All-Inclusive Best of Japan

Tokyo in early April has a particular quality after the cherry blossom peak: the crowds that descend on the city in late March have dispersed, the parks are transitioning from pink to green and the city returns to its own rhythm. If you arrive before the 4:30pm departure, the late-blooming Ichiyo and Kanzan cherry varieties at Shinjuku Gyoen are often still showing into mid-April and worth seeking out before you board. Celebrity Millennium departs Yokohama at 4:30pm and Tokyo Bay opens ahead as Japan’s coastline begins its twelve-night reveal.

A sea day heading southwest as Celebrity Millennium makes for Osaka and Kyoto. The Pacific coastline of Honshu is visible for much of the day and the onboard destination briefing on Kyoto is worth attending today. Two full days in Japan’s ancient imperial capital is a rare privilege on any cruise itinerary and the preparation is worth the hour. The Cellar Masters wine bar and the Tuscan Grill are both excellent for this first evening at sea.

Celebrity Millennium docks at Osaka at 8am and Kyoto is 45 minutes away by express train. By early April the main Somei Yoshino cherry trees are at late bloom or finishing, but Kyoto’s hillside temples hold the later-blooming mountain varieties and the weeping cherry at Maruyama Park is one of the finest single cherry trees in Japan, often still at or near peak in the first week of April. The essential first day: Fushimi Inari Shrine with its thousands of vermilion torii gates climbing the forested hillside, the gold-leaf perfection of Kinkakuji reflected in its garden pond and the bamboo groves of Arashiyama. Even without peak blossom, Kyoto in early April is Japan at its most extraordinary.

A second day in Kyoto and the city opens its quieter, deeper character. Yesterday’s famous landmarks give way to neighbourhood temples that appear with no fanfare on side streets, the covered lanes of Nishiki Market where every vendor offers something you have never tasted and the ancient machiya townhouse cafes of Gion where you can sit and watch the most preserved streetscape in Japan pass by the window. Kyoto rewards slowness and today you have the time to give it that. The ship departs Osaka at 6pm, leaving a full day and a long evening in the city.

Kochi is Japan without the crowds and all the better for it. The relaxed capital of Shikoku Island rewards slow travel. The historic Kochi Castle, dating to the 1600s, is one of Japan’s few original remaining fortresses and the cherry trees along its approach road are among the latest-blooming in western Japan, often still showing in mid-April. The Sunday Market along Otesuji Street is the longest-running market in Japan, stretching for nearly a kilometre with fresh produce, local crafts and street food. The region’s signature katsuo no tataki, lightly seared bonito with garlic and ginger, is reason enough to come ashore. Kochi departs at 5pm.

A sea day heading northeast from Kochi toward South Korea as Celebrity Millennium crosses the Korea Strait. The transition from Japan’s Pacific coast culture to the Korean peninsula is one of the most culturally distinct border crossings in East Asia and the destination briefing on Busan’s character is worth attending today. The Solarium and the Thalassotherapy Pool are both excellent on a calm spring sea day at this latitude.

Busan is South Korea’s second city and one of the most vibrant port cities in Asia. Its dramatic setting, where steep hills plunge directly into the sea, gives it a character entirely distinct from Seoul. The ancient Beomeo-sa Temple sits in a forested mountain valley above the city. Gamcheon Culture Village, a labyrinth of pastel-painted houses on a hillside, is one of the most photographed neighbourhoods in Korea. The Jagalchi fish market, the largest in the country, is an experience for every sense. Busan departs at 5pm.

Nagasaki is one of the most historically layered cities in Japan and a day here stays with you. The Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Museum bear witness to the events of 9 August 1945 with quiet dignity, and to visit them is to understand something profound about both Japan and the world. Nagasaki also carries centuries of Chinese, Portuguese and Dutch influence visible in the Chinatown district, the Dejima island trading post and the Glover Garden overlooking the harbour. Nagasaki departs at 7pm, giving a full day and a generous evening in the city.

Kagoshima is Japan’s most dramatic port, presided over by Sakurajima, an active volcano that dusts the city with ash and reminds everyone that Japan sits on one of the most geologically active places on earth. The volcano is accessible by a short ferry from the port. Back ashore, the Sengan-en garden, built by the Shimazu clan in 1658 with Sakurajima as its borrowed landscape, is one of Japan’s finest. The Ibusuki sand baths, where you are buried up to your neck in naturally heated volcanic sand, are unlike anything else in the country. Kagoshima departs at 5pm.

A peaceful day at sea between Kagoshima and Shimizu as Celebrity Millennium rounds the Kii Peninsula and heads northeast toward Mt Fuji. The East China Sea is behind and the Pacific coastline of Honshu is ahead. Mt Fuji arrives tomorrow and the cherry blossoms around the Fuji Five Lakes are typically at their finest in mid-April, making this the strongest blossom moment of the entire voyage. The Cellar Masters and the Tuscan Grill are both worth reserving for this final evening before the voyage’s most anticipated port.

Mid-April at Shimizu is one of the finest moments in the Japanese calendar for the view that defines the country. The cherry trees around the Fuji Five Lakes and along the Miho no Matsubara pine grove, where Fuji’s perfect volcanic cone rises above a foreground of pink blossom and ancient pines, are typically at or near peak in the third week of April. From Shimizu on a clear morning, the view of Fuji-san rising above the Suruga Bay coastline is one of the great sights in Japan. Travel inland to the Fuji Five Lakes for the classic blossom-framed mountain view, walk the Miho no Matsubara pine grove with its framed views across the bay or simply stand on the ship’s deck as she docks and let the mountain do what it always does to people who see it for the first time. Shimizu departs at 6pm.

Celebrity Millennium arrives back in Yokohama at 8am and Japan’s coastline comes into view one last time. Twelve nights have moved from Tokyo’s late cherry blossom days through the cultural depth of Kyoto, the unhurried character of Kochi, the Korean energy of Busan, the layered history of Nagasaki, the volcanic drama of Kagoshima and the blossom-framed mountain of Shimizu. For those with time in Tokyo before flying home, the city in mid-April has the particular quality of spring fully arrived: warm enough for long evenings, green and clear. The late-blooming Ichiyo cherries in some parks may still be showing.

Your All-Inclusive Best of Japan voyage concludes this morning in Tokyo. Transfer to Narita or Haneda Airport for your flights home, or ask your Cruiseabout specialist on 1300 052 966 about extending your stay in Japan before departing.