Inland Sea of Japan & South Korea

• Journey round-trip for 8 nights from Osaka, Japan aboard Heritage Adventurer, an exclusively chartered, small ship. Itinerary also includes a 3-night hotel stay in Kyoto.
• Specially arranged excursion to Miyajima's Itsukushima Shrine to see its iconic "floating" Torii gate in the Seto Inland Sea.
• Guest speaker Pico Iyer is a leading visionary on global culture and author of numerous books, essays and other writings.
• Seven UNESCO World Heritage sites: Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto; Itsukushima Shinto Shrine; Hiroshima Peace Memorial; Town of Hagi; Nagasaki in Japan; Bulguksa Temple and Gyeongju Historic Areas in South Korea.
• Included meals | 3 receptions, 11 breakfasts, 8 lunches and 8 dinners.
• Tokyo Pre-Tour Extension and Osaka Post‑Tour Extension.

Depart for Osaka, Japan. Please check your bags from your gateway city to your arrival city.

Arrive at Kansai International Airport or Osaka Itami International Airport. Transfer to the Kyoto Hotel Okura.

Your first evening in Kyoto is at leisure to explore on your own. Enjoy a walk through the city that is the cultural heart of Japan. Your hotel is ideally located near many restaurants, shops and other attractions. Stop by the Gohagan Hospitality Desk for suggestions and inspiration.

Ryoan-ji and Kinkaku-ji. Visit the iconic temples of Ryoan-ji and Kinkaku-ji this morning. Ryoan-ji is a Zen Buddhist temple with a world-famous rock garden. The temple, a former villa, was established in 1450, but it is uncertain when the rock garden was added to the grounds. This arrangement of 15 rocks is fascinating: no matter where you stand to view the garden, you will only be able to see 14 stones at one time. Continue to Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Pavilion — so-called because the top two stories of this stunning Zen temple are covered in gold leaf. The wooden structure, originally built in 1397, is the focal point of the beautiful surrounding garden. Ryoan-ji and Kinkaku-ji, along with the temples you will visit tomorrow, are on the UNESCO World Heritage list as part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.

Free Time: Make your own plans for lunch today, and enjoy the afternoon to spend at your leisure. One site you might be interested in exploring is the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove. Stroll the paths of this Bamboo Forest, an iconic, serene natural wonder that draws visitors with its peaceful, otherworldly atmosphere. Tall green bamboo stalks grow into a dense overhead canopy that sways gently and rustles in the breeze. Take a deep breath in this calm oasis in the midst of the city.


Join your fellow passengers for a Welcome Reception, followed by dinner on your own. For dining suggestions, stop by the Gohagan Travel Hospitality Desk in the hotel.

Kiyomizu-dera. First built 14 years before Kyoto was selected in 794 as the capital of Japan, Kiyomizu-dera looks over the city from its perch on the eastern hills. Many people gather on the temple’s large terrace, noted for being built without any nails, to gaze at the delicate cherry blossoms in the spring and colorful maple leaves in the autumn. After touring the temple, take a walk through the surrounding charming neighborhood, where the streets are lined with traditional shops and restaurants.

This afternoon, make your own plans for lunch and explore Kyoto at your leisure. Perhaps you’d like to take a stroll through Nishiki Market, home to some 130 vendors. Kyoto residents have been shopping at this illustrious market for four centuries. Not only can you find fresh fish, tsukemono (the pickles that accompany nearly every Japanese meal), sake, seasonings and other foods and condiments, but there are shops that specialize in chopsticks, cookware, pottery, hand fans and more. There also are several restaurants, where you can enjoy the traditional flavors of Kyoto. Stop by the Gohagan Travel Hospitality Desk for sightseeing and dining suggestions.

Enjoy dinner on your own.

Learn about traditional Noh drama — often involving choral music, dancing, stylized acting, archetypal themes and performers in elaborate masks and costumes — and enjoy a performance. Transfer to the port in Osaka and embark Heritage Adventurer, a first-class expedition ship that will be your home for the rest of the program. Settle in and participate in a welcome session and safety drill.

Join your fellow travelers for a Captain’s Welcome Reception and Dinner on board the ship this evening.

Miyajima. Take a walking excursion to one of Japan’s most iconic sites, the Itsukushima Shrine. The famous imposing, vermilion Torii gate rises 48 feet above the surface of the Seto Inland Sea. Tour this UNESCO-listed shrine, which was built in 593 B.C. to honor Empress Suiko in the first year of her reign.

Hiroshima. Visit Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and learn about the events of August 6, 1945, when the United States dropped an atomic bomb during World War II. See the iconic domed Peace Memorial—the only building that withstood the blast— now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Tour the Peace Memorial Museum to learn more about the human toll caused by the events of that day. Today’s visit will include a talk with the family member of a Hiroshima survivor.

Hagi. Explore Hagi, a well-preserved castle town that maintained its feudal ambience despite the industrial revolution ushered in by the Meiji Restoration, the period of Westernization in the second half of the 18th century. For this reason, the town is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Visit Toko-ji, a complex of Zen Buddhist temples. The forested compound features beautiful wooden temples and a cemetery with the graves of half of the daimyo (lords) of the Mori feudal clan, who ruled this region (the present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture) from Hagi. The Mori daimyo were among the most powerful in Japan.

Continue to Kikuyake, the home of a wealthy merchant family. During a tour of the home and the grounds, learn about the history of the Kikuya family and admire the details of a patrician home. The excursion also includes a visit to the Hagi Uragami Museum, which has an impressive collection of woodblock prints by master artists Hokusai and Hiroshige.

Visit the Adachi Museum, which has a large collection of 20th-century art and a garden that has been selected as the best garden in Japan each year since 2003 by the Journal of Japanese Gardening. Stop at the village of Matsue for an opportunity to see Matsue-jo, one of Japan’s 12 original castles that has not been damaged or destroyed and rebuilt, and its moat. It is often called the “black castle” because of its dark-tiled roof and predominantly dark exterior.

Spend the day getting acquainted with the ancient capital of Gyeongju, the seat of the Silla Dynasty for nearly 900 years. The Gyeongju Historic Areas—comprised of pagodas, sculptures, tumuli and ruins of temples and palaces—are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. During your excursion, visit Bulguksa Temple, another UNESCO-inscribed site, which is the center of Korea’s Buddhist culture. Admire the wooden buildings positioned atop stone terraces. The temple’s design is considered a masterpiece not only of Korean Buddhist architecture, but also of secular architecture. Tour Tumuli Park, part of the Gyeongju Historic Areas, and home to nearly two dozen royal tumuli, or burial mounds. Stop in a fifth-century tomb called Cheonmachong (Heavenly Horse) Tomb, after a leather ceremonial saddle found during the tomb’s excavation, and see many of the artifacts that were found inside.

Stop for lunch, where you’ll enjoy a performance of traditional music and dance. Then tour the Gyeongju National Museum, which boasts many precious archaeological artifacts, including gold jewelry, pottery, art and more.

This historic port city is an important international trade hub set on a natural harbor at the base of rolling mountains. Like Hiroshima, its name is synonymous with the atomic bombing that took place here in 1945.

Traveler’s Choice | Choose ONE of the following included excursions and return the Traveler’s Choice Form (following this itinerary) with your selection marked by the deadline noted on the form.

• Museum of History & Culture and Peace Park. At the city’s Museum of History & Culture, browse the extensive collection of historical documents, art and handicrafts and learn about Nagasaki’s role in international trade relations. Then visit the Peace Park, whose iconic hilltop statue represents the city’s commitment to ongoing peace. The Japanese organization Nihon Hidankyo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2024. This grassroots movement of atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki has advocated for a world free of nuclear weapons.
• Atomic Bomb Museum. When the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, three days after the bombing of Hiroshima, 150,000 people were killed or injured. This museum covers the bombing as a story, with exhibits reconstructing the events leading up to and following the explosion. See the nearby Peace Park and Oura Cathedral as well.

Whichever excursion you choose, you will finish with a visit to lovely Glover Garden. This site encompasses not only gardens but also Japan’s oldest Western-style wooden residence. As you tour the mountainside grounds, take in scenic views of the harbor below.

Japan’s sixth-largest city, Fukuoka, is known as Japan’s Ramen Capital and with an abundance of fresh seafood, supports a vibrant foodie culture. Perhaps the area’s most famous attraction is Dazaifu Tenmangu, a shrine dedicated to the historical scholar and politician Michizane Sugawara, who died in the year 908. This shrine is built over his grave and is home to over 6,000 plum trees (his personal favorite) that blossom spectacularly each spring (from roughly late February to mid-March). Because of his great learning, Michizane has been associated with Tenjin, a Shinto deity of education. He is popular among students, who come to buy good luck charms and make offerings here. Pass through the Tori gate and stroll two lovely arched bridges to cross a pond, built in the shape of the Japanese character for a heart, before arriving at the shrine itself.

After exploring the shrine, continue to the Kyushu National Museum, which aims to examine Japan from an Asian point of view. Permanent exhibits present Japanese history from the prehistoric era to the Edo period (which ended in 1868).

Return to the ship for lunch onboard. This afternoon, enjoy leisure time to attend a lecture, work out in the gym or simply relax and take in panoramic views.

Stroll through a charming 17th-century neighborhood in the city of Kurashiki. The Bikan District is the old merchant quarter, where white-walled homes, shops and storehouses preserve the ambiance of the affluent years of an important trading port on the Kurashiki River.

Return to the ship for lunch.

Visit the tranquil Koraku-en garden in the heart of Okayama. Built over several years beginning in the late 1600s, the garden was a retreat for the daimyo, the feudal lords. Vast lawns surround ponds and small pools of water. Admire the various pavilions and buildings interspersed around the garden. This garden is iconic and recognized throughout Japan as one of the top three parks in the country. It is located just beside Okayama Castle, which can be seen from the garden as “borrowed scenery.”

Join your fellow passengers for a Farewell Reception and Dinner, and raise a glass to your amazing adventure!

The ship arrives in Osaka this morning. Following breakfast, disembark and depart for Kansai International Airport or Osaka Itami International Airport for your return flight home.