Japan is a beautifully and intricately designed puzzle, boxes within boxes, a country that has refined just about every taste into an art form. We take delight in solving the amazing Japanese enigma with Classic Journeys handcrafted to every interest, every time frame, and every taste. We pride ourselves on our ability and willingness to arrange private trips, especially to places like Japan, where an insider’s knowledge and attention to detail pay off beautifully. Some ideas: the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Miyajima, with its marvelous Itsukushima shrine, built over the water; Hiroshima; the hot springs and spas of Kyushu Island; glorious Mount Fuji; and a host of stimulating walking trips.

Here is a handy, week-long itinerary designed to fit well as a Classic Journey addition to any of our scheduled departures or as a jumping-off idea for Custom Journeys.

Day 1: arrive in Nara, Japan's first capital • Day 2: Nara and environs • Day 3: Kurashiki via 14th-century Himeji Castle, one of the country's finest • Day 4: rice merchant town of Kurashiki, sometimes called "Japan's Venice" • Day 5: Hiroshima • Day 6: Miyajima and its Itsukushima shrine • Day 7: depart.

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