From Tokyo: Sawara Canal Town & Katori Shrine Private Day Tour

Private full-day tour from Tokyo to Sawara, Chiba: a hand-poled boat under willow trees, merchant houses on the canal, and Katori Jingu, one of Japan's three oldest shrines.
Sawara calls itself the Little Edo of Chiba, a canal town of dark-timbered merchant houses that survived the twentieth century almost untouched, and this private full-day tour from Tokyo takes you through it by boat and on foot before ending at one of the country's oldest shrines. Private, per-group, for up to six guests, with a driver-guide the whole way.

We leave Tokyo around 08:30 and reach Sawara within about ninety minutes. The morning starts with a hand-poled boat ride along the Ono River, gliding under willow branches past the same warehouse facades that have lined the canal for two centuries; your guide narrates as you go. Back on foot, we walk past the old house of Ino Tadataka, the Edo-period surveyor who first mapped Japan's coastline on foot, before a short drive to Katori Jingu, one of Japan's three great shrines and a pilgrimage site for over a thousand years. Its cedar-lined approach and quiet inner grounds are a deliberate change of pace from the canal town. On the way back through Sawara there is time to browse the soy sauce breweries and sweet shops along the old street, all at your own cost.

The canal boat ride is included in your price, along with the van, driver-guide, fuel and bottled water for the day. Shopping for soy sauce, sweets or any lunch you take in Sawara is your own cost.

This suits travellers who want an Edo-period town without the crowds of Kawagoe, and anyone drawn to shrines with real history rather than reconstructed ones. It is an easy, mostly flat day, so it works well for families and older travellers too.

If any included stop, ticket or activity cannot run on your date because of weather, closure or availability, you can take a full refund of your booking, guaranteed; an equivalent alternative is offered only if you prefer it.

Para garantir a disponibilidade, reserve o mais cedo possível. A reserva antecipada vale a pena considerar especialmente se você estiver planejando a viagem durante a alta temporada, como feriados ou fins de semana.

Esta excursão você pode cancelar sem custo até 24 horas antes do início da viagem. Se você cancelar após 24 horas ou não comparecer à excursão, ainda será cobrado o preço total da atividade. Chegar atrasado na coleta ou partida será considerado como não comparecimento.