April 6th - 19th, 2025 (Full)

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Leave your home airport for the Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan HND. Tokyo has two airports, Narita and Haneda. Usually you'll arrive the next day due to the 16 hour ahead time change PST.

Arrive at Haneda airport. Sheri Leigh will meet you when you arrive and take you to the Villa Fountaine Grand Haneda Hotel located in the airport. Depending on arrival time, you can rest, or go shopping, or enjoy some yummy Japanese cuisine!

We'll travel to Hakone and visit the Open Air Museum which has an impressive collection of art from around the world, then visit the Okada Museum which is gorgeous and has an amazing collection of ceramics from Japan, Korea and China. 

We'll stay at the Hakone Tenseien Hotel located in the beautiful mountains. The hotel has an onsen bath that you can enjoy if you like and you can relax and wear a yukata, a casual, cotton, Japanese kimono.

We'll take two trains to Odawara and experience a fun hands-on workshop with Masaki Matsumoto. Workshop Description: Japanese people are traditionally very particular about their tableware. Masaki will give a lecture on Japanese pottery with the theme of "Japanese food and tableware”. He'll teach us about the meaningful pairings between delicious Japanese food, worshipping nature, and choosing the most complimentary dishes to serve the elegant cuisine.
In Japan, there is a pottery production area traditionally called Rokkoyou, and Masaki will explain its traditional techniques, clay, firing and kilns. He'll discuss the relationship between Japanese cuisine and dishes using Kaiseki cuisine as an example. Masaki will demonstrate 3 kinds of japanese-style wares. After the workshop, he'll bisque the best of your work, and we'll pick it up on our way back to the airport. 

Today, we'll continue our workshop in Odawara with Masaki and enjoy working in the Blend community space located across the street from the beach and beautiful ocean!

Today, we'll take a bullet train to Kyoto. Once we get there, we'll have a free afternoon to relax, shop, take in the sights, and eat incredible meals! There are a lot of places to get a relaxing massage!

Today, we'll take a tour of Kyoto with our tour guide, Seita, taking in gorgeous sites: Kiyomizudera Temple, Kyoto Ceramics Center, the Raku Museum, and the Robert Yellin Ceramics Gallery.  At the Raku Museum, we'll learn about the Raku technique which is quite different from American Raku, The Robert Yellin Ceramics Gallery, which is located near the Philoshopher's Path, represents the who's who of Japanese Ceramics. 

We'll take a day trip to Tamba, one of Japan's six ancient kilns. We'll visit ceramics museums, and see potters and kilns! They have been making pottery here for over 800 years!

Today, we'll tour Kyoto again, seeing iconic sites including the Nishiki Market, where there are all kinds of Japanese foods, tea, souvenirs, knives, and you name it! We'll go to the Kinkaku-ji or Golden Pavilion, which is gorgeous,  and then visit the Ryoan-ji Zen Garden, which is serene.

We'll take a day trip to Shigaraki today, another one of Japan's six ancient kilns. We'll visit three different well established potters, go to the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Center, and shop at a ceramics supply store and other pottery stores in the little downtown area.

We'll take a day trip to Nara where we'll view amazingly beautiful, historic sites like the Todai-ji temple. We'll go to the Nara Craft Museum and walk around the quaint town.

Tour of Osaka with Yoriko, our guide, who will take us to an amazing knife making demonstration. We'll visit the Rikyu Museum that details the origins of the tea ceremony in Japan, with a replica of the first tea house. We'll enjoy a brief tea ceremony there too! We'll view the Oriental Ceramics Museum where we'll see historic and contemporary ceramic work. 

In the morning, enjoy free-time in Kyoto for shopping, relaxing, or seeing the last bit of Kyoto. We'll meet back in the lobby before traveling together to Haneda Airport in Tokyo.  If you want to stay longer in Japan on your own, no problem. 

Return home. Book a flight that leaves Haneda airport any time today. You'll probably arrive in the US before you left Japan, on the same day with the time change!  Allow some downtime after you get home if possible to get over the jet lag. If you want to spend additional time in Japan, no problem! It's recommended to stay longer, after the tour, as you'll be familiar with navigating.

(Itinerary is subject to slight changes).

Please email to get on the waitlist.

The trip is $5,200. which includes all accommodations, including single rooms at no extra charge, all travel within Japan, all scheduled activities, and select meals. Does not include airfare. 

Upon registration, you'll receive a lot of info with details about hotels, itinerary, tips for traveling to Japan and numerous handouts by email. 

Maximum participant size is 18, minimum is 6, age 20 and up. Anyone interested in Japan is welcome! 

Not suitable for people with mobility issues or a low level of physical fitness. We'll be walking a lot and on our feet for long periods of time. We'll be  taking trains, busses, subways etc., sometimes with our luggage. 

 A $100 non-refundable deposit will be required to reserve your seat. The balance will be due three months prior to the trip, by January 6th, 2025, and is non-refundable after that date. Early registration is recommended, as trips fill quickly. 

Traveler's insurance is required and if anything comes up that prevents you from taking the trip, you would file a claim with them. 

If you'd like to get on this exciting trip, or would like information, please contact me below. I'm happy to answer any questions that you may have. It's my pleasure to respond! Go to Homepage