Holland America Line: Westerdam

Yokohama is located on the southern part of Honshu Island, on the western shore of Tokyo Bay, and is our gateway to Tokyo. It has excellent harbour facilities and is one of the leading ports industrial centres of Japan. There are numerous shrines, temples, and Christian churches and a number of beautiful parks. A small fishing village in 1854, Yokohama was almost totally destroyed in 1923 by an earthquake. Gradually reconstructed the city is now among the most modern in Japan. It was heavily bombed in 1945, during World War II.

No information currently available.

Kobe, located in Japan, is capital of Hyogo Prefecture, southwestern Honshu Island, on Osaka Bay, near the city of Osaka. Since the 1890s several adjoining cities, including Hyogo, have been absorbed by Kobe. Behind the narrow coastal site of the city are mountains on which suburban residences and hotels have been built. Many Christian churches, Shinto and Buddhist temples and shrines, two famous statues of Buddha, a fine arts museum, and a municipal museum with a collection on Western cultural contact are in Kobe. From here you can also visit Kyoto, Nara and Sorakuen Garden.

Kochi has beautiful lagoons and lakes and offers travelers an extraordinary setting for a stay of a few nights.

Suggested Private Excursions

Kochi, Shore Excursion - 8 hours

Kochi, Shore Excursion - 4 hours

HALF DAY EXPLORING OLD KOCHI

HALF DAY HERITAGE TRAIL - A WALK THROUGH KOCHI

No information currently available.

Fukuoka is the second largest city on Japan's Kyushu Island. Fukuoka is historically know for it's castles and visitors can visit castle ruins, and beautiful wooden temples. In central Fukuoka there are many food stalls and restaurants, and visitors can go from stall to stall tasting a variety of Japanese dishes. Moreover Fukuoka offers excellent shopping, and has a every unique  shopping and entertainment complex called, Canal City.

No information currently available.

No information currently available.

Kanazawa's importance grew in the 15th century, when the powerful and militant Ikko sect established its new headquarters there after being chased out of Kyoto by the monks of Mt.Hiei.

During the Edo Period, Kanazawa was the seat of the Maeda clan, the second most powerful clan after the Tokugawa in terms of rice production and fief size. Accordingly, Kanazawa grew to become a town of great cultural achievements, rivaling Kyoto and Edo (Tokyo).

In World War Two, Kanazawa was Japan's second largest city (after Kyoto) to escape destruction by air raids. Consequently, parts of the old castle town, such as samurai, temple and pleasure districts, have survived in pretty good condition.

Kanazawa is capital of Ishikawa Prefecture, a prefecture along the Sea of Japan.

No information currently available.

No information currently available.

Otaru is located on Ishikari Bay of the Sea of Japan on Hokkaido Island. With a name meaning "sandy beach", Otaru developed as a modern town in the late 19th century. Provided with a good natural harbour, it is the port for the city of Sapporo, the largest city and capital of Hokkaido Island and site of the 1972 Winter Olympics. Visit the Asarigawa Spa, Otamoi Park, and the Otaru Aquarium, one of the largest in Japan. Sapporo, laid out in 1871, features wide, tree-lined boulevards and some beautiful Botanical Gardens incorporating the Ainu Museum and Sapporo Art Park. The Sapporo Beer Garden and Museum and the Historical Village of Hokkaido are also well worth visiting.

A city for all seasons, Aomori attracts visitors from afar for its beauty and events. In the spring, Hirosaki Castle Park is one of Japan’s most famous sites for viewing the cherry blossoms. The Nebuta Festival is held in the summer time and is one of the largest and most colorful summer events in Japan. Lake Towada is famous for the changing of her leaves in the autumn, and the winter months bring glorious snow for skiing, skating and snowboarding. Aomori is also home to the largest outdoor Buddha’s in Japan – weighing over 220 tons.

The fan shaped city Hakodate was once an island but now straddles a sandbar linking it to the mainland. Sites worth visiting include Mount Hakodate (cable car), the Old Public Hall, the Russian Orthodox Church and Goryokaku Fort. Nearby is the Onuma Quasi-National Park and Mount Komagatake.

No information currently available.

Yokohama is located on the southern part of Honshu Island, on the western shore of Tokyo Bay, and is our gateway to Tokyo. It has excellent harbour facilities and is one of the leading ports industrial centres of Japan. There are numerous shrines, temples, and Christian churches and a number of beautiful parks. A small fishing village in 1854, Yokohama was almost totally destroyed in 1923 by an earthquake. Gradually reconstructed the city is now among the most modern in Japan. It was heavily bombed in 1945, during World War II.