Platinum East Asia’s Flower and Sun “South Korea and Japan” (ICN-HND) with Turkish Airlines 8 nights Seoul (2) – Osaka (3) – Kyoto – Kobe – Nara – Tokyo (3) – Mount Fuji – Hakone | All tours and entrance fees included

Platinum East Asia’s Flower and Sun “South Korea and Japan” (ICN-HND) with THY

Seoul (2 nights) – Osaka (3 nights) – Kyoto – Kobe – Nara –Tokyo (3 nights) – Mount Fuji – Hakone

8 nights 10 days | All tours and entrance fees included

Day 1 | Istanbul

Meeting at 14.00 in front of the Turkish Airlines counter at Istanbul Airport international departures terminal. After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, flight to Seoul at 17.05 with Turkish Airlines flight TK0020. Overnight on the plane.

Day 2 | Istanbul – Seoul

Arrival at Seoul Incheon Airport at 08.55 local time. After passport and baggage procedures, departure by our vehicle for the Seoul tour. Our first stop on the tour will be Gyeongbokgung Palace. Built in 1395, the palace is regarded as the largest, most beautiful, and most magnificent of the Five Grand Palaces built by the Joseon Dynasty. We will also have the opportunity to see the National Folk Museum inside the palace. Our next stop will be Namsangol Hanok Village. This village, a residential area in expanding modern Seoul, is famous for its many restored traditional Korean houses called Hanok. After our visit here, we continue our tour with Myeong-dong, the most famous shopping and fashion district of Korea. After seeing this street, which has many shops and restaurants, our next stop will be the Insa-dong area. The lively center of Insa-dong is the main street closed to vehicle traffic. The street is filled with teahouses and Korean restaurants as well as shops selling traditional products such as ceramics, tea, and handmade "hanji" paper. The unusual Ssamziegil Complex has cafés and stairs leading to the rooftop terrace, its walls decorated with paintings. Modern artworks are exhibited at Hakgojae Gallery. At the end of the tour, transfer to our hotel. After check-in, we settle into our rooms. Overnight at our 4* Hotel Samjung Gangnam (or similar) hotel in Seoul.

Day 3 | Seoul | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we continue with the Seoul tour. Our first stop will be the N Seoul Tower, a communications tower and observatory. After reaching the tower by cable car, we will be able to view the city from the highest point in Seoul. Our next stop will be Bongeunsa Temple, which has a history of 1,200 years. Considered a cornerstone of Korean Buddhism, Bongeunsa attracts tourists with structures such as Maitreya, one of Seoul’s largest statues, and its library housing 3,479 sacred Buddhist scriptures. After this, we will see the Starfield Library and the Gangnam Style Statue located in the same complex. At the end of our tour, return to our hotel. Overnight at our 4* Hotel Samjung Gangnam (or similar) hotel in Seoul.

Day 4 | Seoul – Osaka | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete check-out and transfer to Seoul Incheon Airport. After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, flight to Osaka at 18.45 with Korean Air flight KE721. Arrival at Osaka Kansai Airport at 20.45 local time. After passport and baggage procedures, transfer from the airport to our hotel by vehicle. After check-in, we settle into our rooms. Overnight at our hotel in Osaka, 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar).

Day 5 | Osaka – Kyoto – Osaka | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Kyoto tour. After about 1 hour of travel, our first stop will be the Kinkakuji Temple, also known as the Golden Pavilion. Covered in gold leaf, this three-story pavilion is one of Kyoto’s most famous and well-known historical structures and is recognized worldwide as a perfect example of Kitayama garden design art. Thanks to these features, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994 as an important cultural asset of the former capital Kyoto. We will continue our tour with the Kiyomizu-dera Temple, a Buddhist temple also known as the pure water monastery. The temple offers beautiful views of the distant city of Kyoto, as well as many cherry and maple trees that burst into a colorful sea in spring and autumn. The main hall, built without nails together with the stage, houses the temple’s main object of worship, a small statue of the eleven-faced, thousand-armed Kannon. After free time for lunch, we will visit the Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka streets leading up to Kiyomizu-dera Temple. Sannenzaka is a stone-paved pedestrian path and a tourist attraction. Surrounded by traditional buildings and shops, the route is usually used together with a similar road, Ninenzaka. Sannenzaka is a narrow sloping road filled with about 60 shops and restaurants selling Kyoto’s traditional products and foods. There are also important shops where visitors can closely experience Japanese culture, including Ochaya (tea houses) where tea ceremonies are held, and makeup for Geiko (the name given to geishas in Kyoto) and Maiko (Geiko apprentices). In the last part of the tour, we will visit Gion, Kyoto’s famous geisha district. At the end of the tour, return to Osaka and our hotel. Overnight at our 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar) hotel in Osaka.

Day 6 | Osaka – Kobe – Nara – Osaka | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Kobe tour and Nara tour. Our first stop on the Kobe tour will be the Kiku-Masamune Sake Museum (depending on whether it is open). At Kiku-Masamune, which has remained committed to producing only dry sake since the Edo Period, we will both see the stages of sake production and taste it. Almost all of the equipment in the museum is classified as a "national tangible folk cultural asset" and allows visitors to learn more about the lives and work of sake producers. Then we continue our tour with the Kobe Nunobiki Botanical Garden, Japan’s largest botanical garden with seasonal flowers and magnificent mountain views. After the park, we will go to the Kobe Harborland Umie shopping center, where we will have free time for lunch. After lunch, departure for Nara. We begin our Nara tour with a visit to Nara Park. Nara Park is a public park located at the foot of Mount Wakakusa. Founded in 1880, it is one of Japan’s oldest parks. More than 1,200 wild Sika deer roam freely in the park. Because of these deer, it is also known as Deer Park. After the park, we will continue with Todai-ji Temple. Todaiji is not only the world’s largest wooden structure, but also houses the world’s largest Buddha statue, called Daibutsu in Japanese. At the end of our tour, return to Osaka and our hotel. Overnight at our hotel in Osaka, 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar) hotel.

Note: This morning, when leaving the hotel for the tour, we need to leave a small overnight bag in our room. The large suitcases we leave at the hotel will be transferred to our hotel in Tokyo before us and will reach us the next day.

Day 7 | Osaka – Tokyo | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete check-out and start the Osaka tour. Our first stop will be Osaka Castle, built in the 16th century and having played an important role in the unification of the Japanese nation. The castle is located within a park covering an area of about two square kilometers in total, which includes plenty of green space, sports facilities, a multi-purpose arena (Osakajo Hall), and a shrine dedicated to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The park often becomes one of Osaka’s most popular spots during cherry blossom season, which usually occurs in early April. Then we will see Dotonbori, which has become Osaka’s entertainment center. After visiting Dotonbori and the city’s main shopping district Shinsaibashi, we will give free time for lunch. After free time, transfer to Shin-Osaka train station. With the Shinkansen, the world’s first high-speed train, we arrive at Tokyo Shinagawa train station after a journey of about 3 hours. From there, transfer to our hotel by vehicle. After check-in, we settle into our rooms. Overnight at our hotel in Tokyo, 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar).

Day 8 | Tokyo | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we begin the Tokyo tour. Our first stop will be Asakusa Temple, also known as Senso-ji Temple, a Buddhist temple considered one of Tokyo’s oldest and most colorful temples. The temple, also called Santa-jama (Temple of the Three Gods), attracts great interest from both tourists and local people. It is one of the few temples in Tokyo that survived the bombings in the final year of World War II, and for this reason the original structure of the building has still not been altered. Built in 1649, the temple was reportedly constructed to honor three brothers who were deified because they found a statue of the goddess Kannon in a river. We will also see the shopping street called Nakamise in the area. After free time for lunch, we will visit the Meiji Shrine, a Shinto shrine dedicated to the spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken. After this, we will tour the Shibuya district, one of Tokyo’s busiest areas. One of the city’s most important places for young people, Shibuya stands out with its advanced structure, cafés, and world-famous shops. After our tour, return to the hotel. Overnight at our hotel in Tokyo, 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar) hotel.

Day 9 | Tokyo – Mount Fuji – Hakone – Tokyo | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Mount Fuji and Hakone tour. We will begin our tour with Mount Fuji, which is about 2.5 hours away. Mount Fuji, which earned a place on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2013, is accepted as Japan’s highest mountain and the country’s sacred symbol. Although Mount Fuji is generally thought of as a single mountain, it actually consists of three separate volcanoes. Located on the island of Honshu and on the border between the Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures, Mount Fuji is only 100 kilometers from Tokyo and can even be seen from tall buildings in Tokyo on a cloudless day. After the breathtaking view of Mount Fuji, we will head toward the town of Hakone. We begin our Hakone tour with Owakudani Valley, a volcanic formation. Owakudani is a valley around a crater formed about 3,000 years ago during the last eruption of Mount Hakone. Today, much of the area is an active volcanic zone with sulfurous fumes, hot springs, and hot rivers. We will enjoy the views of this magnificently beautiful valley by taking the cable car up from Togendai. After free time for lunch, we will move on to Lake Ashi. After an enjoyable boat ride of about 30 minutes on the lake in a wooden pirate ship, we will return to Tokyo and our hotel by vehicle. Overnight at our hotel in Tokyo, 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar) hotel.

Day 10 | Tokyo – Istanbul | [B]

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete check-out and continue with the Tokyo tour. The first place we will see on our tour will be the Tokyo Imperial Palace, which includes many buildings such as the Main Palace, the private residences of the Imperial family, archives, museum, and administrative offices. The Tokyo Imperial Palace was built on the site of an old castle where the Shogun resided in the 15th century. In the 19th century, when Emperor Meiji moved the royal household from Kyoto to Tokyo, this place also became property of the royal family. Since most of the buildings were destroyed in World War II, the oldest remaining items in the palace today are only 50 years old. Then we will continue our tour with a visit to Akihabara, one of Tokyo’s most famous neighborhoods worldwide. Akihabara is an extremely crowded shopping district famous for its electronics stores of various kinds, from small street stalls to very large shopping centers. After our tour in Akihabara, also known as the city of electronics, we give free time for lunch. After free time, we continue our tour with the Ginza district, one of the city’s most popular shopping areas filled with luxury boutiques as well as first-class cocktail and sushi bars. At the end of our tour, transfer to Tokyo Haneda Airport. After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, flight to Istanbul at 22.05 with Turkish Airlines flight TK0199. Overnight on the plane.

Day 11 | Tokyo – Istanbul

Arrival at Istanbul Airport at 05.45 local time and the end of our tour. We bid farewell, hoping to meet again on our next distinguished and enjoyable trip.

Explanation of abbreviations: [B] = Breakfast, [L] = Lunch, [D] = Dinner