editorial journal

The
Japan Edition

Essays on Japan’s seasons, its places and its table, written by the people who plan, organise and run our tours of Japan.

100
articles
editor’s choice
Red maple leaves over a mountain stream in autumn colourseasons

The Foliage Front: How Japan's Autumn Moves

Japan's autumn colour moves as a front, from the mountains of Hokkaidō in September to the temples of Kyoto in late November. Where it stands in a given week decides where a traveller should be.

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100 articles
latest articles
A long row of sample bottles of whisky, pale gold to deep amber, each with a nosing glass, on a white table at the Nikka distillery in YoichicultureThe Japanese Whisky Distilleries Worth the JourneyBeyond Yamazaki and Yoichi, Japan makes its whisky in a forest under the Southern Alps, at the foot of Mount Fuji, high in the Central Alps and on a hill above the East China Sea. These are the distilleries that open their doors.the full articleA tumbler of whisky over a single sphere of ice on a dark bar counter, a cut-glass tumbler of water beside it and bottles lit behindcultureThe Yamazaki Distillery Tour, and the Lottery Behind ItJapanese whisky began in a valley just southwest of Kyoto in 1923. Its distillery still opens to visitors, but a share of the places is now given by lottery, and the way in rewards a traveller who knows the calendar.the full articleMount Fuji under snow against a clear blue sky, seen from Gotemba above a foreground of pine and bare winter treescultureA Whisky Tour of Japan: The Route, the Bar and the TableThe richest whisky journey in Japan is a journey through landscapes: the forest, the volcano, the high Alps and the old valley outside Kyoto, joined by the quiet bars of the cities in between.the full articleCherry trees lit after dark along the Chidorigafuchi moat in Tokyo, rowing boats moored on the still water belowplanningHow to Choose a Japan Cherry Blossom TourEvery cherry blossom tour of Japan promises the same trees. What separates them is how many share the view, where the nights are spent, who leads the days, and whether the departure runs at all.the full articlePink paper bonbori lanterns of the Meguro River cherry blossom festival hung beneath cherry trees in full blossom, TokyoseasonsCherry Blossom Festivals in Japan, 2027Lanterns on the cherry avenue at Ueno, rowing boats under the branches at Chidorigafuchi, the geiko of Kyoto on stage for the spring dances, and the Mint's riverside avenue in Osaka: the festivals of the cherry blossom season, and when they fall.the full articleSnow-capped Mount Fuji across Lake Kawaguchi, framed by branches of cherry blossom in full flowerplanningA Twelve-Day Cherry Blossom Itinerary for JapanTokyo, Mount Fuji, Kyoto, the Japan Sea and Osaka: the route a spring journey through Japan follows, how many nights each place deserves, and why the order matters.the full articleA branch of white cherry blossom lit against the night skyregionsOsaka in Cherry Blossom SeasonOsaka's cherry blossom belongs to its castle and its river: three thousand trees beneath the keep, four kilometres of them along the Okawa, and the Mint's avenue of late cherries that opens for one week in spring.the full articleA branch of white cherry blossom reaching across the dark water of the Meguro river in TokyoplanningIs Cherry Blossom Season in Japan Worth It?The cherry blossom fortnight is the most beautiful of the Japanese year, and it belongs to those who know where to be in it, and at what hour.the full articleFallen cherry petals drifted across a stone path in Kyoto, dappled with spring sunlightplanningWhen to Book a Cherry Blossom Trip to Japan for 2027Japan's spring is booked on Japan's calendar: the great hotels and ryokan open their rooms a year ahead. Here is why the spring of 2027 is settled early.the full article

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The itinerary book for The Classic Cherry Blossom Tour of JapanSpring

The Classic Cherry Blossom Tour of Japan

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