Trekabout Photography Workshops - Creating Adventure Through Photography
Workshops, Tours, Adventures with Accredited Professional Photographer Mark Rayner and the Dream Team
DAILY INTINERARY
13 TO 27 APRIL 2023
Please note that the daily schedule – where we go but not where we stay – may change depending on weather, traffic and other conditions. Sunrises will be between 5:12 and 4:54; sunsets between 18:12 and 18:23.
DAY 1 THURSDAY 13 APRIL TOKYO
Everyone needs to arrive in Tokyo by 13 April and stay at the Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku (check-in from 3pm) so that the program can start first thing the next day.
To get to the hotel from Haneda Airport: There are a few options: The easiest and most comfortable way is to take the Airport Limousine Bus direct to the Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Hotel which takes around one hour. Please note that the first bus of the day leaves at 11:35 and there is only about one bus an hour until 22:40. However, buses to Busta Shinjuku, which is less than a 10-minute walk to the hotel, leave every 10 to 15 minutes from 8:35 to 23:20. The cost is Yen1,300. Taking the monorail and trains is less expensive but all involve changing at least once and with luggage it can be difficult to get on and off crowded trains. A taxi from the airport directly to the hotel would cost around Yen 8,000. Taxis and buses accept credit cards and cash.
To get to the hotel from Narita Airport: There are several train and bus options. The quickest and most comfortable is on the JR Narita Express Train to Shinjuku Station, known as N’EX These trains have plenty of space for luggage and the seats are all reserved. It costs Yen 3,250, takes a little over an hour and trains to Shinjuku leave about every half hour. The Airport Limousine Bus has only 4 services a day (13:35,15:25,17:15,18:25) to the Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Hotel and cost Yen3,200. However, buses to Busta Shinjuku, which is less than a 10-minute walk to the hotel, leave about every half hour from 7:15 to 22:55. The cost is Yen3,200.A taxi direct to the hotel from Narita is expensive – over Yen25,000. Taxis and buses accept credit cards and cash.
The hotel is a 5-minute walk from Shinjuku Station South Exit. Shinjuku Station is very large so make sure you get out from the South Exit.
18:00 dinner: for those who can make it, meet in the lobby and we will go out for dinner in the back streets of the lively Shinjuku entertainment district.
Accommodation: Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Address: 2-3-1 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, 151-0053 Phone: +81 3 3375-3211 Email: plaza-shinjuku@sunroute.jp
DAY 2 FRIDAY 14 APRIL TOKYO
Breakfast: 6:30 to 10:00 ‘Villazza’ 1f – buffet style, western and Japanese
Morning: Orientation, workshop and city-sightseeing
Today is spent developing our camera skills and learning how things work in Japan, such as public transport, convenience stores, money etc.
9:00 – meet in hotel lobby. We will walk 20 minutes to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, one of the largest and most famous Japanese gardens. Although the cherry blossoms will have finished, there will be many other flowers and fresh green shoots to photograph.
Lunch: we will have lunch at a restaurant in or near the park.
Afternoon: we will take the subway to Harajuku and explore the funky area where Japan’s youth hang out and walk around the fashion district of Omote Sando. We will take the Loop Line (Yamanote) train back to Shinjuku and on the way to our hotel we could visit some discount camera stores.
17:00: depending on the weather we will walk 20 minutes or taxi to the Tokyo City Office and take the lift to the Observation Deck to capture the sunset over Mt Fuji and the neon lights of Tokyo from 202m above the ground. Sunset is at 18:12.
Dinner: 19:00 – at a nearby izakaya restaurant or back at the hotel.
Accommodation: Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku
DAY 3 SATURDAY 15 APRIL TOKYO to CHINO
Breakfast: 6:30 to 10:00 ‘Villazza’ 1f – buffet style, western and Japanese
Morning: free time until noon or visit Japan Camera Museum
9:15: for those wanting to visit the Japan Camera Museum meet in the hotel lobby and put your luggage in the cloak room. We will take the subway to the museum which opens at 10am. For those not going to the museum, you could relax, explore or shop nearby. Check out time is 11am.
12:30: everyone to return to the hotel and meet in the lobby, collect our luggage and then walk 10 minutes JR Shinjuku Station.
13:05: we depart Shinjuku on the “Azusa Super Express” No25 train to JR Chino Station. A bit over two-hour journey into the centre of Japan’s main island of Honshu with possible views of Mt Fuji on the way.
Lunch: we will have ‘obento’ box lunches on the train.
Afternoon: arrive in Chino and go to Lake Tateshina
15:00: arrive Chino Station and take the hotel bus for a 30-minute drive to Tabist Resort Hotel Tateshina at picturesque Lake Tateshina, located at 1,200m above sea level.
After checking in we can go for a stroll around the lake and try to capture the sunset on Mt Tateshina and surrounding mountains.
In the evening we will enjoy our first hot spring bath with views overlooking the lake. Sunset is at 18:15.
Dinner: Japanese buffet dinner meal in the hotel.
Accommodation: Tabist Resort Hotel Tateshina Address: 4035-861 Kitayama, Chino, Nagano 391-0301 Phone: +81 266-672626
DAY 4 SUNDAY 16 APRIL CHINO
Breakfast: Japanese and western buffet style at the hotel
Morning: We ride in our two Toyota Gran 10-seater vans which we will use for the next 10 days. We visit the serenely beautiful Suwa Shinto Shrine, one of the oldest in Japan and surrounded by towering 800-year-old gingko and cedar trees. There are 4 separate shrines, but we only have time to visit the main one, Kami Suwa Honmiya. Suwa Shrine is famous for its “Onbashira Festival” held every 7 years over 6 days where young men ride on giant logs down the mountain and it is one of the most dangerous festivals in Japan. The shrine has a sumo ring which, if we are lucky, might be holding a match when we are there.
Lunch: at a Japanese restaurant near the shrine.
Afternoon/Evening: Takato Castle cherry blossom festival
We drive for about one hour over a mountain pass and through a beautiful rural valley dotted with cherry trees, to the old castle town of Takato to attend the Cherry Blossom Festival. The castle ruins sit on a hill and only high stone walls remain. Over 150 years ago the whole of the grounds were planted with over 1,500 ‘higan-sakura’ cherry trees which are spectacular in full bloom and are lit up at night. We will explore the castle park and then spend the golden hour and evening capturing the cherry blossoms. Expect big crowds and a festival atmosphere. Return to the hotel will be late, around 9pm. Wear warm clothes.
Dinner: Japanese festival take-away food or obentos under the cherry blossoms.
Accommodation: Tabist Resort Hotel Tateshina
DAY 5 MONDAY 17 APRIL CHINO
Breakfast: Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: Drive to Mt Fuji and visit the Fuji Phlox Festival
8:00am: We drive for about 2 hours to the foot of majestic Mt Fuji to visit the Fuji Shibazakura Festival(moss phlox) garden festival, where over 800,000 bright pink, red and white phloxes are carpeting the ground with Mt Fuji in the background.
Lunch: hot Japanese soba and stew at the Phlox Garden
Afternoon: Visit a Japanese Folk Village
We spend the afternoon exploring an old folk village called Saikyo Iyashi no Sato nestled on a lake facing Mt Fuji and we seek to capture the golden hour mood of the mountain.
Dinner: on our drive back to the hotel we stop at a hotou restaurant to try the local hot-pot noodle dish famous in this region. Return to hotel after 9pm.
Accommodation: Tabist Resort Hotel Tateshina
DAY 6 TUESDAY 18 APRIL CHINO
Breakfast: Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: visit Fujimi town
We spend the morning exploring the picturesque town of Fujimi (which means Mt Fuji View) at the foot of the rugged Yatsugatake mountain range which reaches a height of 2,899m. There are several very old weeping cheery trees, which may be in bloom, a delightful, thatched roof temple, and some great views of Mt Fuji and the Southern Alps.
Lunch: at a soba restaurant - Okototei
Afternoon: visit some lakes and drive the Venus Line
We drive the Venus Line, one of the most scenic drives in Japan where great views can be had of all the highest mountain ranges in Japan. We will visit some alpine lakes and hopefully catch the sun setting over the Japan Alps and get some good views of Mt Fuji in the distance.
Dinner: at the French restaurant ‘Dis Mois’ in Chino
Accommodation: Tabist Resort Hotel Tateshina
DAY 7 WEDNESDAY 19 APRIL CHINO TO TAKAYAMA
Breakfast: Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: Visit Kozenji Temple
8:30: check out and drive one hour to Kozenji Temple, a 1,160-year-old temple at the foot of the snow-capped Central Alps in a beautiful forest and with luminous moss, weeping cherry blossoms and daffodils.
Lunch: at a local restaurant
Afternoon: drive to Takayama and attend Furukawa Festival
We drive for about 2.5 hours to the wonderfully preserved town of Takayama, known as the little Kyoto. Our route takes us up to a high mountain plateau, possibly with snow still on the ground, at the foot of Mt Ontake, an active volcano which last erupted in 2014.
17:00: meet in the lobby and we will drive for 30 minutes to the quaint old town of Furukawa for the cultural highlight of the tour, the amazing Furukawa Festival one of Japan’s Three Most Famous ‘Naked Festivals’. The first evening of the festival is called the Okoshi-Daiko (Wake–up Drums) involves men dressed in cotton loincloths, despite the cold, running around the town in groups carrying large drums on big floats. In a ‘battle of the drums’ there are 12 neighbourhood groups jockeying for positions and it becomes quite a spectacle that goes on for most of the night. You will be able to stand right in the middle of the action but it can be dangerous so we will have to take care.
Wear warm clothes as it will be cold. We will not return to the hotel until late.
Dinner: festival street food – try ‘takoyaki’, ‘yaki-soba’, okonomiyaki’ etc
Accommodation: Wat Hotel & Spa Hida Takayama
Address: Gifu, Takayama, Hanasatomachi 3-39-1 Telephone: +81 577- 57-5570
DAY 8 THURSDAY 20 APRIL TAKAYAMA
Breakfast: Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: Free time in Central Takayama
You are free to spend the morning at your leisure as we had a long and busy day and night before. Takayama is one of the most enchanting remote towns in Japan which has preserved much of its old wooden buildings dating back 200 to 400 years. Its narrow streets of merchant shops swarm with visitors and many of them are historically interesting and open to the public.
Lunch: free – there are many cafes and restaurants in town.
Afternoon: Furukawa ‘Naked’’ Festival
15:00: meet in the lobby and we will drive back to Furukawa for the second day of the Furukawa Festival which is much calmer. We can take photos of all the colourful floats which are decorated with lanterns.
Dinner: festival street food – ‘takoyaki’, ‘yaki-soba’, okonomiyaki’ etc
Accommodation: Wat Hotel & Spa Hida Takayama
DAY 9 FRIDAY 21 APRIL TAKAYAMA
Breakfast: from 7am, Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: Japanese kimono model shoot in Takayama
The early birds may like to explore the morning markets. We will do a “model photography workshop” with a Japanese model dressed in traditional kimono.
Lunch: Free – there are many cafés and restaurants in town.
Afternoon: explore Takayama on foot and visit a sake brewery
We will have more time to explore and photograph the well-preserved buildings and temples of Takayama. We could also visit the sake brewery and wood crafts museum.
Dinner: at an izakaya in Takayama.
Accommodation: Wat Hotel & Spa Hida Takayama
DAY 10 SATURDAY 22 APRIL TAKAYAMA
Breakfast: from 7am Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: Visit to Shirakawago
9:00: Meet in lobby and we drive for about one hour to visit the amazing village of Shirakawago which is a UNESCO World Heritage site because of its unique architecture – the 200+ year old houses are massive 3 to 4 story thatched roofs structures with doors opening from the second and third floors because of the deep snow that falls there in winter. We will spend the day exploring and photographing the area.
Lunch: bentos or restaurant in the town
Afternoon: Drive back to Takayama
We will spend the afternoon further exploring the town and then return by a different route through mountain valleys to Takayama.
Dinner: at a restaurant in Takayama
Accommodation: Wat Hotel & Spa Hida Takayama
DAY 11 SUNDAY 23 APRIL TAKAYAMA TO MATSUMOTO
Breakfast: from 7am - Japanese and western buffet style
Morning: visit Kamikochi nature sanctuary
8:30: check out and drive through the mountains for about an hour and a half to the Sawando entrance to the Kamikochi nature park. Private vehicles are not allowed into the park, so we take a bus for 40 minutes into the heart of the park. Kamikochi is in the middle of the North Alps and is regarded as the most beautiful alpine valley in Japan. It is a popular bird watching area and black bears, deer, racoon dogs, foxes, monkeys, Japanese serow and other wildlife can be spotted. The new green shoots of spring will be bursting through the melting snow when we get there. We go for a leisurely walk to capture the stunning scenery.
Lunch: at one of the cafes.
Afternoon: Drive to Matsumoto
Around 2pm we take the bus back to the main highway and re-join our vans for the 1.5-hour drive into Matsumoto, a regional city built around its famous castle, a 'National Treasure' dating from 1592. Its elegant black structure gives it its name; the 'Crow Castle'. The castle is lit up at night and we will go to see it at night for a night photography workshop.
Dinner: at an izakaya in Matsumoto
Accommodation: Richmond Hotel Address: Nagano, Matsumoto, 1-10-7 Chuo-ku, Matsumoto, Nagano Telephone: +81 263 – 37-5000
DAY 12 MONDAY 24 APRIL MATSUMOTO
Breakfast: from 6am Japanese and western buffet at
Morning: Visit Matsumoto Castle
9:00 am: meet in lobby and walk 10 minutes to Matsumoto Castle. We will explore the castle grounds and climb up to the top of the donjon tower to get great views. The stairs are very steep and slippery so take care. We will walk around the moat to capture the reflections of the castle on the water.
Lunch: at a nearby restaurant or bentos in the castle park
Afternoon: Explore Matsumoto and visit a Wasabi Farm
There is an area of well-preserved merchant buildings near the castle that have been converted into arts and crafts shops and restaurants which are worth walking around. We will then drive to the Daio Wasabi farm which grows in cold spring water and there is a very photogenic waterwheel.
Dinner: at a nearby izakaya restaurant
Accommodation: Richmond Hotel
DAY 13 TUESDAY 25 APRIL MATSUMOTO TO YUDANAKA
Breakfast: 6am Japanese and Western buffet at “Gusto” ground floor
Morning: Visit Obuse town
9:00: check out and drive for about 1 hour to Obuse, a quaint town famous for its chestnuts, sake and Hokusai – the famous wood block artist. You can see his works and take photographs of his amazing ‘Phoenix staring in eight directions’ painted on the ceiling of a temple when he was 89.
Lunch: lunch in a restaurant in town
Afternoon: Visit Obuse town
After lunch we can spend more time exploring Obuse. Our ryokan is only a short drive from Obuse.
Dinner: Japanese ‘kaiseki’ formal meal
Accommodation: Yorozuya
This is a famous and traditional Ryokan (Japanese inn) where people come for the hot springs and the elaborate kaiseki dinner. The ryokan has several interesting hot springs to try. The rooms are all tatami and involve sleeping on the futon on the tatami floor and wearing a yukata gown. Ryokan require rooms to be shared by two or three people.
Hotel: Yorozuya Address: Nagano, Yamanouchi, Yudanaka Onsen, Hirao 3137 Telephone: +81 269-33-2111
DAY 14 WEDNESDAY 26 APRIL SNOW MONKEY PARK & TOKYO
Breakfast: 7:30 - traditional Japanese style breakfast
Morning: Visit to the Snow Monkey Park
Open from 8:30 we will try and arrive early to visit Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park where hopefully the monkeys will be keeping warm by soaking in the hot springs. They are wild so there is no guarantee that they will appear and unless they feel cold, they won’t go into the hot water. We then drive about one hour to Nagano Train Station and return the vans.
Lunch: we have a late lunch at Nagano Station
Afternoon: Bullet train to Tokyo
We take the 14:24pm bullet train from Nagano to Tokyo. Travelling at around 280km/h it takes only 82 minutes.
We arrive at Tokyo Station at 15:46 and walk 5 minutes to our hotel.
17:00: For those who are interested we will walk to the Emperor’s Palace to see if we can catch it in the evening light.
Dinner: 19:00 our farewell dinner will be at a nearby restaurant.
Accommodation: Marunouchi Hotel Address: 1-6-3 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 100-0005 Phone: +81 3217-4444
DAY 15 THURSDAY 27 APRIL END OF TOUR
Breakfast: 6:30 – 9:30 am buffet style western and Japanese
9:00 am: The official program ends after breakfast.
To go to Haneda Airport from the hotel: There are various bus and train options. The quickest way is to take any JR Yamanote Loop Line (green) train in a clockwise direction from Tokyo Station to Hamamatsu Station (about 6 minutes) and then take the Tokyo Monorail to Haneda Airport (Yen500). The monorail leaves every 10 minutes and takes about 30 minutes to the International Terminal 3. The Airport Limousine Bus does not come to the Marunouchi Hotel but they depart from the front of Tokyo station. The bus costs Yen 950 and takes around 35 minutes and leaves hourly. You can book online.
A taxi directly from the hotel to Haneda Airport costs around Yen 8,000 ($100). Buses accept credit cards and cash.
To go to Narita Airport from the hotel: There are many train and bus options, but the easiest and most comfortable way is on the JR Narita Express Train to Narita Airport, known as N’EX which leave from Tokyo Station opposite the hotel. These trains have plenty of space for luggage and the seats are all reserved. It costs Yen 3,070, takes about an hour and trains leave about every half hour.
A taxi direct to Narita is expensive – over $300.