Greater Tokyo

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Katayama Shuzo “Sake Brewery Tour”

Katayama Shuzo “Sake Brewery Tour”

Katayama shuzo is a family run company from 1880 in Nikko. What particularly interesting is they use a traditional machine to make sake as shown here. The machine is called a "Fune" they use this machine to press the sake bags squeezing out sake. This technique takes a lot of time & labor. Exactly, they can make a distinctive flavor of sake. The owner and staffs are very friendly. Please make a reservation in advance, and come & visit. *English guided tour / max 30 person *Reservation required (by phone, e-mail)

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Yatai-no-Machi Central Park

Yatai-no-Machi Central Park

Yatai-no-Machi Central Park is home to the Yatai Museum, Tourism and Local Products Centre and “Kikusuien”, one of three famous gardens in Kanuma. The Yatai Museum’s exhibits include three hand-carved wooden floats – official local cultural properties – and videos on the Kanuma Autumn Festival which is designated an Important Folk Cultural Property. Take a close look at elaborate carvings on the floats and learn about the history of this famous festival. Built in the early 1900s, “Kikusuien” was known as one of three outstanding gardens in Kanuma at that time. Many cultural elites such as Sumio Kawakami (a printmaker) visited and loved this Japanese garden. Nowadays many people come to the restored garden for its fantastic autumn leaves in late November. The Tourism and Local Products Centre is a hub for tourism offering a selection of brochures about destinations in Kanuma in addition to a wide range of local products. At the Konjac café, visitors can enjoy a variety of dishes hand made from the local all-natural Konjac potatoes.

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Nasu Onsen Sanraku

Nasu Onsen Sanraku

Sanraku, standing in serenity on the famous summer retreat, Nasu Highlands, is a long-established ryokan inn with a history of over 100 years. Its open-air baths feature the natural hot spring water flowing directly from the inn’s on-premise spring that produces as much as 800 liters per minute. This pure onsen water reaches the tubs without treatments such as heating, circulation, or filtering. Sanraku also has guest rooms with an open-air bath for you to enjoy a soak in privacy. For dinner, you will be treated to a multi-course kaiseki meal prepared with hand-picked seasonal ingredients. It features dishes that reproduce the four seasons of Japan and the earth's blessing. Guest rooms are furnished in Japanese style with a fusion of elegance and sophistication, and precious wood fills the room with a noble smell. You can also enjoy high-quality amenities with Japanese charm throughout the facility. 【About the hot spring】 Water color: clear Spring water type: simple spring water Efficacy: alleviates joint pain, sore muscles, sensitivity to cold, fatigue, sleeplessness, etc.

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Chuzenji Temple “Meditation bead making experience”

Chuzenji Temple “Meditation bead making experience”

Chuzenji Temple was established by Shodo Shonin in Nikko-zan in 784. Enshrining Nikko’s oldest Buddha statue, which is six-meters tall and was carved in a standing Japanese judas tree, the temple is a prayer temple (where visitors pray to the Buddha). Juzu, or prayer beads on a string, is one of the ritual items that people use to count how many times they have read a sutra or recited Buddha’s name. According to Siddhartha Gautama, praying to the Buddha repeatedly will remove earthly desires from people and make them happy. Those who visit to pay respect to the temple can join the prayer beads craft workshop. They can choose beads of their taste, made of natural stone and/or natural wood, with a wish in their minds to create a bracelet-shaped juzu. Their juzu becomes nenju when monks offer a prayer at the gomadan (fire ritual platform), and they can take it home as a wearable lucky charm.

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Nasu Bettei KAI

Nasu Bettei KAI

Nasu Bettei KAI is a ten-guest-room hot spring inn on 6,600m2 of land surrounded by lush green forests. It is right near the Nasu Imperial Villa and stands at the foot of the Nasu Mountain Range in Nikko National Park. The interior, furnished using traditional Japanese materials, is functional and matches the modern lifestyle to provide comfort to guests. All guest rooms come with a tub filled with natural hot spring water from the local historic spring source, Omaru Hot Spring. Guests are invited to enjoy the bath anytime while feeling the season of Nasu. For dinner, you will be served a satoyama kaiseki multi-course meal, cooked to perfection to bring out the taste of ingredients such as Tochigi Wagyu raised on the land of Nasu, ayu fish harvested from the clear Naka River, and fresh farm products. Nasu Bettei KAI is a very special inn that maintains connections with the local history, culture, and personality. 【About the hot spring】 Water color: clear Spring water type: simple spring water Efficacy: beautifies skin, alleviates nerve pain, sensitivity to cold, sore muscles, fatigue, and so on

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Oyama Gion Festival

Oyama Gion Festival

It is said that Suga Shrine was built by a legendary samurai Fujiwara no Hidesato in A.D. 940, and moved to its present location during 1159~1160. The whole shrine is filled with a solemn and serene atmosphere.   In A.D. 1600, before the Battle of Sekigahara, Tokugawa Ieyasu held the famous “Oyama Council” at Suga Shrine and prayed for the victory of the battle. After his victory and the establishment of the Edo Shogunate, Suga Shrine was greatly honored by the Shogunate. In 1658, staff members who had participated in the construction of Nikko Toshogu Shrine, created a miniature version of the Akamikoshi in Toshogu Shrine, which became the pressure of Suga Shrine.   The most important festival of Suga Shrine is "Oyama Gion Festival", on July 14 to 21 every year, 25 mikoshi including one massive one that weighs in at 2 tons are carried through the city.   According to “Shimotsuke Province Choreography(下野国誌)” written in Edo period, Suga Shrine’s “Gion Festival” is the “best Gion Festival in Shimotsuke Province.”   "

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Shibazakura Festival

Shibazakura Festival

The Shibazakura Festival is held every year at Ichikai Town Shibazakura Park in April and May.   About 280,000 plants in magenta, pink, purple and white are planted over 18,000 square meters in Shibazakura park. The flower carpet is patterned after the Kokaigawa river, which starts near the town.   During the festival, a soba restaurant(Hana) in the park, you can enjoy authentic hand-made soba. Additionally, also sells agricultural products and shibazakura seedlings.

Nikko kaido Oshu kaido TOCHIGI
Azumayama Park

Azumayama Park

You can always find flowers throughout the year as well as paths covered with flourishing trees in Azumayama park. Also, at the peak, there is an observatory where you can enjoy a panorama of Sagami Bay while enjoying a comfortable sea breeze from Shonan. Here, you can enjoy nature and have a relaxing time.When you visit, be mindful of the time of year so you can enjoy the park’s seasonal flowers and nature -- Rape flowers from January to February, Cherry blossoms from late March through early April, Azaleas from late April to mid May, Hydrangeas from late June to early July, and Cosmos in August. In autumn, enjoy the trees’ red vibrant red leaves.An early morning stroll is a special experience, with clear air and few people.

Nature & Views Tokaido Koshu kaido KANAGAWA