2008 TOHOKU OHANAMI TOUR

Thursday, April 17 (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 on Japan Airlines for Narita International Airport. Lunch and a snack will be served on board the flight.

Friday, April 18 (Day 02)
ARRIVE NARITA - ITAKO - OARAI (D)
We’ll arrive Narita Airport in the afternoon and after completion of entry and customs formalities, we’ll board our chartered motor coach to begin our Tohoku Ohanami (flower viewing) tour. We’ll travel through the city of Itako and continue along the Pacific Coastline to the quaint little town of Oarai to spend the night. Dinner is planned for you this evening at the hotel.
 

Saturday, April 19 (Day 03)
OARAI - NIHONMATSU - FUKUSHIMA - AKIU ONSEN (B)(D)
Weather permitting, we should be able to see gorgeous shidare-zakura in bloom (weeping cherry blossoms) as we drive through the town of Miharu, a castle town located among the mountains - abundant in natural beauty and culture. Enjoy viewing more cherry blossoms on the grounds of Kasumiga-jo in Nihonmatsu, host of the annual Kiku-Matsuri (Chrysanthemum Festival) during the autumn season. Weather permitting, the splendor of someiyoshino cherry blossom planted all along the Shiroishi River and on the mountain-side around the Funaoka-joshi Koen together with the combination of the blue sky and the white snow-capped mountains of Zao puts a finishing touch to this famous cherry blossom viewing spot - offering a breathtaking sight. Enjoy dinner and relax in the onsen at our fabulous hotel this evening.
 

Sunday, April 20 (Day 04)
AKIU - SENDAI - SHIOGAMA - MATSUSHIMA - ISHINOMAKI - OJIKA PENINSULA - MATSUSHIMA (B)(D)
We will proceed to Sendai, a pleasant city known as Mori no Miyako (Forest City), due to its tree-lined avenues. The city flourished when the local feudal ruler, Date Masamune moved his capital here and established a castle on Aobayama. We’ll visit the site of Aoba Castle with only a replica of a gate and a statue of Date Masamune remaining. We’ll proceed to the Shiogama Pier to board a sightseeing ferry and enjoy a relaxing cruise on picturesque Matsushima Bay, designated as one of the three most scenic sights in Japan - Nihon Sankei. Enjoy the view of hundreds of pine-studded islets floating on the horizon. On arrival in Matsushima, we’ll visit Zuiganji Temple, one of Tohoku’s finest Zen temples with elegant painted screens, interior carvings and well known for its beautiful painted sliding doors. Enjoy a visit to Godai-do, a small wooden temple hall located on an islet on the bay and due to its prominent location, it has become the symbol of Matsushima. The interior of the temple is open only once every 33 years but do take note of the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiak carved in the eaves of the exterior. We’ll proceed to Ishinomaki city and visit a park famous for its cherry blossoms located on the top of Hiyori-yama. We’ll enjoy a relaxing drive along the Oshika-hanto, a scenic peninsula winding along the Pacific Ocean with its rugged coastline of bays, capes and inlets. We’ll return to the city of Matsushima to enjoy dinner and relax in the grand bath at our elegant hotel this evening.
 

Monday, April 21 (Day 05)
MATSUSHIMA - HANAIZUMI - ICHINOSEKI - HIRAIZUMI - KITAKAMI - HANAMAKI ONSEN (B)(D)
This morning we’ll travel to Hanaizumi, visiting the Hanaizumi Flower World, one of the largest peony gardens in the Tohoku area. Weather permitting, hundreds of large blooming peonies including various other flowers such as lotus flowers and bush clover should be in full bloom at this time of the year. We’ll travel to Ichinoseki to Geibikei and experience a relaxing ride on a flat-bottomed boat accompanied by a boatman who steers and serenades us on the peaceful waters through Geibi-kei Gorge. As we glide on the river through the gorge, enjoy the breathtaking scenery of spectacular rock formations and sheer cliffs. We’ll continue on to Hiraizumi visiting Chusonji Temple and the main attraction “Konjiki-do” (Golden Hall) - regarded as a national treasure. The exterior walls were originally covered with gold ornamentation, black lacquer work and inlaid mother of pearl. We’ll make a stop in the city of Kitakami, visiting Tenshochi, a park known as one of the best places to view cherry blossoms along the Kitakami River. Enjoy dinner and relax in the hot springs at Hanamaki Onsen this evening.
 

Tuesday, April 22 (Day 06)
HANAMAKI - MORIOKA - TOWADA - ASAMUSHI ONSEN (B)(D)
We’ll drive north through the city of Morioka, one of the most appealing old castle towns in Japan and the capital of Iwate-ken - famous for the production of nanbu tetsubin (cast ironware). As we drive by the grounds of the district courthouse, we’ll see a 400-year old Ishiwari-Zakura (stone-splitting cherry blossom tree) with a trunk so large that it actually split a boulder, an interesting sight to see. We’ll continue on our journey to Towada-ko, the third deepest caldera lake in Japan located in the Towada-Hachimantai National Park. Experience mountain beauty and marvel at the frozen forests and snow corridors as we drive through the Yuki no Kaido (Snow Corridor) from scenic Lake Towada to Mt. Hakkoda. Enjoy dinner and relax in the hot springs this evening at our onsen hotel.
 

Wednesday, April 23 (Day 07)
ASAMUSHI - HIROSAKI - TAKANOSU - HACHIROGATA - AKITA (B)(D)
This morning we’ll travel to Aomori and visit Nebuta No Sato, a gallery where colossal festival floats featured during the Nebuta Matsuri in the summer are displayed. These floats are colorful paper-mache “nebuta” - created as a figure of a theme from history or the Kabuki Theater. Traditional music and a demonstration of a lively local dance will be performed for you. Southwest of Aomori is the castle town of Hirosaki and on arrival, we’ll enjoy a visit to Hirosaki Castle, the city’s most famous landmark constructed by the local Tsugaru clan. A three-storied castle tower, fortified moats, castle gates and some corner yagura still survive. The surrounding Hirosaki Park is one of Japan’s most famous cherry blossom viewing spots with over 2,000 cherry trees. We’ll travel to Hachirogata to enjoy a beautiful display of black pine trees and avenues of cherry blossom trees planted throughout the city. Enjoy a gorgeous display of flowers in bloom at Blume Messe Akita. Subject to availability, we’ll stop at a nearby fruit orchard to enjoy picking and eating some delicious strawberries before we check in for the night. Dinner will be provided for you this evening at our hotel.
 

Thursday, April 24 (Day 08)
AKITA - YUWA - KAKUNODATE - YOKOTE - TENDO (B)(D)
Our journey continues on to Kakunodate, a small town known for their well-preserved former samurai district. Most of the samurai houses (bukeyashiki) stand behind wooden fences and gates along a central avenue lined by tall oak and weeping cherry trees (shidare zakura). Among the most interesting mansions open to the public are the Ishiguro Samurai House, the former residence of Kakunodate’s highest ranked family and the Aoyagi Samurai House, which exhibits arms, antiques and other family treasures. We’ll visit one of them offering a rare glimpse into the life of samurai and common townspeople. Kakunodate also has a traditional wooden craft called “kaba-zaiku: made from the bark of wild cherry trees. Several of these craft work are exhibited in the Kakunodate Museum of Traditional Crafts where we will visit. We’ll continue on to spend the night in Tendo, a town noted for the manufacture of shogi (Japanese chess pieces). Relax and enjoy dinner this evening at our onsen hotel.
 

Friday, April 25 (Day 09)
TENDO - YAMAGATA - YONEZAWA - AIZU WAKAMATSU - KORIYAMA (B)(D)
Our drive this morning takes us through Yamagata-ken to Yonezawa, a castle town once home to Uesugi Yozan. Enjoy a leisure stroll to see beautiful cherry blossoms in bloom on the grounds of Matsugasaki Koen, the former residence of the Date and Uesugi clan. The interior of the park is a well-known spot for cherry blossom viewing (ohanami). We’ll proceed to the castle town of Aizu Wakamatsu, visiting the grounds of Tsuruga-jo, an important Tokugawa stronghold in the Tohoku region. At the top of Iimoriyama Hill is where a group of samurai youths known as the Byakkotai committed “harakiri” or ritual suicide as they presumed that their castle was on fire and all was lost. We’ll visit the Byakkotai Kinenkan (Memorial Hall) dedicated to their tragic story with details about the last Aizu clan leader. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.
 

Saturday, April 26 (Day 10)
KORIYAMA - TATEBAYASHI - CHICHIBU - TOKYO (B)(D)
We’ll proceed to Sukagawa, a city affluent with flowers and greenery with a fragrance of the world’s No. 1 peonies. Enjoy strolling through the Sukagawa Peony Garden - proclaimed a national place of scenic beauty in 1932 with over 290 kinds of peonies. Standing at the main gate is a statue of Botan-Hime, a princess of the peony. We’ll continue on to the town of Tatebayashi in Gunma-ken to see some azaleas in bloom at Tsutsujiyama Park and further down along the Tsuruda River, enjoy the view of hundreds of koi-no-bori. We’ll continue on to visit Chichibu city in Saitama Prefecture to enjoy the spectacular sight of shibazakura, a pretty pink carpet of moss phlox flowers blooming on the hillside of Hitsujiyama Park. Our day ends in the metropolitan city of Tokyo where we will spend the night. You’ll have some free time this afternoon to visit the shops around Shinagawa Station located near our hotel. Dinner will be provided for you this evening.
 

Sunday, April 27 (Day 11)
TOKYO - NARITA TO HONOLULU (B)
Enjoy your last breakfast in Japan before making preparations to return home. The morning will be free to do some last minute shopping and packing or just relaxing around the hotel. In the afternoon, we will transfer to Narita International Airport for our evening flight to Honolulu, arriving on the same day due to the crossing of the International Dateline.

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 6/01/07. 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.