Summer Alpine Escape

Day 00 (Wed, 30 Jun’27)

Assemble at Singapore Changi Airport for flight to Nagoya

Day 01 (Thu, 01 Jul’27)
Singapore – Nagoya
(-/-/-)
Hotel: Nikko Style Nagoya or similar 

(Car pick up at Chubu Centrair International Airport)

Arriving in Nagoya this morning, make your first stop Kanko Noen Hana Hiroba, a charming tourist farm known for its year-round seasonal blooms. In this period, the farm’s vast sunflower fields are coming into full bloom, with around 200,000 sunflowers stretching across the grounds in a brilliant sea of yellow. 

With the prawn being the official fish of Aichi, it is no surprise that one of their most popular souvenirs is a prawn rice cracker. At Ebi Senbei no Sato, you can find the many different varieties of prawn crackers, see how they are made, and even make one yourself.

Take a stroll at Tokugawa Garden later this afternoon. Built with the natural landscapes of Japan in mind, the garden is beautifully composed with a large pond, waterfalls, streams, rock arrangements and many flowers and plants. The lush greenery is most vibrant in summer, adorned with various seasonal blooms.

You will have some free time in Nagoya City this evening to enjoy shopping and eating in the fourth largest city in Japan. Go shopping at the many department stores around Nagoya Station, or head to Sakae, Nagoya’s most well-known shopping district filled with both brand name stores and shopping arcades. Try some of Nagoya’s specialty dishes like tebasaki, miso katsu, or hitsumabushi for a local dinner.

Day 02 (Fri, 02 Jul’27)
Nagoya – Takayama
(Breakfast/-/Dinner)
Hotel: Honjin Hiranoya Kofukan (Hot spring)  or similar

Experience a traditional, small-town atmosphere at Gujo Hachiman. This riverside town is celebrated for its extraordinarily clear waterways and the network of canals and fountains still used for everyday tasks like washing vegetables. Stop at one of the town’s charming pocket parks where clean, potable spring water flows freely, and discover another of Gujo Hachiman’s claims to fame – food replica making.

The afternoon brings you to Takayama, a beautifully preserved former castle town where the old merchant district of Sanmachi Suji has changed little since the Edo period. Stroll the atmospheric lanes of traditional wooden shophouses, browse local sake breweries and craft shops, and soak in the unhurried charm of one of Japan’s most picturesque towns.

Day 03 (Sat, 03 Jul’27)
Takayama – Kamikochi – Matsumoto
(Breakfast/-/-)
Hotel: Hotel Buena Vista or similar 

Rise early for a visit to the Miyagawa Morning Market, one of Japan’s top three morning markets, held along the banks of the Miyagawa River. Running for hundreds of years and spread across two sites, the market is the perfect place to browse local produce, seasonal pickles, handmade crafts, and Hida region specialities before setting off for the day.

The crown jewel of the Japan Alps, Kamikochi is one of Japan’s most scenic places and where you will be heading today. A pristine basin set 1,500m above sea level and ringed by peaks rising a further 1,500m, the scenery here is stunningly beautiful. Roughly 15 kilometres of trails follow the crystal-clear Azusa River through mostly flat terrain, making it a pleasant walk to enjoy the marvellous scenery of aquamarine river backed by towering Alpine peaks and rich foliage. Take a walk along part of the trails and bask in the serenity of one of Japan’s finest natural retreats.

Day 04 (Sun, 04 Jul’27)
Matsumoto – Nagano – Matsumoto
(Breakfast/-/-)
Hotel: Hotel Buena Vista or similar

Travel over to Nagano and visit Zenkoji Temple, one of Japan’s most important temples and a designated National Treasure. Housing the first Buddhist statue brought to Japan, the large temple is popular not only for its religious significance, but its architecture and bustling approach lined with restaurants and shops selling local specialities. 

Head to Togakushi Shrine, a magnificent mountain shrine complex made up of lower, middle, and upper shrines, each dedicated to different deities. A short hike is needed to reach the upper shrine, but the pathway lined with 400-year-old towering cedar trees and the imposing form of Mt Togakushi in the background lend the path a sense of quiet, almost otherworldly reverence.

Day 05 (Mon, 05 Jul’27)
Matsumoto – Hakuba – Itoigawa
(Breakfast/-/Dinner)
Hotel: Hotel Kunitomi Suisenkaku (Hot Spring) or similar

Take a gondola ride up to Hakuba Mountain Harbour for some of the area’s most breathtaking views. Perched on top of the Iwatake Mountain Resort, this observation point offers majestic panoramas of the Japan Alps in their full dramatic glory, with layer upon layer of deep green ridgelines stretching to the horizon, punctuated by patches of lingering snow on the highest peaks.

Then head over to Tsugaike Nature Park, a highland wetland and nature reserve at over 1,800m elevation, where summer brings an abundance of alpine wildflowers in bloom across the marshlands and walking trails that wind through this rare high-altitude ecosystem.

This evening, retire to Hotel Kunitomi Suisenkaku, a traditional Japanese ryokan tucked into the valley of Itoigawa’s Himekawa Onsen, where natural hot spring waters flow directly from the source and the cuisine celebrates the seasonal flavours of the surrounding sea and mountains.

Day 06 (Tue, 06 Jul’27)
Itoigawa
(Breakfast/-/Dinner)
Hotel: Hotel Kunitomi Suisenkaku (Hot Spring) or similar

Today is devoted entirely to Itoigawa, a city whose identity is inseparable from jade. Home to the world’s oldest jade-working culture dating back over 7,000 years, its unique geological position at the meeting of tectonic plates has made it one of the most remarkable mineral-rich coastlines in the world.

Discover Itoigawa’s jade story at the Fossa Magna Museum, an earth sciences and natural history museum whose exhibits cover Itoigawa’s jade, the formation of the Japanese archipelago, ancient fossils, volcanic activity, and the stunning variety of minerals found in the region. Any stones collected on the coast can even be brought in for a free expert appraisal.

Then head over to Hisui Kaigan, the legendary Jade Coast, a pebbly shoreline along the Sea of Japan where jade has been washing ashore for millennia, carried down from the mountains by river currents. Jade can still occasionally be found by a keen eye along the shore today, giving you a chance to do some jade hunting!

Day 07 (Wed, 07 Jul’27)
Itoigawa – Nagano – Tokyo
(Breakfast/-/-)
Hotel: Hotel Metropolitan Tokyo Marunouchi or similar

(Car return at Nagano Station)

Take the shinkansen to the vibrant capital of Tokyo today where you will have the rest of the day to explore the city at your own pace.

Day 08 (Thu, 08 Jul’27)
Tokyo
(Breakfast/-/-)
Hotel: Hotel Metropolitan Tokyo Marunouchi or similar

Free and easy

Day 09 (Fri, 09 Jul’27)
Tokyo – Singapore
(Breakfast/-/-) 

Flight back to Singapore