Experience the world’s largest art festival that occurs only once every three years! Includes Hakone, Niigata, and Sado Island!

Rich history and modern culture blended together to create an inspiring journey just for you

Very detailed and entertaining blog post all about this tour: https://hishawaii.home.blog/2024/03/31/spotlight-on-japan-art-culture-tour-2024/

New for 2024! Our Japan Art + Culture Tour is for those who seek to explore the road less traveled. Delve through the mountains of Hakone and Minakami, past lush Yamanashi, through the sprawling fields of Niigata, and over the deep blue Sea of Japan to Sado Island. As you travel through each space, try unique activities and experiences that highlight Japan’s diverse regional culture, fostered through handicrafts passed down over centuries of history. 

Visit Hakone, a Heian-era onsen town brought to new life by its surreal and awe-inspiring Open Air-Sculpture Museum. Try your hand at Yosegi-Zaiku, an ancient woodworking craft. Then, while on remote Sado Island, see for yourself how ancient fishers used to practice, walking through the Shukunegi fishing village and trying out a tarai bune tub boat ride through the harbor.

A Sado Island visit wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the Sado Kinzan Gold Mines, including a gold leaf hands-on experience. You’ll also try taiko drumming, a tradition practiced all over Japan, but made completely unique on Sado Island, where oni (demon) masks are donned to dance with the beat of the drums. Later, you’ll even get to have lunch with real geisha in Niigata, known locally as geigi, and watch them perform a traditional shamisen and dance performance!

A central highlight of this tour is the incredible Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale Festival. Japan is renowned for its fascinating culture, which weaves together its long, rich history with modern, futuristic charms. This festival highlights this juxtaposition, serving as a “collaboration of natural beauty and art that changes with the seasons.” Taking place only once every three years, this is one of the world’s largest art festivals, showcasing the fluid relationship between time and space, nature and humanity. Featuring sculptures nestled within sprawling rice fields, converted abandoned gyms and school buildings, and natural caves made to look like tunnels of light, this art festival reminds us of the space we hold as natural beings settled within the embrace of our past and present. A truly unique opportunity not to be missed!

Enjoy specialty cuisine each evening, soak away your stress at one of many soothing hot springs, or just stroll around and browse for fascinating omiyage gifts. If you’re ready to explore off the beaten path of Japan and embark on a real once-in-a-lifetime cultural adventure, our Japan Art + Culture Tour is waiting for you!

Destination Highlights

Tokyo – Hakone + Lake Ashi – Karuizawa – Yamanashi – Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale Festival – Niigata – Sado Island – Minakami Onsen – Takumi no Sato – TeamLab Planets Digital Art Museum – and more!

Tour Includes

9 nights premium accommodations – 23 exceptional meals – Onsen (Hot Springs) – WiFi router – HNL Airport Lounge – Unique activities & experiences – and much more!

Download Tour Flyer (PDF)

Download Tour Itinerary (PDF)

Download Application Form (PDF)

Download Terms and Conditions Form (PDF)