The "Land of the Rising Sun" easily combines its rich past with the innovative present. The millenary Japanese culture has adopted (and created) the latest fashion trends. The cities are also modern as everywhere else, yet we can notice traditional wooden houses facing glass buildings. Located in the Pacific Ocean, Japan extends east of the Sea of Japan, China, as well as the two Koreas and Russia. To the north is the Okhotsk Sea and to the south is the East China Sea and Taiwan. Japan is an archipelago of 6,852 islands. The top four are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, which account for 97% of the total area. Japan has the tenth largest population in the world with over 127 million people. The Tokyo region, which includes the capital and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest and densest metropolitan region in the world, with over 30 million residents. If you are passionate about traditional culture, you can spend weeks in cities like Kyoto and Nara, in temples and shrines, participate in tea ceremonies and visit museums filled with the treasures of Japan's rich artistic heritage. If you prefer culture and modern technology, you will discover in Japanese cities absolute wonders, a glimpse of the future of humanity, also gathering chic cafes and fabulous restaurants. Outside the cities, you will find natural and preserved wonders all along the archipelago. Your stay in Japan will undoubtedly be unforgettable. The best time to fly to Japan is during seasons of stable climate, especially in spring (March to April) and autumn (September to November). Spring is the time when the famous cherry trees (sakura) begin to flower. Nevertheless, you can easily travel to Japan all year round. If you cannot come in autumn or spring, have no fear you will still have great opportunities to visit and enjoy this beautiful country. The diversity of the country is enormous: the coral reefs of Okinawa, the ski area of Niseko, extremely modern cities like the capital Tokyo. Then there's the food: incredibly fresh sushi in Tokyo, perfectly beaten tempura in Kyoto, or a good bowl of ramen in Osaka... If you like to eat, you'll love Japan. But for many visitors, the real highlight of their visit to Japan is the hospitality of the Japanese themselves. Whatever your image of Japan, it probably exists somewhere in the archipelago, and it only remains for you to discover it! We like to go there for its delicious food, its mystical oriental culture, its unique blend of history and innovations from the modern world, its famous sweet cherry trees, its geisha and samurai culture and of course for its friendly and welcoming people. Castles, temples and sanctuaries, authentic restaurants and numerous festivals, the discovery of Japanese culture is the first reason for a trip to Japan. Alongside its rich tradition, Japan is the cradle of many new technologies. The trip to the "Land of the Rising Sun" offers visitors a wonderful insight into the rich Japanese culture, you can taste tasty cuisine and enjoy its beautiful temples and picturesque gardens. In the middle of a modern skyscraper you can discover a wooden sliding door that leads to a traditional room with tatami, calligraphy and a tea ceremony. These juxtapositions indicate that you will often be surprised and rarely annoyed during your stays in Japan.

Art and culture in Japan

Japanese culture has evolved a lot since its origins. Contemporary culture combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. Traditional Japanese arts include crafts such as ceramics, textiles, swords and dolls; performances of bunraku, kabuki, nô, dance and rakugo, and other practices, such as tea ceremony, ikebana, martial arts, calligraphy, origami, onsen and geishas. In the country there are fourteen sites inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List.

What to visit in Japan

Temples are places of worship in the Japanese Buddhist religion. Virtually every municipality in Japan has at least one temple. The large municipalities have large cultural centres like Kyoto where several thousand temples cohabit. Sensoji temple is the most revered Buddhist temple in Tokyo; pilgrims have flocked to it for over a thousand years. It is mandatory to visit at least one of the traditional Japanese landscape gardens. They can be classified into three types, Tsukiyama gardens (hill gardens), Karesansui gardens (dry gardens) and Chaniwa gardens (tea gardens). Another exciting and typically Japanese experience is to go to sumo fights (the most popular sport in the country!) If you stay several weeks to visit the country, do not hesitate to rent a car in Japan for more freedom.

A brief overview of the most famous places

• Tokyo is the largest city in the world with its electric, hectic, sparkling and crazy urban universe.
• Kyoto, is the ancient imperial capital, the city of Arts, geishas, tea and Ikebana (the art of floral composition).
• Nara, is the artistic and religious cradle.
• Nikko is perched in his mountains
• Kamakura is by the sea, a charming small coastal town that can be visited in one day from Tokyo, or combined with the nearby Enoshima Island.
• Hakone is the gateway to Mount Fuji!

We take the time to discover another way of living, thinking and acting: welcome to the land of the Rising Sun!

Tokyo, the gigantic

Science fiction setting that fascinates and can intimidate the first time, it's a city that covers more than 600km2 (6x Paris!). So be curious, be patient and visit it neighborhood by neighborhood.

Here are some suggestions:

• Marunouchi district: both Tokyo's business district and a showcase for luxury shopping. Visit the Tsukiji Fish Market to the south: it is the largest fish market in the world (450 species). Visits are from 5am to 6am!
• The Ginza district: Tokyo's Champs-Elysées in brief: within walking distance from the central station
• The Ueno and Asakusa district: a timeless district with its national museum, Japanese art in all its splendour, the colourful Ameya Yokocho market, visits to working-class districts, shops, incense smokes, crowds and souvenirs will please you.
• Akihabara district: in the north-east, this district is to be visited at night. Exhausting, noisy, crazy, hypnotic screens, decibels to the max, neons, manga universe but also electronic. Everything here is completely crazy.
• Harajuku district: south-west of the city: strange district where one crosses Cosplays (a set of the word "costume" and "playing" where the young people play a character by imitating their costume, their hair during their leisure time. On the Shinjuku side, you will find yourself in Tokyo's red-light district with bars, erotic clubs, hostess bars, etc. To book a visit to Harajuku, it's here!
• Roppongi district: west central Tokyo with its shopping centres and megalopolis residential complexes. During the day, beautiful walks are to be made in the parks. The Tokyo-Midtown tower (248m) with its luxury shops, the Paul Bocuse brewery, the 100'000 tombs of the Ayoama cemetery. Further south, the Mori Tower (338m), the Paul Robuchon workshop. The red and white "Tokyo Tower", inspired by the Eiffel Tower. From his observatory, you may be able to see on clear days, all of Tokyo and Mount Fuji (3 776 m)
• Odaiba district, city of the future: take the Yurikamone automatic aerial metro. Careful, it's going fast! Odaiba is built on the artificial island of Rainbow Town, where you will find hotels, shops, attractions, museums and offices.

5 things to do in Japan: (in addition to the others)

• Make a stop in an "Onsen", famous thermal spring: they spring from one end of the country to the other. There are over 3000 (much more than in Iceland). In Japan, we relax! This Japanese bathing custom became a kind of religious ritual for the Japanese that could even be related to a kind of pilgrimage. Staying in a ryokan onsen (a traditional inn with a private thermal spring) is a pure delight.
• Attend a Sumo fight: Sumo tournaments in Japan take place every odd month. So there are six a year! The most common way to reserve seats is through the official website. To watch a Sumo fight, it's this way!
• Celebrate the arrival of spring (late March-April) by attending the flowering of cherry trees (sakuras). The Japanese settle in the parks to feast and see the buds open into sublime pink flowers. If a petal falls into a glass, make a wish, it's a sign of luck! Flowering lasts only a few days but it is a magic moment. Each big city has its own walk under the cherry trees. In Okinawa, flowering takes place from late January to early February.
• Snorkeling and seeing Aharen Beach on Tokashiki Island: This is the easiest and cheapest snorkeling excursion in Kerama Shoto National Park. With its clownfish, colourful corals, clams, butterfly fish and hundreds of other marine species, Aharen gives a superb insight into the life of Okinawa's reefs!
• Sleep in Asakusa district with a lot of cheap youth hostels and cheap charming ryokan.

and a Bonus:

Visit the extraordinary "torii" (gates) of the Fushimi Inari Taisha Sanctuary, south of Kyoto. A series of traditional portals at the entrance of Shinto shrines, line up in this place by the thousands like a string of red and black totems through the forest!

How to fly to Japan?

The airline ANA (All Nippon Airways) is ranked among the best airlines in the world. A real experience as soon as you get on the plane. The quality of the service, the welcome of the hostesses but also the excellent food on board already gives the desire to be there. ANA is the only Japanese airline to have received a 5 star from SkyTrax (an English organization that offers statistics on international travel to rank the best airlines, catering, flight personnel...). She was also elected "Best Airline Staff in Asia Award" for 4 consecutive years. ANA recently created its application via Google Play Store or App Store, called 360° Virtual Viewer. I tested it and travelled for several minutes in Japan! A beautiful experience! Air Canada also announced the arrival of a new direct route from Montreal in June 2018!

Gastronomic specialities in Japan

Traditional Japanese cuisine is probably one of the healthiest and tastiest in the world. Like a national cuisine, Japanese food has evolved a lot in recent centuries due to many social and political changes. Since ancient times, much traditional cuisine has been largely influenced by Korean and Chinese cultures, but Japanese cuisine today is still unique. Okonomiyaki, Sashimi, Sushi, Tempura, Sukiyaki are just a few of the traditional dishes served in hotels in Japan. So if you are impatient to be the experimenters and you don't mind tasting grilled octopus, raw fish and eel, you won't be disappointed by this atypical cuisine.