Longer Itineraries
10 Day Sake Brewery Crawl Tour
After experiencing izakaya bar culture in Tokyo, this journey will take you to sake breweries in Kyushu to allow you to more deeply experience Japanese alcohol.Kyushu is known as a "paradise for drinkers” where high-quality alcohol is produced, and visitors can obtain a variety of delicious local creations such as shochu, sake, craft beer, and even wine.
Enjoy these delicious local libations to their fullest with perfectly paired local dishes.
Enjoy these delicious local libations to their fullest with perfectly paired local dishes.
*The times represent the approximate time needed to travel between major spots.
Days 1 and 2
Getting in Touch with Tokyo's Izakaya Bar Culture
Gourmet food and tasty alcoholic drinks from all over Japan gather in Tokyo, and a great first place to start is the Meishu Center Sake Shop Ochanomizu, where you can drink more than 150 kinds of sake that have been carefully selected from all over Japan.
Izakaya bars are one of the can't-miss parts of Japanese drinking culture, so you will also visit Japanese izakaya bars in Shinjuku's Kabukicho district to experience the unique izakaya bar culture.
Izakaya bars are one of the can't-miss parts of Japanese drinking culture, so you will also visit Japanese izakaya bars in Shinjuku's Kabukicho district to experience the unique izakaya bar culture.
1
Sake tasting experience
(Meishu Center Sake Shop Ochanomizu)
(Meishu Center Sake Shop Ochanomizu)
Meishu Center is a pop-up shop of sake carefully crafted all over Japan.
With a lineup of more than 150 different sakes ranging from famous classics to hidden gems, you can sample them at a low price.
You can also purchase the sake you like.
Please compare the differences and take your time to find the sake you think you like.
If you are not sure which sake is the right one for you, ask our staff for advice.
The staff will give you a hand in finding one just right for you.
The shop also has plenty of snacks that pair with sake as well. The shop has everything from rare sake to desert sake, so enjoying comparing them and finding the right match for you.
With a lineup of more than 150 different sakes ranging from famous classics to hidden gems, you can sample them at a low price.
You can also purchase the sake you like.
Please compare the differences and take your time to find the sake you think you like.
If you are not sure which sake is the right one for you, ask our staff for advice.
The staff will give you a hand in finding one just right for you.
The shop also has plenty of snacks that pair with sake as well. The shop has everything from rare sake to desert sake, so enjoying comparing them and finding the right match for you.
20 minutes by train(JR)
2
Izakaya Bar (Shinjuku's Kabukicho district)
Shinjuku is the center of Tokyo culture, and it is continuously developing. One of the district’s landmarks is the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the center of Tokyo’s administration. With plenty of spots to see, the area is centered around JR Shinjuku Station, which serves 3.5 million passengers a day, the largest in Japan. The vicinity of the station’s East Exit is full of bustling streets such as Kabuki-cho and Golden-gai, and shopping areas such as department stores and large-scale stores. On the other hand, the business area of the West Exit is where the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building stands, along with an array of high-rise office buildings, hotels and public art installations. For those who are looking for a pleasant place to walk, the terraces among the buildings of the South Exit are perfect. Visitors can also come across more attractions around town including Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, an oasis in the city.
50 minutes by bus
ANA Show details
20 minutes by bus
40 minutes by train(JR)
Days 3 to 6
Encountering Delicious Japanese Sake
Sake production is thriving in Kyushu, and there are numerous sake breweries that have been making sake and shochu liquor for many, many years.
You will tour sake breweries, walking around each region and encountering the delicious local sake that is produced in that area.
The first place that you will visit is Fukuoka's Moji port and then the Mekari Parking Area. The Nikka Whisky Moji Factory nearby is a shochu factory with an eye-catching red brick exterior.
There are also sake breweries to visit in Ureshino Onsen in Saga, where you can enjoy the scenery of a hot springs town and the local delicacy, "Onsen yudofu."
Kyushu is blessed with both seafood and livestock products, providing a nice variety of local dishes that go well with sake -- Try as many as you can!
You will tour sake breweries, walking around each region and encountering the delicious local sake that is produced in that area.
The first place that you will visit is Fukuoka's Moji port and then the Mekari Parking Area. The Nikka Whisky Moji Factory nearby is a shochu factory with an eye-catching red brick exterior.
There are also sake breweries to visit in Ureshino Onsen in Saga, where you can enjoy the scenery of a hot springs town and the local delicacy, "Onsen yudofu."
Kyushu is blessed with both seafood and livestock products, providing a nice variety of local dishes that go well with sake -- Try as many as you can!
3
Moji port / Mekari Parking Area
Moji Port area overlooks the Kanmon Straits and is steeped in history. About 700 ships pass through the straits each day.
The Second Observation Deck at Mekari Park offers a stunning view of the straits and is a perfect place for photos of the Kanmon Bridge.
There are plenty of other attractions, such as the promenade at Norfolk Square and a pedestrian tunnel where you can walk across the Kanmon Strait.
The Second Observation Deck at Mekari Park offers a stunning view of the straits and is a perfect place for photos of the Kanmon Bridge.
There are plenty of other attractions, such as the promenade at Norfolk Square and a pedestrian tunnel where you can walk across the Kanmon Strait.
50 minutes by bus
JR Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen
75 minutes by train(JR)
30 minutes by bus
4
Ureshino Onsen
Ureshino Onsen is a hot spring in the southern region with medicinal benefits capable of healing people’s illnesses and ailments, and prospered as a post station on the “Nagasaki Kaido (Road)” during the Edo period. The silky hot spring water contains high levels of salt and sodium bicarbonate, which softens rough skin. In addition, it is said that drinking the water also activates the digestive system and liver.
The soft yudofu made with hot spring water is recommended.
The soft yudofu made with hot spring water is recommended.
40 minutes by bus
35 minutes by train(JR)
JR Kyushu Shinkansen Show details
90 minutes by car
Days 7 to 10
Enjoying Local Sake in Kyushu
Next you will savor shochu, a distilled Japanese spirit. At the Kirishima Factory Garden in Miyazaki, you can buy shochu to take home as a souvenir.
At the Kirishima Factory Garden restaurant, you will, of course, enjoy shochu, beer, and local cuisine!
For the final part of your journey, you will head to Kumamoto. After visiting Kumamoto Castle and enjoying a meal and local sake at nearby Sakura no Baba Josaien, you will return to Tokyo.
At the Kirishima Factory Garden restaurant, you will, of course, enjoy shochu, beer, and local cuisine!
For the final part of your journey, you will head to Kumamoto. After visiting Kumamoto Castle and enjoying a meal and local sake at nearby Sakura no Baba Josaien, you will return to Tokyo.
5
Kirishima Factory Garden
Facilities for industry, culture, and connectedness combine in this garden park, which serves as a base for Kirishima Shuzo, widely open to the public. Several facilities have been developed here, including the craft beer brewery and restaurant, the Kirinokura Brewery, which also functions as a shop, and the Kirinokura Bakery, which makes and sells bread.
150 minutes by car
6
Sakura-no-baba Josaien
(Kumamoto's specialty dishes and sake can be enjoyed at restaurants in this facility)
(Kumamoto's specialty dishes and sake can be enjoyed at restaurants in this facility)
Sakuranobaba Josaien is a new tourist hotspot located in the Sakuranobaba district of Kumamoto Castle that opened on March 5, 2011.
In addition to the interactive historical display, Wakuwaku Za, and the Sakuranokoji shopping arcade, the Tourist Information Center and multipurpose rooms are additions that offer a new appeal.
The Wakuwaku Za interactive historical display is a virtual experience of Kumamoto's history through the ages where you can see, hear, and touch the Story Palace as you enjoy a drama that crosses time and space.
The Sakuranokoji shopping arcade is a collection of 23 shops and restaurants selling specialty items unique to Kumamoto Prefecture in a setting that recreates the Edo period castle town.
In addition to the interactive historical display, Wakuwaku Za, and the Sakuranokoji shopping arcade, the Tourist Information Center and multipurpose rooms are additions that offer a new appeal.
The Wakuwaku Za interactive historical display is a virtual experience of Kumamoto's history through the ages where you can see, hear, and touch the Story Palace as you enjoy a drama that crosses time and space.
The Sakuranokoji shopping arcade is a collection of 23 shops and restaurants selling specialty items unique to Kumamoto Prefecture in a setting that recreates the Edo period castle town.
This tour consists of a one-week trip to taste and savor Japanese alcohol in Tokyo and Kyushu. In Tokyo you will visit a beer hall and izakaya bars, while in Kyushu you will visit sake breweries. Example transportation have been provided for reference, but walking around and exploring in the areas near the spots introduced in this journey is also recommended.
*The information provided here is as of March 2022.
*Transportation information does not include the number of transfers or transfer time.
*Admission fees may be charged depending on the spot/facility. For the latest information on business hours, days when spots/facilities are regularly closed, prices, etc., please check the official website for each spot/facility or check directly with the spot/facility.
*The information provided here is as of March 2022.
*Transportation information does not include the number of transfers or transfer time.
*Admission fees may be charged depending on the spot/facility. For the latest information on business hours, days when spots/facilities are regularly closed, prices, etc., please check the official website for each spot/facility or check directly with the spot/facility.