of Aichi Prefecture to the spend the night. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.

Accommodations at NAGOYA CASTLE PLAZA or similar

Tuesday, June 17 (Day 06)
NAGOYA - BULLET TRAIN - KYOTO (B)(L)
Early this morning you may want to stroll along the backstreets located near our hotel to visit the “Ichiba” (morning market) with many indoor and outdoor vendors offering a variety of fresh and dried food products and various other merchandise. We’ll travel to Toyota City to enjoy a guided tour of the Toyota Car Factory and observe the step-by-step process of automobile manufacturing. We’ll return to the Nagoya Train Station to experience a ride on the “shinkansen” (bullet train) to Kyoto, the former capital of Japan. On arrival at the Kyoto Station, we’ll transfer to our hotel and check in for the next two nights. The afternoon is at your leisure to explore some of the sights of this traditional city on your own. Enjoy shopping at the Kyoto Handicraft Center offering a wide selection of Japanese goods, souvenirs, handicrafts, works of art and more. Dinner will be on your own this evening. Try some Kyoto style cuisine at one of the local restaurants in the city or at the train station.

Accommodations at RIHGA ROYAL KYOTO or similar

Wednesday, June 18 (Day 07)
KYOTO - NARA - KYOTO (B)(D)
We’ll travel to the ancient city of Nara to visit the Todai-ji Temple Complex, a magnificent Buddhist temple located in Nara-koen, a park that is home for many sacred deer roaming freely about looking for handouts. The Daibutsu-den (Hall of the Great Buddha) is considered the largest wooden structure in the world and home to the “Daibutsu”, an enormous bronze statue of Buddha - perhaps the most famous sight in Nara. Within the hall is a large wooden pillar with a hole at its base and local tradition has it that those who pass through the opening will find their way to an afterlife of paradise. We’ll visit Kasuga Taisha Shrine, designated as a Unesco World Heritage Site with hundreds of lanterns lined on the approach-way to the shrine. In the afternoon, we’ll return to the city of Kyoto to visit “Kinkaku-ji” (Golden Pavilion), a magnificent golden structure sitting at the edge of a lake providing a beautiful reflection in the calm waters. Enjoy a visit to “Nijo-jo”, a castle built as the official Kyoto residence of the first Tokugawa Shogun, Ieyasu. The castle is known for its ‘nightingale’ floors (floors that squeak at every move) as a safeguard against treachery. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.

Accommodations at RIHGA ROYAL KYOTO or similar

Thursday, June 19 (Day 08)
KYOTO - AWAJI ISLAND - TOKUSHIMA (B)(D)
After breakfast, we’ll travel to Kobe and visit the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum to observe the sake making process and enjoy some samples of their products. We’ll continue our journey on the Akashi Kaikyo Ohashi to Awaji-shima, the inland sea’s largest island to enjoy a performance of the Awaji Ningyo Joruri (Puppet Play) at the Awaji Puppet Theatre. The separate arts of puppet manipulation, gidayu narration and shamisen accompaniment blend together to present a dramatic performance of a tragic drama. We’ll travel on the Naruto Ohashi, a bridge crossing the Naruto Channel to Shikoku Island, arriving at the prefecture of Tokushima to spend the night. At each flow of the tide, currents rush through this narrow passage of the channel to form “uzushio” (whirlpools) of various sizes and we may be able to see some as we cross over this bridge. This afternoon, enjoy a performance of the famous Awa Odori, the pride of Tokushima. Learn to dance and participate with the “Awanokaze” dancers. Dinner will be provided for you tonight at the hotel.

Accommodations at AWA KANKO HOTEL or similar

Friday, June 20 (Day 09)
TOKUSHIMA - TAKAMATSU - MATSUYAMA - DOGO ONSEN (B)(D)
This morning we’ll depart Tokushima and continue on to the castle town of Takamatsu to enjoy a stroll through the beautiful gardens of Ritsurin-koen, a park that is the city’s major landmark and once the summer retreat for the Lords of the Matsudaira family. This scenic garden follows a classical Japanese design featuring pine trees winding around a series of ponds, bridges, and rock formations. We’ll travel through Matsuyama, Shikoku’s largest city and continue on to spend the night at a ryokan in Dogo Onsen, a little town located on the outskirts of Matsuyama and noted for its magnificent old public baths. Enjoy dinner and relax in the hot springs this evening at our ryokan.

Accommodations at DOGO PRINCE HOTEL or similar

Saturday, June 21 (Day 10)
MATSUYAMA - SHIMA NAMI KAIDO - HIROSHIMA (B)(D)
Matsuyama is also noted for its deep-blue textiles called iyo-kasuri (indigo dyeing) and this morning we’ll visit the Iyo Kasuri Kaikan to observe the step-by-step process of producing this special fabric. We’ll also have the opportunity to browse through the shop to see some of their beautiful products available for purchase. We’ll depart Shikoku Island via the “Shima Nami Kaido”, a set of bridges connecting the many islands of the Seto Inland Sea to Honshu Island. Our drive will take us from Imabari in Shikoku through Onomichi, arriving Hiroshima in the early afternoon where we will spend the next two nights. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.

Accommodations at RIHGA ROYAL HIROSHIMA or similar

Sunday, June 22 (Day 11)
HIROSHIMA - IWAKUNI - MIYAJIMA - HIROSHIMA (B)
After breakfast, we’ll travel to Iwakuni and visit the famous “Kintai-kyo” (Brocade Sash Bridge), Iwakuni’s major attraction with its five linked arches forming a span across the river. We’ll continue on to the pier for a short ferry ride to Miyajima Island and visit scenic “Itsukushima-jinja”, a floating torii extending into the sea. The landscape, including the shrine, is one of the most photographed tourist attractions and is noted as one of Japan’s three most beautiful sights. This afternoon, we’ll return to the city of Hiroshima to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and Park. Exhibits within the museum tells the story of the atomic bomb and the destruction it brought on Hiroshima and its people. The most poignant memorial in the Peace Memorial Park is the Children’s Peace Memorial, inspired by leukemia victim Sadako Sasaki and you will see thousands of paper cranes displayed there. Dinner will be on your own this evening. Try the specialty of Hiroshima, “okonomiyaki” at one of the local restaurants.

Accommodations at RIHGA ROYAL HIROSHISMA or similar

Monday, June 23 (Day 12)
HIROSHIMA - KURASHIKI - HIMEJI CASTLE - OSAKA (B)(D)
This morning, we’ll depart Hiroshima and continue our journey to visit the quaint little town of Kurashiki. Enjoy strolling through the picturesque Bikan-chiku (historic city district) with many old traditional buildings, storehouses and shops located along the willow lined canal. We’ll continue on to visit Himeji-jo, one of the oldest surviving structures from medieval Japan. Considered one of Japan’s “three most famous castles”, Himeji-jo is also known as “Shirasagi” (White Egret) because of its stately white form. A portion of the castle frequently appears on Japanese television - Abarenbo Shogun. We’ll arrive in the industrial city of Osaka in the late afternoon. Dinner will be provided for you this evening at the hotel.

Accommodations at RAMADA HOTEL OSAKA or similar

Tuesday, June 24 (Day 13)
OSAKA - KANSAI TO HONOLULU (B)
After breakfast, the day is at your leisure for your own activities until our departure for Kansai International Airport in the late afternoon. Our evening flight to Honolulu will arrive on the same day due to the crossing of the International Dateline. Dinner will be served on board the flight.

The tour price is based on double occupancy and a minimum group size of 20 passengers. Fare adjustment may apply for groups of 20 or under. The rate is based on tariffs and exchange rates effective 09/01/07. Tour fare is subject to change according to any airfare increase and fluctuation of the rate of exchange between U.S. and foreign currency. In the event of revaluation, the land portion of the tour price may be adjusted prior to your final statement.