Private multi-day tour · Multi-day from Tokyo
From Tokyo: 5-Day Yanagawa & Hita Customizable Tour
Float on Yanagawa's willow-lined canals and eat steamed eel, then walk Hita's old Mameda street and see Onta folk pottery village.
Private · your group only◆5 days◆Up to 6 guests◆Pickup included
Road-day snapshot
This is your private tour, so the route is flexible: tell us if you want to skip a stop, stay longer somewhere or add a place nearby.
The experience
A private journey, thoughtfully paced
Yanagawa in Fukuoka is a town of canals. A boatman pushes a flat wooden boat with a long pole under low bridges and willow trees. The ride takes about one hour and is calm and quiet.
After the boat you eat Yanagawa's famous lunch: unagi no seiro-mushi, grilled eel on rice, steamed in a box.
Then you drive to Hita in Oita. Hita was once ruled directly by the shogun's government and grew rich from trade. Its Mameda-machi area has old merchant houses, soy sauce and sake shops, and wooden streets.
In the hills above Hita is Onta, a small village where families have made folk pottery for about 300 years. Wooden water hammers, driven by the stream, crush the clay. You hear the slow knock of the hammers as you walk between the kilns and small shops. Onta pottery is made the same way it has been for generations.
Food note: the eel lunch is not halal-certified (the sauce uses mirin). Dietary needs can be added in the booking form.
This is a private tour. Only your group. One van, 1 to 6 people, never shared. Your driver-guide speaks English, and also Hindi and Urdu.
If the Yanagawa canal boat is closed or cancelled on your date, you can take a full refund of your booking, guaranteed. If you prefer, we can instead walk the canal paths of Yanagawa and visit the Ohana garden of the Tachibana family.
DAY 1 Pickup at your Tokyo hotel and drive west to Okayama (about 8 to 9 hours with breaks).
DAY 2 Drive to Fukuoka Prefecture. Evening in Yanagawa.
DAY 3 Yanagawa canal boat ride and steamed eel lunch, then drive to Hita.
DAY 4 Hita Mameda-machi and Onta pottery village, then drive to Okayama.
DAY 5 Drive back to your Tokyo hotel (about 8 to 9 hours with breaks).
Choose with confidence
Is this the right journey for your group?
Excellent fit if
- Float under willows on a Yanagawa canal boat
- Eat Yanagawa's steamed eel on rice
- Walk Hita's old merchant street, Mameda-machi
- Hear the water-powered clay hammers of Onta village
- Shop for Onta folk pottery from the family kilns
Said plainly
The eel lunch is not halal-certified. Dietary needs can be added in the booking form. Onta is a working village, not a museum. Please be quiet near the homes and kilns. If the Yanagawa canal boat is closed or cancelled on your date, you can take a full refund of your booking, guaranteed. If you prefer, we can instead walk the canal paths of Yanagawa and visit the Ohana garden of the Tachibana family. This tour has long driving days. The van has comfortable seats and we stop every 2 hours or so for rest areas, food and toilets.
Your day
Suggested itinerary
Times are approximate. Your driver-guide adjusts the order for traffic, weather, opening hours and the best light.
Float under willows on a Yanagawa canal boat
Eat Yanagawa's steamed eel on rice
Walk Hita's old merchant street, Mameda-machi
Hear the water-powered clay hammers of Onta village
Shop for Onta folk pottery from the family kilns
What is covered
What you see is what you pay
Ours — included
- Private van and English-speaking driver-guide
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in central Tokyo
- All parking, fuel and road tolls
- Yanagawa canal boat ride
- Steamed eel (unagi seiro-mushi) lunch in Yanagawa
Yours — paid on the day
- Hotel accommodation (you book your own hotel in Okayama, Yanagawa and Hita)
- Meals and drinks unless listed as included
- Gratuities, which are never expected in Japan
- Optional pottery purchases
Good to know
Before you book
Languages
English, Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi
Pickup
Pickup and drop-off at your Tokyo hotel or accommodation (23 wards).
Group and vehicle
Private for up to 6 guests. Enter adults, children, infants and child seats separately at booking.
Dietary and mobility needs
Halal, vegetarian, allergy, walking or other practical requests go in your booking notes and are planned before the day.
Questions
Frequently asked
Can we change the route on the day?
Yes. It is a private tour in our own van, so your driver-guide can skip, extend or add stops where time allows.
Is the price per person?
No. The price is for your whole private group of up to 6 people, including the van, fuel, tolls, parking and your driver-guide.
What is the cancellation policy?
Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for an automatic full refund to the original payment method. Within 24 hours, contact us directly so we can help. If a typhoon or official weather warning stops the trip, we offer a new date or a full refund. For a GetYourGuide booking, the terms shown on that booking apply.
Somewhere else in mind?
Any destination in Japan
If this route is not exactly what you need, tell us the destination, dates and group. We confirm the plan and the exact price before any payment is taken.
Plan a custom journeyYour private Japan day
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From¥400,000
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