Essence of Japan June 2026

We recently returned from this tour, so here are some of my impressions:

Itinerary:

I found the daily schedule to be a good blend of guided tours and free time. We were reminded about promptness and keeping to the prescribed meeting times; the Japanese expect you to arrive early for tours and dining. There was such a good mix of history and culture - from learning about tea ceremonies, sumo wrestling, Samarai warriors, cooking (making our own okonomiyaki pancakes for lunch), flower arranging. We visited Shinto and Buddhist temples, a beautiful exhibit of kimonos, took multiple high speed trains, and even did some karaoke. Very well rounded for an introduction to Japan.

Guides: our Tour Director was excellent- one of the best we've ever had. He has been with Tauck for a long time- really knows how to manage the group without drama. A real ace. Our local guides (2) were also very good, with vast knowledge and good skills in getting us in and out of sites.

Group size: we were on the Classic tour with 34 participants. Mostly couples...2 groups of 4 and one group of 5. Three singles. A good mix of personalities. The bus never felt crowded - most of our longer rides were on trains. Everyone got along well- some people got together to do some touring in their free time.

Food: most of the group meals were good, some were excellent. The worst meal always seems to be the welcome dinner - not sure why that is! Some dinners you could choose off the "Tauck" menu at staggered dining times. Lunches we mainly ate as a group with set menus. Food was a combination of Japanese and Western. I liked the balance. I get tired eating lots of raw fish and need some different choices. Pasta is very popular.

I should also mention that I eat a gluten free diet - they were extremely accommodating to me. Whenever we entered a restaurant, the TD would immediately point me (and others with diet restrictions) out to the manager, and they would set a marker down by my place to identify my special diet. I never once got sick on this trip, and felt very confident in the food I was served. This is my 8th Tauck tour, and it's never been an issue. When we eat on our own, I have an App to help me, but Tauck really makes me feel safe.

Hotels: we liked all the hotels; luckily most were for 2 nights or more, which made this land tour a bit easier. All Western style hotels with comfy beds, those fabulous Toto toilets, good space. My least favorite was the Gero Onsen, which was the Japanese style ryokan (inn). You sleep on stacked mats (almost like a mattress) on the floor. Once down, they are comfortable, but for me, it just didn't work well. I'm up a few times during the night, and I need my glasses to see where I'm going. There's no nightstand ( the mattresses are set up in the middle of the room)...no place for your phone (for alarm). I had to roll over onto the floor to get up, and then figure out where I was going in the mostly dark room. My husband said he had a really good sleep. The actual baths were nice, but I found the water very hot. The modesty thing wasn't really an issue - we were all women (and I had my glasses off!).

Overall: we really like Japan, and this tour. The country is beautiful, clean, safe. The people we met were kind (led us to the correct subway line when we messed up). The weather was warmer than I had expected - despite constant checking on different sites, I still packed too few lightweight shirts and my husband could have used a pair of shorts. But we managed.

One of the highlights of our trip was attending a Yomiuri Giants game at the Tokyo Dome. I love baseball, and luckily they were home and playing a day game the day of the welcome dinner. It was so fun! We went early and bought merch for our family. We left after the 6th inning, in order to make the dinner, but got the experience. The fans are really enthusiastic and it was a great afternoon.

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