Posts in Category: recommended

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Takashi Murakami, Yayoi Kusama, Daido Moriyama, Yoshitomo Nara, Makoto Aida and Naoki Koide, etc., Japan is home for many talented artists. It will be very interesting experience to put yourself in Tokyo and feel the context that the great art works were created then to see the latest art pieces.

Japan has been produced unique artists in the stream of subculture, and some of them such as Hokusai Katsushika, affected artists in the Western countries since the 19th century. Likewise, artists in Japan today deliver great works and influence on people in the world.

  • You will visit 2~5 galleries in Tokyo. This is a fully customized tour to reflect your preference.
  • If you are an art collector, please inform us which artists you like and want to see/ purchase.
  • If you do not have any names of your Read More
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Mashiko town is located at 2hours away from Tokyo and it is a cozy, calm and small town surrounded by hills.  This small town is famous for pottery and thousands of people visit every May during pottery festival.

Mashiko ware is relatively “new” pottery in Japan and people started producing potteries there in the 19th century. Originally the products were for daily usage and transported to the capital of Japan Edo, which is Tokyo today. It was beginning of the 20th century that Mashiko became famous nationwide, when Shoji Hamada settled there and rediscovered the beauty of colors made by local ingredients. Today Mashiko potteries are known with rustic earth colors such as dark vermilion, brown and black. But at the same time, more than 80 potters are Read More

koi travel, bizen ware

On this tour, a professional pottery artist who is a living master will help you gain an in-depth understanding of pottery in Japan.

Bizen ware is said to have originated in the 5th century and its simple beauty continues to fascinate us today. The tour will not only introduce you to major pottery styles in Japan and their history but also the way of life of ‘shokunin’ (masters) who produce them.

Tour details:
• Morning: We will visit the artist’s workshop located in the mountain area. He will show you his workshop/kiln and explain to you the way of life of ‘shokunin’, which is a core part of Japanese culture. You can experience making a Bizen ware, which can be sent to you at a later date (additional cost for material/postage).
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koi travel, sword smith visit

Can you believe that sword smiths still exist in modern day Japan? Yes, they do! Master Akihira is one of the most passionate swordsmiths out of about 80 active in Japan. He received his sword smith name Akihira from his master when he finished his many years of apprenticeship.

His workshop is not so far from Tokyo as he values frequent interaction with his clients in order to make swords that are just right for them. With an hour’s ride on the bullet train from Ueno station and 10 minutes’ drive by car, you arrive at his workshop.

Inside the workshop, you will be able see vividly his craftsmanship in action. Depending on when you visit Master Akihira, you will witness how chunk of iron turns into steel, or how the Read More

koi travel, tea ceremony

Now there are some places that serve you a cup of green tea or matcha as a “tea ceremony”. But you will not understand what really is only having a cup of tea without enough explanation. Tea ceremony is a comprehensive art that forms bases of Japanese art. Did you know many other arts like room decoration, flower arrangements, calligraphy, equipment, kaiseki dishes and sweets were invented or improved as tea ceremony was developed? We offer a tour through which you will learn more about tea ceremony and the culture and history behind.

This tour offers you a great experience of tea ceremony as well as learning of tea ceremony at a tea ceremony museum. It perfectly fits for the ones who want to learn deeply about tea ceremony and related arts.

koi travel, Asakusa walking tour

Discover the real Tokyo, both historical and modern with a local! You will naturally see the contrast between new and old parts of central Tokyo.

We start the tour at Tawaramachi metro station at 10:30am. In the morning, we will visit Kappabashi and stroll through the Kitchen Street selling kitchen goods and plastic food samples that are very real.

We will then have lunch at a traditional restaurant with more than 100 years’ history.

After lunch, let’s try omikuji fortune at the Sensoji Temple in Asakusa and enjoy the atmosphere of downtown Tokyo as we walk through the Nakamise shopping street.

We will then visit Akihabara Electric Town – a town well known for being the center of otaku culture and shops devoted to anime and manga. Read More

koi travel, Yanesen walking tour

Discover the real Tokyo, both historical and modern with a local! You will naturally see the contrast between east west parts of central Tokyo.

Starting at Nippori station at 10:30am, we will first visit Yanaka in the old part of Tokyo and its shopping street, busy with local customers looking for glossaries and daily goods. We will then visit a local shrine, a calm and spiritual place with iconic red torii gates.

We will then move to the chic Omotesando area and have lunch at a buckwheat soba restaurant loved by locals. Soba in walnut sauce is the recommended dish but there are many other mouth-watering dishes for you to choose from!

After lunch, we will stroll through Omotesando and Harajuku’s Takeshita Street, a street of Read More

koi travel, sake brewery visit

Crisp air and water make winter the best season for sake brewing. On this tour, we will visit the smallest sake brewery in Japan and witness the process of sake making. Once you step into the brewery, you catch the fresh, mellow fragrance of sake. After the tour in the brewery, let’s taste fresh sake and compare the different labels.

  • Meet the guide at Kanazawa station (it’s about 3 hours from Tokyo by bullet train)
  • Lunch at a local restaurant and enjoy local unique cuisine
  • After lunch, visit the sake brewery and enjoy tasting afterwards.
  • Enjoy sightseeing in Kanazawa, it has many traditional samurai assets to see
  • Depart Kanazawa station at 18:50 (go back to Tokyo by bullet train if not staying in Kanazawa)

* Fully guided one-day tour.
* Car transportation service is provided in Kanazawa.

* Read More