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Traditional Japanese beauty and art – collaboration with the Homma Museum of Art

Tour and see the beauty and art of the historic port town of Sakata

Wear traditional Japanese clothing, yukata, around the port town of Sakata while experiencing the traditional beauty and art of Japan. Try out the traditional crafts, taste the locally grown and caught ingredients of Sakata cuisine and visit and admire important historical locations of the area. This two-day tour will also include a visit to a famous rice cracker factory, visits to local parks, cafes, shrines and art museums, and also an once-in-a-lifetime chance to see a Shokushinbutsu buddhist mummy. Both days include a English-speaking interpreter guide, letting you enjoy these experiences to the fullest.

Tour at a glance

Inclusions

What this private tour includes

  • Accommodation at ryokan (or hotel)
  • Breakfast on day 2
  • Yukata rental
  • Kasafuku plushie doll making experience
  • View a Maiko geisha performance
  • Maiko cafe
  • Visit Sankyo-Soko Rice Storehouses Site
  • Homma Museum of Art tour
  • Haiku experience
  • Guided bar hopping tour
  • Visit to local parks, cafes, shrines, downtown Sakata and an art museum of your choice
  • Transport for days 1 and 2
  • English-speaking interpreter-guide for days 1 and 2
  • Transaction and arrangement fees

Exclusions

  • Personal purchases during trip
  • Travel insurance (highly recommended)
  • Lunches
  • Dinners
  • Any extra à la carte orders during meals
  • Optional extensions or customizations to trip

Cost

¥173,000 (per person for a tour of two participants)

Minimum number of participants

2 people
Solo applicants may be accepted on a case-by-case basis for additional fees.

Tour Length

2 Days, 1 Night

Tour availability

June to September

This tour can also be arranged in other periods with notice in advance.

Meeting Location

Sakata Station

Important notes

It is recommended you make a reservation request 1 week in advance of your desired tour date.
Experience availability may vary. Reserve to confirm availability.
Customization of this tour is available on request.

Reserve your private tour here

Day 1: Tour traditional Japan in yukata

Start your private tour at Sakata station. Meet your English-speaking interpreter-guide, then ride your whole-day reserved private charter vehicle to a historic ryotei. Here, you can learn about the local traditional craft of Kasafuku, and together with the kind Sakata craftspeople, you can create your own kasafuku doll for you to take home.

Afterwards, head towards the port of Sakata to partake in enjoying the fresh seafood and produce of the area. This meal is adjustable according to dietary requirements if required. Once you are satiated, you will move to another historical ryotei, this one now being used as a geisha house. Here you can view a Sakata maiko geisha performance, where the maiko display traditional song and dance with accompaniment with live shamisen. After the performance, there is a chance to take photos with the maiko before you leave the top performance floor. View the innerworkings of the geisha house by touring around the ground floor, and then have a enjoy a drink served by maiko. If you are lucky, you can ask have any questions and are lucky, you could ask the geisha while they serve your drink. Taking photos of them is also allowed, and afterwards you can savor the taste of your beverage while revelling in the atmosphere of the authentic geisha house. 

At the Sankyo-Soko Rice Storehouses Site, you can take stunning photos in your yukata with the rice storehouses and trees in the background, as well as be able to purchase local souvenirs and products of Sakata. 

Next on your journey, you will proceed to the Homma Museum of Art and have a tour of the museum building, gardens and the Seienkaku villa. Following this tour, enjoy a haiku experience with an experienced haiku teacher inside the Seienkaku villa, viewing the gorgeous illuminated garden as you get your creative juices flowing when creating your haiku. 

Walk to your comfortable local ryokan lodgings and check in before heading to downtown Sakata with your guide to go on a bar hopping tour to see the local nightlife, cuisine and people of the area. Once you are done for the night, you are able to return to your lodgings and sleep.

Day 2: Stroll around Sakata

Have a slow morning to catch up from yesterday’s busy activities. Start off by checking out and leaving your luggage with the front desk. Meet your English-speaking guide-interpreter and have a guided tour of the senbei rice cracker factory. If you are lucky, you may be able to see the factory machinery moving and creating the delicious crunchy snack. After the tour, try out a baking experience with rice crackers and taste your creations with a side of soy sauce.

Next, head off to lunch with a choice between a Japanese bakery/modern cafe or Italian cuisine with a Japanese influence, both based in gorgeous historic buildings with a nice view of Sakata. Afterwards, go for a stroll around the local park and shrine to appreciate the nature and everyday life of Sakata.

The next destination is where you can witness shokushinbutsu buddhist mummys. Yamagata prefecture has the largest amount of these mummys in Japan, with this temple the only one to have multiple of them in one place.

Continue to walk through downtown Sakata before choosing to go to an art museum of your choice in Sakata. Selections include the Domon Ken Museum of Photography, Sakata Museum of Art or the Homma Museum of Art. Ater your museum visit, return to the ryokan and pick up your luggage. The tour ends here, but you can go sightseeing at other locations of Sakata or move on to your next destination.

This day’s taxis will be called by the guide as needed and is covered in the tour price.

Sample Itinerary

Day 1
8:20 AM Sakata Station
8:30 AM Rental yukata place
10:00 AM Kasafuku plushie doll making experience
11:50 AM SAKATANTO port for lunch
1:40 PM Maiko geisha house: view building, performance and enjoy a beverage at the cafe
3:15 PM Sankyo-Soko Rice Warehouses Site
4:00 PM Homma Musuem of Art: Tour and Haiku experience
6:45 PM Return yukatas
7:00 Check in, then participate in a bar hopping tour

Day 2
9:40 AM Leave Ryokan to go to Senbei rice cracker factory
9:50 AM Senbei rice cracker factory, baking experience
11:45 AM Lunch (choice of bakery/cafe or Italian (Japanese style))
12:45 PM Stroll around the local park
1:00 PM See a shokushinbutsu buddhist mummy
2:00 PM Walk around downtown Sakata
3:30 PM Choose to go to an art-related location in Sakata (i.e Domon Ken Museum of Photography, Sakata Museum of Art, Homma Museum of Art)
5:00 PM Return to ryokan

Reservations

You can send a booking inquiry below. After we receive your inquiry, we will confirm if we can accommodate your group and tour dates and contact you from there. 

Cancelation Policy

Our cancellation policy for this tour is below. Cancellation fees may vary according to exceptional circumstances. 

21 days or more before date of tour

No penalty

20 days to 8 days before date of tour

20% of total price

7 days to 2 days before date of tour​

30% of total price

1 day before date of tour

40% of total price

Day of the tour

50% of total price

After start of tour or no-show

100% of total price

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