JAPAN HOLY WEEK TOUR PACKAGE
TRAVEL DATES: April 6-9, 2020
TOUR ITINERARY:
APRIL 6
Arrive in Tokyo! Upon your arrival, meet and greet with the English-speaking staff. Go to the hotel on your own.
APRIL 7
Enjoy your breakfast at hotel!
Half-day tour via SIC
Note: Pax must proceed to pick up by own arrangement if hotel is not a pickup point. After the tour ends, pax will proceed to next destination or back to their hotel on their own.
7:30AM-8:30AM
Go to the pick-up service in Tokyo Tower. Tokyo Tower is a prominent symbol in Japan. It serves as a broadcast skytree and was one of the tallest structures in the world and Japan, until the Tokyo Skytree was built in 2012. The tower follows several safety regulations required of structures such as itself. Its structure derives a bit of its design from the Eiffel Tower and is painted white. Tokyo Tower is open from nine (9) o’ clock AM to eleven (11) o’ clock pm; entry is from nine (9) AM until ten-thirty (10:30) PM.
Below the tower is the “Foot Town” building. This building houses a lot of stores, souvenir shops, and the One Piece Tower. The latter is an indoor amusement park geared towards attractions inspired and derived from the famous manga and anime One Piece. One Piece Tower opened in 2015, during the franchise’s fifteenth (15th) anniversary. The park showcases a variety of shows, merchandise, games and other attractions featuring various characters from the series.
The current Imperial Palace is located on the former location of what used to be Edo Castle. The Imperial Palace is where the royal family reside in. Edo Castle used to be the seat of the Tokugawa Shogun. The Tokugawas were a ruling clan during the Edo period; they had retainers. The shogunate was overthrown in 1868. The capital of the country was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo. The new Imperial Palace was built in 1888. Afterwards, head onto the Sakashita-mon Gate.
Sensoji Temple is a Buddhist Temple located in the Asakusa district. It is one of Tokyo’s most colorful and famous temples. There is a legend about the origins of the temple. According to this legend, in 628, two brothers found a statue of the goddess Kanon in Sumida River. Even if they put back the statue into the river, the statue continually kept reappearing. As a result, Sensoji was built as a place to put the statue in. The temple is also Japan’s oldest one.
Nakamise Shopping Street is visible from afar. It holds your typical souvenirs such as fans, yukata, and local snacks. The shopping street has a long history; it has been around for centuries. Their most popular snack is the Ningyo Yaki. The Ningyo Yaki is a cake with a red bean paste filling. This cake is usually made in the shapes of dolls, birds and the Kaminarimon. Another treat is their Kibi dango – soft rice cakes in a stick covered with Kinako flour (roasted soybean flour). The taste is said to be sweet.
13:00
Tokyo Station borders the Marunouchi South Entrance on the east. It is one of the busiest stations in Japan. The station building on Marunouchi’s side has been around since 1916. It has also been renovated recently. Shopping centers are also abound here.
Marunouchi South Entrance is the south exit of the Tokyo station. Be warned: it might be easy to get a little lost in this station due to its enormous size.
Note: There will be no drop-off service to hotels after the tour ends at Tokyo Station.
