Shōguns and Samurai - History, art and theatre in Japan

The tour begins in Tokyo with lunch in the hotel. (International flights are not included. There is an airport transfer to meet the recommended flight from London. Your room is available from 3.00pm on 12th April – see Practicalities). In the afternoon visit Sengakuji Temple, the revered burial site of the 47 Ronin, who avenged their master, Asano Naganori, in 1703 before being ordered to commit ritual suicide.

Explore the Samurai Museum featuring authentic armour and sword displays. Continue to the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno park to see highlights of its rich permanent collection before making our way to Ginza for the first visit to the Kabuki-za, Japan’s leading Kabuki theatre. Enjoy the afternoon/evening program of Kabuki plays.

A full day north of Tokyo to Nikko, site of the 17th-century Tōshōgū Shrine, the lavish mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, renowned for its golden decoration and intricate carvings. Continue to Rinnoji temple, containing lacquered statues of three deities regarded as Buddhist manifestations of Nikko’s three mountain gods, the Tamozawa. We end our visit at the Tamozawa Imperial Villa (1899)an impressive blend of Edo and early Meiji architecture.

Return to the Kabuki-za for the matinee programme and enjoy a bento-box lunch at your seats. Visit Toyokawa Inari Temple, a rare example of religious syncretism, serving as both Buddhist temple and Shinto shrine. Finally explore Asakusa, Tokyo’s best-known shitamachi (old town) district, centred around Senso-ji, the city’s oldest and most significant Buddhist temple. The surrounding streets offer a vivid glimpse of historic Tokyo.

Leave Tokyo for the Japanese Alps and the town of Matsumoto, with its magnificent castle. Nicknamed the ‘Crow Castle’ for its black exterior, it dates from the late 16th century. In the afternoon visit the Ukiyo-e Museum home to the world’s largest private collection of Japanese woodblock prints. Owned by the Sakai merchant family, the collection includes over 100,000 pieces, including works by masters such as Hokusai and Hiroshige. Continue to Nagoya for the first of two nights.

Drive north to the Gifu Sekigahara Battlefield Memorial Museum, the starting point for exploring the site of Japan’s most decisive samurai battle and located on the site of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s final encampment. Return to Nagoya to continue the Tokugawa theme at the Tokugawa Art Museum, an outstanding private collection housing over 10,000 artefacts from the Owari Tokugawa clan, the wealthiest branch of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Nagoya Castle (Nagoya-jō), constructed in 1612 by Shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu and known for the pair of golden shachihoko (mythical tiger-headed carp) on its roof. After lunch visit the Noh Theatre and Museum, whose stage is built entirely from Hinoki cypress wood from the Kiso area. Drive to Kyoto where three nights are spent

Begin at Nijō Castle (Nijō-jō), a unesco World Heritage Site built in 1603 as the residence of Tokugawa Ieyasu and celebrated for its opulent palace architecture, gardens, and unique security features. Continue to Ginkaku-ji (‘Temple of the Silver Pavilion’), built in 1482 as a retirement villa for Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimasa and later converted into a Buddhist temple. After lunch walk through the Tale of Genji Museum in Uji, offering an immersive glimpse into the court life of the Heian-era, depicted in the eponymous 11th-century masterpiece.

Visit the Miho Museum, a renowned art museum set in the Shigaraki mountains displaying ancient art from Japan and elsewhere (Egypt, Rome, China, etc.). Return to Kyoto and visit Daitoku-ji, a vast Zen temple complex consisting of a central main temple and 22 sub-temples (tatchū), founded in 1319. In the evening we will visit Gion, Japan’s celebrated Geisha district, known for its lantern-lit cobblestone streets and traditional wooden machiya (townhouses). Enjoy dinner and an evening of Geisha music and dance.

In Nara explore the magnificent Todai-ji Temple, home to the Great Buddha (Daibutsu), one of Japan’s largest bronze statues. Continue to Naramachi, the former merchant district, with winding lanes lined with beautifully preserved Edo-period wooden townhouses. Travel on to Osaka and explore Osaka Castle, built in 1583 by the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi, with exceptional examples of samurai armour and weapons. First of two nights in Osaka

Approximately an hour from Osaka stands Himeji Castle (Himeji-jō), also known as the White Heron Castle (Shirasagijo), widely considered to be Japan’s most spectacular and best-preserved feudal fortress. In the afternoon there is some free time in Osaka.

Transfer by bullet train back to Tokyo. On arrival, visit the newly reopened Edo-Tokyo Museum (Ryogoku), the principal museum tracing the history and culture of Tokyo (formerly Edo) from 1590 to the present.

The tour ends after breakfast. (International flights are not included – there is an airport transfer in time for the recommended direct flight back to London – see Practicalities).

Please note that closures at museums and sites are often not announced at the time of putting the tour on sale. Should any of the above visits not be possible, we will provide a suitable alternative.