From Tokyo: 2-Day Mino Ware Pottery Customizable Tour

Mino ware is one of Japan's great pottery traditions. Much of the tableware used in Japan today comes from the Tajimi area in Gifu. Famous tea ceramics such as green Oribe and white Shino were born here about 400 years ago. This 2-day private trip from Tokyo brings you into this living pottery town.

You start at a ceramics museum in Tajimi, where the history of Mino ware is shown from old kiln pieces to modern art. Your guide explains the styles, so you can tell Oribe green from Shino white.

Then you sit in a tea room and enjoy a bowl of matcha with a sweet, served in local pottery. It is a calm way to see how these bowls were meant to be used.

On day 2 you join a painting workshop. You paint your own design on a plate or cup with a local craftsperson. The piece is then glazed and fired. Shipping within Japan is arranged by the studio; international shipping is optional and costs extra.

Tajimi has many small pottery shops and galleries. There is free time to look for a bowl or cup to take home.

Your driver-guide meets you in the lobby of your hotel in central Tokyo. The van has room for your luggage, and we stop at expressway rest areas for toilets, snacks and coffee. Times in the plan below are a guide and can shift a little with traffic.

This is a private tour. Only your group. Your driver-guide speaks English, and also Hindi and Urdu.

If the workshop is closed on your date, you can take a full refund of your booking, guaranteed.

Day 1 Morning pickup in Tokyo and drive to Tajimi (about 4 hours 30 minutes). Afternoon at the ceramics museum and a matcha tea break. Evening free in Tajimi.

Day 2 Morning pottery painting workshop and time in pottery shops. Afternoon drive back to your Tokyo hotel.