9:00 Meet you at your hotel.
9:30 Take Shinkansen to Odawara station, then visit Saijoji Temple.
11:00 Saijoji Temple
12:30 After Soba noodle lunch, we will move to the Yosegi-zaiku workshop in Hayakawa to make your own coaster.
13:30 Yosegi-zaiku workshop
15:00 Visit Odawara Castle.
Back to your hotel at around 5 PM using Shinkansen.
At your hotel in Tokyo, Yokohama or Hakone
Visit 600 years old Saijoji Temple at Daiyuzan
Soba noodle lunch at Saijoji Temple
Make your own coaster at Yosegi-zaiku workshop
Visit Odawara Castle
At your hotel, or your preferred place
* Saijoji Temple was built about 600 years ago, and is not one of those, so called, popular tourist spots. Deep in the mountain, very quiet, huge area with lots of big trees and old Zen Buildings, Garden, Training facilities for young monks. You may see Tengu there.
* Yosegi-zaiku is one of the officially designated Japanese Traditional Craft Products, you will make your own coaster at the local workshop.
* Odawara Castle, built in the 16th century, is the only one Samurai Castle located within 2 hour trip from Tokyo. There are gates and moats to stop the enemy soldiers, and in the castle tower you will learn the history of the local samurai leader, Hojo clan, fought against Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the first samurai leader who settled the whole Japan. You can enjoy the beautiful view of Sagami bay(Pacific ocean) from the top of the castle tower.
Option:
* Hayakawa Fish Market is just one station train ride from JR Odawara station, where the fishermen's restaurant offers a fresh fish meals. The sashimi dish is very good.
Guide fee, Hotel pick up fee.
Transportation fee using Shinkansen (you and guide): Approx. JPY 8000 per parson.
Using JR Pass:Approx. JPY 2000 per parson (In case you have JR pass, I may meet you at Odawara station to save guide's transportation fee.)
Lunch, Entrance fee
We use the public transportation.
Walking shoes are recommended..
Our time with Mori was excellent. We had reserved him for 3 days in during our stay in Tokyo and he planned them in an organized fashion. Mori speaks fluent English and was excellent at explaining the historical and modern importance of the various sites we had visited. We were a party of 8 so it was a big group, but Mori had no problems keeping us together.
Dear Bruce, Thank you for your review. I enjoyed touring and talking with you, too. Hope to see you and your family members again. Best regards, Hideki Mori
Mori-San is a very knowledgeable and articulate guide with an expansive world view. If you wish to get in-depth information of Japanese history & culture, he is definitely the right person to accompany you on your trips. He impressed us with his planning and advice even before we meet him. We had no difficulty planning our itinerary with his guidance. Although we visited Tokyo and Mt Fuji in bad weather (heat wave and typhoon) forecasted, he made good suggestions to work around the weather, ensuring that we do not waste any precious time. Finally, he is very flexible which is important as our group which consisted of my elderly parents who have problems walking. He ensures that nobody is left out and proposed very reasonable arrangements. We were really in good hands with his help. Your vacation will not go wrong with Mori-San.
Dear Alice, I'm glad to know that you returned home safely. Thank you for your good review. I enjoyed tourlng and talking with you and your family, too. There are more Interesting places to visit and things to do in Japan. Next time, please try to come to Japan in spring time so that you can enjoy cherry blossoms. Weather will be more stable. Thank you, and hope to see you again. Best regards, Hideki Mori
Mori-san is a great tour guide, he is highly knowledgeable and very friendly, his english is very good. He organized an amazing trip to Hakone and Lake Ashi. Would highly recommend him.
Dear Mohamed, Thank you very much for your review. I enjoyed talking with you, too. I hope you'll have good time for the rest of your stay in Japan. Best regards, Hideki Mori
Our extended family spent four days with Mori-san in Kanagawa. He put together an excellent itinerary combing tourist destinations in Hakone, Kamakura, Yokohama and Odawara with experiences of traditional Japanese life. Our group included ages 17-84 and had varied interests so this was no simple task. Once he got to know us better he adjusted our plans accordingly. Mori-san speaks excellent English and is very organized while still remaining flexible and easy going. He has also travelled extensively and has many interests which allows him to be an ideal host and guide. We very much enjoyed getting to know him and learning more about Japan. Arigato gozaimas Mori-San!