❖ Pick-up

10:00

Your guide and a private vehicle meet you at your requested pick-up location in Kobe. Pick-up locations include Kobe Port Terminal, hotels within Kobe City, and Shin-Kobe Station at the Shinkansen ticket gate.

❖ Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge

10:25 - 10:35 (10 min)

The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge is one of the world's largest suspension bridges, connecting Kobe City and Awaji Island across a total length of 3,911 metres. As part of the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway, which links Honshu and Shikoku, it plays a vital role in Japan's transportation infrastructure.

Driving across the bridge is the best way to fully appreciate its magnificent scale: heading from Kobe toward Awaji Island, you are captivated by the dramatic view as you gradually approach the main towers, the vast scenery of the Akashi Strait opening below. Boasting the world's second-longest main span, its impressive scale makes the journey itself an unforgettable experience, and the panoramic views of sea and sky, seen from different angles on the outbound and return trips, are one of the highlights of this tour.

❖ ZEN Retreat Lunch at Zenbo Seinei

11:00 - 14:00 (3:00 h)

Zenbo Seinei is a special facility dedicated to pursuing mental and physical wellness, set amid the rich nature of Awaji Island. It is symbolised by a huge aerial wood deck, approximately 100 metres long, designed by the world-renowned architect Shigeru Ban, and is known as a unique space where architecture and nature are in harmony.

The lunch offered at Zenbo Seinei is perfect for travellers who want to experience Japanese spiritual culture and wellness during their trip. The Zenbo Cuisine is a major highlight: a healthy meal supervised by a fermented-food chef that uses no animal products, oil, flour, or white sugar.

The dishes draw on seasonal local ingredients and satisfy both an interest in Japanese food culture and a health-conscious diet.

The plan lets you experience ZEN Wellness, such as yoga and meditation, on this beautiful aerial wood deck to prepare your mind and body. The time spent sharpening your five senses in the great outdoors brings deep tranquillity to travellers seeking mental and physical detoxification, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life.

It also includes experiences touching on Japanese culture such as Zen tea, making it a high-value plan where you experience Japanese spirituality and wellness from multiple perspectives in just three hours.

Spring (January to May)

❖ Awaji Hanasajiki

14:05 - 14:35 (30 min)

Awaji Hanasajiki is a scenic spot truly worthy of the name flower garden in the sky, offering a panoramic view of the Akashi Strait and Osaka Bay from an elevation of 298 metres. Seasonal flowers bloom like a carpet over the vast grounds.

In spring (January to May), the contrast of yellow and purple from canola flowers and purple alyssum, along with lovely poppies, colours the hills.

Summer (July to September)

In summer (July to September), cool cleome, vibrant salvia, and sunflowers blooming against the blue sky create a resort-like atmosphere.

Autumn (October to November)

In autumn (October to November), swaying cosmos flowers create a charming autumn landscape, and in winter (November to February), sweet-smelling stocks bloom powerfully under the winter sky. The greatest charm of this place is the spectacular scenery created by the seasonal flowers and the vast ocean panorama.

From the observation deck, you can enjoy the contrast between the carpet of flowers below and the blue sea beyond, a special experience of becoming one with nature. Since it shows a different face each time you visit, many people are repeat visitors, and it is the perfect place on Awaji Island to feel the beautiful nature of Japan firsthand.

❖ Honpukuji Water Temple

14:50 - 15:20 (30 min)

Honpukuji Water Temple is a mysterious and modern architectural work designed by the world-renowned architect Tadao Ando. Its biggest highlight is the unique structure in which the main hall is buried beneath an elliptical concrete lotus pond.

After passing through a concrete wall that separates the secular world from the sacred realm, you reach the pond, where the sky and surrounding scenery reflected on the water's surface create a fantastical view. A single stair descends from the centre of the pond, and the act of walking down into the hall makes the narrative nature of the architecture itself palpable. Inside, the sanctuary is painted vermilion and captivating in its use of light: when the setting sun shines from behind the principal image, the entire space is dyed vermilion, a mysterious space designed to give the Buddha a halo that symbolises Tadao Ando's philosophy on light.

The hall enshrines Yakushi Nyorai, the Buddha of medicine and healing, of the Shingon Omuro school. From May to September you can enjoy the beautiful water lilies blooming in the lotus pond and the precious Oga lotus, a rare ancient lotus that sprouted and bloomed from a seed discovered in a layer of earth roughly 2,000 years old, showing different expressions with each season. Where architecture, nature, and light become one, it brings spiritual tranquillity and aesthetic emotion, a fitting close to a dense and special day.

❖ Drop-off

16:00

You return to Kobe, and the tour concludes at the same location as your pick-up.