Put on armor and get ready for battle (Okazaki City)

Details
Okazaki is birthplace of Lord Tokugawa Ieyasu, the final unifier of Japan, and also a spot where you can try sword fighting.
Get a sense of the area's history as you use your body and cunning in programs even available to first timers. Take back a video of yourself as the tale of a real samurai—a souvenir to remember your experience.

Why you've got to check it out
Don't miss this chance to wear real armor (a recreation of armor worn by warriors).

Points of consideration
• Chartered to one to two guests. Only those traveling together with guests taking part in the experience may watch.
• Due to the size of the armor, those with a height less than 150 centimeters or with a waistline of 100 centimeters or larger are respectfully declined.
• While sections of the noh theater venue are roofed, the experiences take place outside, so those watching should come prepared with rain gear, etc. should rainy weather occur.
• Canceled should inclement weather occur.
• Video data provided at a later date as time is required to edit.
• Data provided in principle via upload.

Price
JPY 33,000/person

Meeting place
Outside Okazaki Castle Ni no Maru Noh Theater (561-1 Kosei-cho, Okazaki-shi, Aichi)

Related site
KKday site's Experience a sword fight against ninjas Reservations for a sword fight experience wearing armor reservation page (external link)

Guided tours along the Tokoname Pottery Footpath (Tokoname City)

Details
The Tokoname Pottery Footpath is the most sought out sightseeing spot in the city of Tokoname and features guided tours. The professional potter guide, locally born and raised, utilizes experience while studying overseas offers a smooth trip for those from abroad through the Tokoname pottery streets.

Why you've got to check it out
Check out all sorts of pottery even coming from different areas. Search for the answer why so many potters make their way to Tokoname for an even more illuminating experience. The local guide doesn't just show you beautiful views but gives a more in-depth explanation of the area in multiple languages (English, Spanish, etc.). Use the tour to mix with local potters all along the way in this hit tour.

Points of consideration
• Available weekdays only.
• Come with shoes and clothing easy to move around in as the Pottery Footpath has sloping roads and stairs.

Price
JPY 10,000/person

Related site
Viator site's Discover The Hidden Pottery Town of Tokoname reservation page (external link)

Delve into the secrets of miso soup and even make your own instant version (Nishio City)

Details
Aichi Prefecture is known as the Land of Bean Miso for its 1,200 years of miso culture. Nishio City is just one of the areas in the prefecture with a thriving bean miso industry.
Watch a video on the brewing processes of miso together with a local guide before touring a miso storehouse with cedar vats used for more than a century. Later, you can make your own instant miso soup, Miso Maru, using the miso made through the steps you learned about and even taste different miso soups.

Why you've got to check it out
Use miso incorporated into the cuisine of some of the country's top Japanese restaurants and taste miso soups made from your own preferred blend.

Points of consideration
• Service in Japanese and English available.
• The aromas in the miso storehouse are strong, so those with a heightened sense of smell are advised to bring a mask.
• Vegetarian miso soup is available. Make a request beforehand.

Price
JPY 8,800/person. Available to groups of two or more.

Related site
Viator site's Instant Miso Soup Making Experience reservation page (external link)
KKday site's Tour a miso storehouse with over 100 years of history and experience making instant miso soup using the miso favored by samurai reservation page (external link)

Tour a tea field, learn the steps taken to process tea leaves into matcha tea, and experience tea picking for yourself (Nishio City)

Details
Nishio City has a grasp over approximately 20% of Japan's matcha tea industry and stands alongside Uji in Kyoto as one of the largest producers in the country.
Learn the nearly 800 years of history behind Nishio's matcha tea as well as the process of creating quality tea from guides. First, see a real-life tea field for yourself before putting on traditional tea picking garb for a commemorative photo in the field. Next, you can take a tour of the matcha plant and try pulverizing the tea leaves with a grindstone. Finally, make a cup of tea to sip on for yourself.

Why you've got to check it out
This experience offers the chance to grasp the reason behind the Japanese people's love of tea.

Points of consideration
• Service in Japanese and English available.
• Bring an umbrella if coming in rainy weather.
• Tea leaves can irritate the skin of those with sensitive skin.

Price
JPY 8,800/person. Available to groups of two or more.

Related site
Viator site's Shared Matcha Tour and Matcha Making Experience in Nishio reservation page (external link)
KKday site's Observe how tea leaves become matcha in one of the largest production areas of matcha! Nishio Tea Taste Comparison and Matcha Tea Making Experience reservation page (external link)

OKD KOMINKA BREWING Tour: Factory walkthrough and lunch using local ingredients (Chita City)

Details
The Okada area of Chita City in Aichi Prefecture prospered from the Edo period for its cotton industry with earthen warehouses and traditional black walls remaining for a peek into days gone by.
A craft beer brewery owner born in Okada who spent time in the US and Germany uses figs, plums, and other produce locally grown in Aichi in a number of beers brewed under the OKD Beer name. Tour the brewery and taste its brews; sightsee along the Okada townscape; and eat at SoN, a restaurant born from a renovated, traditional Japanese folk house. Enjoy these three aspects as you take in all the charm the area has to offer.

Why you've got to check it out
Enjoy tours through the brewery by a local brewer who has a special love for the area. Later, you can eat a lunch using loads of local ingredients at a delicious eatery.

Point of consideration
Those driving and minors under Japanese law younger than 20 cannot take part in beer tastings.

Prices
• JPY 15,400 (excl. tax)/adult (ages 12 and above)
• JPY 1,600 (excl. tax)/child (ages 4–11)

Note:
• Infants (ages 0–3) free of charge.

Related site
Viator site's Guided Brewing and Tour Workshop Local Lunch reservation page (external link)

Sake & Seasonal Delights: Sake Pairing Lunch at the Brewery (Handa City)

Details
Take a tour of a one of Japan's largest sake breweries of wooden construction. There, you can enjoy the brews as well as pairings with seasonal ingredients from the local Chita Peninsula.
The host, Ito Limited Partnership, has a continuous history of more than 200 years in its brewing profession. However, that history came to a brief end around 20 years ago. Just when it seemed all hope was lost, the family's ninth generation resurrected the brewery in 2021, breathing new life into it as a space to enjoy food, sake, and events.
You can tour areas not normally open to the public, drink rice wine in the liquor store, and pique your palate with lunches offering sake and cuisine pairings. This establishment offers features not normally available at a normal brewery.

Why you've got to check it out
Delight in gastronomic tourism offering the area's finest local food and drink.

Point of consideration
Service available in Japanese and English only.

Prices
• JPY 25,000 for one person
• JPY 16,000 for each person in a two-person group
• JPY 14,000 for each person in a three-person group
• JPY 12,000 for each person in a four-person group

Related sites
• Viator site's Sake & Seasonal Delights: Sake Pairing Lunch at the Brewery reservation page (external link)
• Ito Limited Partnership site (external link)

Sushi lunch and a guided tour through Handa's fermentation techniques

Details
Take a trip out to Handa, the city of umami. Handa City is a production mecca of vinegar, miso, soy sauce, and other condiments essential to Japanese cuisine and home to Japan's fermentation culture. Of these products, Handa's distinct lees vinegar is of particular interest, helping to launch the nigiri sushi craze currently taking the entire world by storm.
This tour offers incredible insight into the world of vinegar and sushi—staples in Handa's culinary tradition, which is deeply tied to fresh seafood and vinegar. Join the tour in a trip through the traditional tastes of Japanese food.

Why you've got to check it out
Walk along Handa Canal as you learn the history of fermentation. Plus, you can enjoy a sushi lunch with vinegar tastings.

Points of consideration
• Service in Japanese and English available.

Prices
• JPY 28,000 for one person
• JPY 20,000 for each person in a two-person group
• JPY 18,000 for each person in a three-person group
• JPY 16,000 for each person in a four-person group

Viator site's Sushi Lunch and the Art of Fermentation Handa tour with a guide reservation page (external link)

Toyokawa Inari Sushi Workshop (Toyokawa City)

Details
Get firsthand explanations of inari sushi, vinegared rice stuffed in a sweet, fried tofu envelope. Use your own two hands to make sushi which you can later enjoy at lunch. (Vegetarian and vegan lunches available.)
Lunch details (sections pulled from official site): Five inari sushi varieties of your choice; miso soup of your choice; fresh, homemade tofu; dessert; and coffee

Why you've got to check it out
Toyokawa Inari Shrine is one of Japan's three great Inari Shrines and is said to be the birthplace of inari sushi, beloved around Japan. Enjoy using ingredients of your choice to make your own inari sushi before dining on it during a relaxing time at Matsuya Restaurant.

Points of consideration
English menu and service in English available.

Price
JPY 4,300/person

Related site
Viator site's Famous Inari Sushi Making Experience in Toyokawa reservation page (external link)

Hiking tour around Mt. Horaiji (Shinshiro City)

Details
Partake in a hiking tour together with a guide around Mt. Horaiji and its 1,300 years of history. Climb the 1,425 steps to the mountain temple's Main Hall as you take in the legends, tales, and history of the mountain.

Why you've got to check it out
Once you've climbed to the top of Mt. Horaiji—its entire area designated a national natural monument—you are greeted by a vast, breathtaking view of the surrounding mountains and Mikawa Bay. Rest and recuperate over a bento box lunch using local ingredients.

Points of consideration
• Stamina required to finish the course.
• Not recommended to those with back problems or pregnant women.
• Please do not apply if you have heart issues or other serious health problems.
• Hike only available on days with favorable weather. Should a cancelation occur due to inclement weather, you may select another day to participate or receive a full refund.
• These tours are private and require a degree of athleticism.

Price
JPY 30,000/group (maximum of four members)

Related sites
• Viator site's Full Day Hiking Tour to Mt. Horaiji reservation page (external link)
• Hihumi1.2.3. site (external link)