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Marvel at Mother Nature at Fukushimagata Lagoon: A Private Cultural Experience and Tour
Niigata Prefecture is famous for its delicious rice and sake. Niigata City, the prefecture’s capital, is home to a vast expanse of rice paddies, an iconic symbol of the plains of Niigata. It also contains another iconic landscape of Niigata: the lagoon. The Fukushimagata Lagoon of present-day Niigata City gave rise to a lifestyle and culture that was inseparable from the lagoon.
Now you too can experience the unique lifestyle and food culture of this region through interactions with local fisherfolk and storytellers.
Try some snacks made from unique ingredients obtained by lagoon fishing paired with sake produced by one of the local breweries, and chat with local residents around the warm fire of a sunken hearth.
The Fukushimagata Lagoon is also a favorite stop for rare bird species such as white swans and bean geese, a designated Natural Monument of Japan. Watch the wildlife fly around the rice paddies in the early morning with a local ranger guide.
Main contents of the tour
(1) Special lagoon cultural experience: Board a traditional wooden boat and try your hand at fishing with active lagoon fishermen. Try traditional cuisine made with ingredients caught in the lagoon and paired with Niigata sake while chatting with local residents around a sunken hearth.
(2) Early morning birdwatching: See the rare wild birds that flock to Fukushimagata Lagoon, includings white swans and bean geese (designated Natural Monument of Japan).
(3) Special sake brewery tour in Niigata: Try sake pairings of leading Niigata sake varieties (*includes a souvenir Niigata sake cup) -
Snow Safari & Wagyu Glamping in Tokachi, Hokkaido
Join us on a private winter tour of the Naitai Kogen Farm. That's 1,700 hectares of snowy wilderness all to yourself! Go on a thrilling, extraordinary ride up to the peak of Daisetsuzan National Park, 800 meters above sea level, in a tracked 4WD vehicle with an expert local guide. Once you've arrived at the peak, explore the vast snowfields with snowshoes or snowmobiles. Then, once you've had your fill of fun in the snow, enjoy a sukiyaki BBQ at the glamping site, featuring renowned Tokachi Naitai wagyu beef from Kamishihoro. This is the ultimate nature experience to enjoy the Tokachi winter to the fullest—with body, spirit, and stomach!
The Naitai Highlands are closed over winter, so this tour is the only way to experience the region's winter landscape and activities.
Tours are limited to one group per day, with the vast snowfields of the Highlands reserved for your exclusive use. -
Explore the best international comtemporary art and Japan's leading art scnece at Tokyo Gendai
Tokyo Gendai returns to PACIFICO Yokohama from 5-7 July 2024 (VIP Preview and Vernissage on 4 July), highlighting a selection of the best galleries from Japan, the wider Asia Pacific region and across the globe. Following its successful launch last year, the fair has established itself as an important new addition to the international art calendar, inviting the global art world to explore Japan’s dynamic and rich contemporary art scene.
The international art fair presents visitors with the chance to connect and engage with Tokyo’s vibrant and well-established gallery scene, alongside offering the opportunity to explore new perspectives and exchange ideas through the fair’s extensive VIP and public programme celebrating the very best that Japan has to offer. Tokyo Gendai also offers a significant opportunity for collectors to discover Japan's unique and far-reaching cultural offering and exceptional contemporary art.
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Saiku Cultural Art Festival 2024 SAIKU CULTURAL ART FESTIVAL 2024
The National Historic Site of Saiku was once the residence of the Saio, unmarried female members of the Japanese Imperial Family who served nearby Ise Shrine. The site has been protected as sacred land by local residents, and is where the prayers of the Saio have been passed down to the present day. This year's Cultural Art Festival will be held across the entire site, allowing visitors to experience Japanese history and culture alongside various art forms.
September 15, 2024: Matsusaka beef BBQ and balloon glow
September 16, 2024: View the historic site from the sky on a tethered hot air balloon, featuring the spectacular sight of art formed by 2,000 lights
November 2–3, 2024: Project mapping of ancient Japanese landscapes onto the historic site's reconstructed Heian period (ancient Japanese) structures
November 4, 2024: Traditional Noh theater screening of a play set in the Saiku palace complex
December 15, 2024: Saiku Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. Transform into a yokai spirit from Japanese folk tales in this special night experience. No preparation necessary.
In addition, visitors may enjoy activities such as a digital art night banquet at a rented-out museum or praying with the Saio. Each program features special culinary experiences, including boxed bento lunches inspired by ancient Japan, full courses of creative French cuisine, and party menus prepared by local food coordinators.
Enjoy Japanese history and culture at the Saiku Cultural Arts Festival in the town of Meiwa, Mie Prefecture. -
HIDAKA TRAIL DAYS
Mount Apoi, located near Samani in eastern Hidaka, Hokkaido, features some of the world's most unusual geological features and is home to many endemic species. It is treasured as both a premier hiking spot and a place of scientific study.
In June 2024, the Hidaka Mountain Range, including Mount Apoi, and Cape Erimo were designated as Japan's largest national park.
To celebrate this designation, we are hosting the park's first outdoor event!
The event will showcase outdoor brands that are highly popular among Japanese hikers.
Don't miss the chance to come and try unique and exclusive gear that is not available overseas.
The local conservation society will offer Ainu cultural experiences at the event. Try your hand at making trail food using local ingredients, test-ride an E-MTB, and buy local delicacies to take home or enjoy on the spot!
In the evening, three prominent figures in the Japanese long-distance hiking community will talk about long trails while gathered around a bonfire.
Enjoy two days of relaxed interactions with Japanese hikers and celebrate with us. -
Exclusive Access to Restricted Forests, Mountains, Lakes, and Historical Buildings! An educational tour led by specialist guides to satisfy adventure seekers
(1) Mount Usu is one of Japan’s 111 active volcanoes and it erupts every few decades. An eruption in the year 2000 affected residential areas, roads, and national highways. Fortunately, there were no fatalities. On this tour, trek through the remarkable terrain of Mount Usu and visit the rim of the crater, an area that is normally inaccessible.
(2) Learn cornering techniques and bicycle safety under the instruction of experienced adventure cycling guides as you tackle a dangerous and challenging downhill ride on narrow, steep slopes. This is an experience that would be nearly impossible with a regular rental bicycle, made possible using high-performance e-bikes. A support vehicle will be on standby to help participants take on the challenge.
(3) Cape Kamui is usually closed at night, but this exclusive tour offers a rare opportunity to experience the sunset, fishing lights, and the moment the lighthouse is lit after the gates have closed to the public. Enjoy this luxurious and premium experience immersed in the tranquil and quiet atmosphere of the night.
(4) Visit the Ainu Culture Museum to learn about the traditional tools used by the Ainu people in their daily lives and the things they foraged from the forests and rivers. Then, take a walk through the forest with Ainu guides as your storytellers, and immerse yourself in the past, present, and future of Ainu life, exploring the Ainu's deep connection with the forest.
(5) Cross the frozen Lake Nukabira with snowshoes or on a fat bike. This is an experience only available for about one month in winter. The feeling of the wind as you traverse the ice is a rare and unique experience that can only be had in Hokkaido at this time of year. You can also see the Taushubetsu River Bridge, which appears on the frozen surface of the lake when the dam's water level is low in winter. -
A New Nighttime Economy of Food and Myth in Aoshima, Miyazaki
This tour is an opportunity to try special foods and drinks, as well as traditional culture on the miraculous island of Aoshima. Surrounding the island, which has a circumference of 1.5 km, are irregular, visually pleasing rock formations created over the course of 6 million years. The island is covered in subtropical vegetation, the northernmost of its kind in the northern hemisphere, with scenery that makes you feel like time seems to have stood still.
On Aoshima, you will be able to enjoy a Miyazaki Prefecture gastronomy course prepared by a chef from a Michelin-starred restaurant. You can also enjoy special cocktails made by a bartender named in Asia's 50 Best Bars 2022. Nature, culture, and you. Enjoy a night where everything comes together in a timeless moment.
Aoshima by night: TIMELESS MOMENTO Menu
- Special dinner and cocktails
- One Plate・One Drink A moment to experience the charm of Miyazaki with all five senses
- Guided night tour of Aoshima Shrine
- Japanese calligraphy experience
Key players
Kojiro Kashiwada: Owner and chef of Kasane in Akasaka, Tokyo. Michelin-starred since 2011. Will serve creative Japanese meals that evoke the island’s culture and traditions.
Shuzo Nagumo: Owner of SBAR (Asia Top 50). Nagumo is one of Japan's foremost mixologists, and his cocktails made with local Miyazaki Prefecture sake have proved a game changer.
Yasutaka Nagatomo: Until 1737, only priests were allowed to set foot on the mysterious isle of Aoshima. The chief priest himself will guide you through the history, culture, and sacred kagura dance rituals of Aoshima.
Satoshi Iwao: Highly praised for his 'shodo' performances, Iwao became a qualified instructor at the age of just 16, though he did not begin to work professionally as a calligrapher until the age of 29.Performing on the streets of Miyazaki, Japan, Iwao has also performed in Paris - exhibiting at the Japan Expo Paris in both 2018 and 2019. -
A Day to Experience the Kyoto Gozan Okuribi Ritual Bonfires
The Kyoto Gozan Okuribi (lighting of ritual bonfires on the five mountains of Kyoto), which light up the summer in Kyoto along with the famous Gion Festival, has long been appreciated for its dynamism with large, blazing Japanese characters written with fire on the mountainside. The Gozan Okuribi event was not originally intended as a visual spectacle, but rather to see off the spirits of ancestors as they return to the afterlife at the end of their visit back to this world during the Bon Festival. For this reason, the five mountains where the bonfires are lit are considered sacred, and the public is not permitted to enter them, especially on days when the fires are lit.
For the first time ever, visitors will be able to go to the mountainsides on the day of the event, and experience the history, origin, and customs of each mountain, as well as observe the fire beds, so that they can learn more about the Kyoto Gozan Okuribi ritual. The same evening, visitors will also stop by the former Shimogamo Villa of the Mitsui family, an Important Cultural Property, and the Komai Residence, a Registered Tangible Cultural Property. Both facilities will be booked out exclusively for tour participants during times when they are normally closed, so that they can witness the actual lighting of the bonfires (from both facilities, you can see the lighting of the huge, blazing characters) alongside commentary from expert guides.
There is also the Kyoto Gozan Okuribi Stamp Rally, which involves visiting shrine facilities and collecting a special red stamp at each of the Kyoto Gozan Okuribi mountains. The stamp rally is held in cooperation with cab operators and commercial facilities, and it will give participants various opportunities to experience and learn more about the Kyoto Gozan Okuribi ritual bonfires. -
FIA World Rally Championship FORUM8 Rally Japan 2024 - Hospitality Program
This hospitality program will make the experience of watching Rally Japan 2024 (the final match of the season in the FIA World Rally Championship) even more special than it already is.
Stadium hospitality: Watch the rally from the best seats, enjoy a meal at the stadium restaurant, attend a meet & greet, and more
Mountain hospitality: Includes transportation to and from the exclusive SS area in the mountains, and watching the race from amidst the great outdoors
Room hospitality: The top-of-the-line plan includes a comfortable stay in a Super Room at Toyota Stadium
Helicopter experience: The executive plan allows you to charter a helicopter to watch multiple SS races
This hospitality program includes special spectator seating, meals, rest areas, activity experiences, and more. That makes it the best way to watch up close and personal how the rally cars race at full speed and how the world’s top rallyists and mechanics working furiously to maintain them.
Take in the end of the WRC 2024 season in the best possible way!
◆ Services & activities:
- Rally car ride-along
- Meet & greet with special guests
- Priority entry to the course walk
- Service park tour
- Concierge service
- Rally Japan merchandise
- 20% discount on WRC merchandise
- Special pass gift -
Night Tour of the Sado Gold Mine: A World Heritage Site
The Doyu Mine is one of the most famous landmarks within the Sado Gold Mine World Heritage Site. During this event, Doyu no warito, symbol of the Aikawa Gold Mine, will be lit up for a fantastic night tour utilizing projection mapping and other light-based scenography. Available for a limited time only, this night tour is not something that visitors can experience on a regular basis.
The historic gold mine is a rare industrial heritage site, featuring a large-scale system of gold production that operated for more than 380 years on gold-rich Sado Island from the late 16th century to the mid-19th century. Under the management and operation of the Tokugawa Shogunate, isolationist policies limited the exchange of technology with the outside world. The system was thus quite different from those of Europe, and involved the use of Japanese traditional handicraft techniques to produce gold of world-class quality and quantity.
Workers were recruited from all over Japan by the shogunate, which resulted in a rich, diverse culture centered on the mine, including religious beliefs, performing arts, and entertainment.
In addition to the night tour, this event will give visitors a chance to experience Sado Island's unique performing arts, historical culture, and nature, as well as dishes showcasing the island’s delicious cuisine.