Japan Highlights

693 Days until departure
June 22, 2028 - June 29, 2028
Trip ID: Symes-1734

The Explorica Experience

This program delivers the proven Explorica Experience that teachers and students know and love – now powered by greater flexibility through TourFlex and backed by the WorldStrides legacy of experiential learning and consistent quality.

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Tour Itinerary print itinerary

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Day 1 Overnight Flight to Japan (Tokyo)
Day 2 Konnichiwa Tokyo
Meet your LEAP-trained Tour Director
Details: Meet your LEAP-trained Tour Director
LEAP encompasses the best practices of student-centered learning. Your Tour Director will get to know you and your group, will push you to think deeply, and will prepare thoughtful, hands-on opportunities to display your learning. LEAP is exclusive to WorldStrides and is what makes our Tour Directors unique and our programs transformative.
Day 3 Tokyo
Tokyo guided sightseeing tour
Senso-ji temple visit, Meiji Shrine visit, Harajuku District visit
Akihabara Electric Town visit
Shibuya Crossing
Karaoke experience and dinner
Details: Tokyo guided sightseeing tour
Jangling neon and tranquil temples, radical fashion choices and quietly practiced traditions. Japan's sprawling, chaotic capital combines cutting-edge technology with an age-old culture, generating a directed energy and graceful drive unique to Tokyo. See what all of the buzz is about with a local licensed guide. Start with a whiff of the miraculous at the Senso Temple, where sacred incense smoke is said to have curative powers. Built to commemorate Emperor Meiji and his empress, the Meiji Shrine is one of the most important Shinto shrines in the country. Yearly festivals bring various groups to its iris garden and Treasure House, including the "Seven-Five-Three Festival," in which young children arrive dressed in mini kimonos.
Details: Meiji Shrine visit
Meiji Shrine, dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. Emperor Meiji was the first emperor of modern Japan, born in 1852 and ascending to the throne in 1868 at the peak of the Meiji Restoration when the power was switched from the feudal Tokugawa government to the emperor. Learn the difference between Shinto and Buddism
Details: Akihabara Electric Town visit
Take a trip to the Akihabara district, a mecca for electronic goods and home to Japan's otaku (diehard fan) geek culture. Explore the thousands of shops dedicated to anime, manga and video games.
Details: Karaoke experience and dinner
Karaoke is a popular form of entertainment which originated in Japan. Immerse yourself in this environment, grab a mic, your favorite song and sing your heart out in a Tokyo karaoke venue.
Day 4 Tokyo--Hakone region
Travel to Hakone region by bus
Hakone excursion
Owakudani Boiling Valley visit, Hakone Ropeway, Lake Ashi cruise, Hakone Shrine visit
Overnight in a Ryokan
Details: Hakone excursion
Step into the misty beauty of a traditional Japanese watercolor. Peaceful lakes, stunning gardens, Hakone one of the prettiest destinations for city-weary Tokyoites. Experience Owakudani, the area around a crater created during the last eruption of Mount Hakone some 3000 years ago. Today, much of the area is an active volcanic zone with sulfurous fumes and hot springs. Watch how far you travel, though -- Hakone was once the feudal checkpoint for visitors to the capital, with all guns required to stay outside the borders and all women required to stay in. Please note: Owakudani Boiling Valley and the Hakone Ropeway are subject to weather conditions, and an alternative activity will be provided.
Day 5 Hakone region--Takayama
Travel to Matsumoto by bus
Matsumoto Castle visit
Details: Matsumoto Castle visit
Matsumoto Castle is one of the grandest castles in Japan. Its five-tiered, six-story main tower, built in late 16th century, is the oldest surviving castle tower in the nation. This medieval fortress is famously photogenic, with a wide moat, swimming swans and hundreds of cherry blossom trees in the Spring.
Day 6 Takayama--Kyoto
Takayama guided sightseeing tour
Shirakawago Village visit
Travel to Kyoto
Details: Takayama guided sightseeing tour
Takayama is a historic city in Japan’s mountainous Hida region, known for its well-preserved Edo-period streets and traditional architecture.
Details: Morning Market visit
Visit the morning market, where local independent farmers and craftsmen sell fresh produce and handmade goods, offering an authentic glimpse into Takayama’s traditional lifestyle and community.
Details: Old City visit
Stroll through Takayama’s beautifully preserved Old Town, especially Sannomachi Street, where centuries-old breweries and tea houses offer a glimpse into traditional Japanese culture and craftsmanship.
Details: Shirakawago Village visit
This UNESCO World Heritage Site, is renowned for its traditional gassho-zukuri farmhouses, some of which are over 250 years old. These unique houses feature steep, triangular thatched roofs that resemble “praying hands.”
Day 7 Kyoto
Nara excursion
Kyoto guided sightseeing tour
Kinkaku-ji temple (Golden Pavilion) visit, Fushimi Inari Taisha visit
Details: Nara excursion
Nara can be an eye-opening experience. The enormous 50-foot bronze Buddha statue in Todai-ji was dedicated in AD 752 by having a priest symbolically "open his eyes" by scrambling up and painting them in (the original paintbrush remains at the temple); strings dangling off the brush allowed the dignitaries on the ground to hang on and participate in the action. The sense of "more is better" continues at Kasuga Shrine, where a thousand intricate bronze lanterns hang prettily off the building. Don't bother the wild deer roaming the adjacent Nara Park -- once considered messengers of the gods, they are still a nationally protected treasure.
Details: Todai-ji temple visit
Todai-ji is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The massive building houses one of Japan's largest bronze statues of Buddha (Daibutsu). At 15 meters tall, the seated Buddha represents Vairocana and is flanked by two Bodhisattvas.
Details: Kasuga Grand Shrine visit
Nara’s most celebrated Shinto shrine.
Details: Kyoto guided sightseeing tour
With over 2,000 Buddhist temples and shrines still intact, Kyoto shines as one of the best preserved Imperial cities in Japan. Visit the famous Zen Buddhist Temple Kinkakuji, or Golden Temple, that gets its name from the pure leaf gold that covers the top two floors. Next, head to Inari, the main shrine of the god of business, and see the thousands of red torii, or Japanese gates, that snake their way up the hill to the inner shrine. The Sanjusangendo Temple offers visitors an unusual and unbelievable sight. Its main hall is filled with 1,000 life-size statues of soldiers of the Thousand Armed Kannon which stand to protect the main deity of the temple.
Day 8 Flight home from Osaka
Travel by bus to Osaka

Tour Includes

  • LEAP – Learning through Exploring and Actively Participating increases engagement, critical thinking, understanding of diverse perspectives, and personal growth.
  • Round-trip airfare and transportation to activities in the itinerary
  • WorldStrides Tour Director: An experienced education and destination professional, trained in LEAP, who engages students with hands-on learning opportunities.
  • Hotel accommodations
  • Breakfast daily except on arrival day
  • Dinner daily except on departure day
  • Guided sightseeing tours and city walks as per itinerary
  • Visits to select attractions as per itinerary
  • Discovery Journal (available upon request)
  • Traveling educators can earn professional development hours/CEUs.
  • Earn high school credit (grades 6–12) or college credit (grades 9–12) — available to travelers who complete the program and WorldStrides coursework.
  • Basic medical, dental, and emergency‑evacuation insurance during the trip
  • WorldAssist staff members available 24/7/365 should your group need extra help
  • Tips for local guides and drivers are included (except multi‑day bus drivers). Tour cost doesn’t include optional pre‑paid tips for the Tour Director or multi‑day bus driver unless the pre‑paid tip option has been purchased.
  • Note: Tour cost does not include airline-imposed baggage fees.
  • Note: Tour cost does not cover entry requirements or related fees. This includes, but is not limited to, REAL ID, passports, visas, and travel‑authorization fees.
  • Note: Tour cost does not include optional excursions and other individual and group customizations will be listed as separate line items in the total trip cost, if included. Listed inclusions may not apply if the program is customized.

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