Japan Multi-Adventure Tour

Japan’s fierce pride in its cuisine offers many culinary riches. This same pride, however, also creates an inflexibility that can be challenging for Western guests. Menus are planned well in advance, and Japanese restaurants are not accustomed to or able to make substitutions or additions, even if requested several days in advance.

Japanese menus include a significant amount of seafood and beef in most meals. Crucially, soy sauce and bonito (made from smoked skipjack tuna) are used as base ingredients throughout Japanese cuisine. Because of this, Japanese cuisine is not conducive to celiac or kosher diets and adhering to strict vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free diets while in Japan requires careful planning so alternate dishes can be prepared. It is critical to ensure that the dietary information you provide to Backroads in advance of your trip is accurate and representative of what you want to eat in Japan, since changes or “cheats” will generally not be possible once on trip.

We spend two nights at Ochiairo, a historic ryokan, or traditional Japanese inn. An important part of the country’s culture, ryokans offer a very different experience from Western hotels. The emphasis is on simplicity, tranquility and beautiful onsens (hot spring baths) rather than modern luxury. 

In order to access the scenic and culturally significant routes and points of interest on this trip, strategic shuttles and bullet train rides are incorporated into our itinerary. Most travel will be limited to an hour or so at a time, but on some days you can expect to spend a bit more time traveling—though always to reach a worthwhile destination!