Day 1
Dining with a View of Eternity
Lunch is arranged at Kiko × Tatsuriki, an elevated dining space offering panoramic views toward Himeji Castle. This refined collaboration between a locally revered Japanese restaurant and a century-old sake house presents kaiseki cuisine paired with distinguished regional sake.
Himeji Castle — The White Heron
Graceful in white plaster, the castle is often likened to a heron in flight, earning its poetic name, “White Heron Castle.” Constructed over 400 years ago and preserved in its original form, it is widely regarded as Japan’s most pristine surviving feudal fortress. Eight structures, including the main keep and watchtowers, are designated National Treasures, with an additional seventy-four buildings recognized as Important Cultural Properties. The entire complex is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Your visit is conducted with contextual interpretation, allowing the architecture to reveal its defensive intelligence, aesthetic restraint, and symbolic authority.
The Myochin Sword Forge — Steel and Spirit
At the forge of master swordsmith Myochin Munehiro, you will encounter the living tradition of Japanese blade-making. Though born as weapons, Japanese swords are equally objects of profound beauty. Each blade possesses a unique curvature, form, and temper pattern. To gaze upon the edge is to sense both discipline and artistry. A sword is not merely crafted—it is forged through the unification of fire, steel, and spirit. This private session offers insight into a philosophy where technique transcends utility and enters the realm of cultural legacy.
Evening Retreat — Uguisu Premium Suite
Your accommodation for the evening is the Uguisu Premium Suite, featuring a private open-air bath. Designed with a harmonious fusion of traditional Japanese aesthetics and contemporary comfort, the suite offers generous space, refined furnishings, and serene views across rural landscapes and gently flowing streams. From your outdoor bath, nature unfolds in quiet procession—morning mist drifting across fields, mountains glowing in the sunset, and a sky illuminated by stars. It is a setting of complete stillness and restorative privacy.
Day 2
Mount Shosha — A Morning of Contemplation
Rising 371 meters northwest of the city, Mount Shosha is home to Engyoji Temple, the 27th of the Thirty-Three Pilgrimage Temples of Western Japan. Founded over a millennium ago, this vast temple complex has long served as a place of ascetic training for monks. A short ropeway ascent carries you above forested slopes to an expansive sacred precinct, where significant cultural properties—including the Maniden Hall (enshrining an image of Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion) and Daikodo (Great Lecture Hall) and Jikido (Refectory). The complex stands in solemn harmony with nature, its atmosphere of quiet austerity recognized internationally through its selection as a filming location for The Last Samurai. Here, you will participate in seated meditation and a goma fire ritual, guided by resident clergy. The atmosphere—blending history, mountain air, and architectural gravitas—leaves an indelible impression .
Nadagiku Sake Brewery — Heritage in Every Pour
Established over one hundred years ago, Nadagiku Sake Brewery preserves its original wooden brewing structures. Pure local water, carefully selected rice, and techniques passed down through generations of master brewers combine to produce sake of depth and elegance. Following a private brewery experience, enjoy handcrafted cuisine prepared within a restored kura restaurant. Here, you will enjoy Nadagiku’s signature wagyu hotpot, delicately seasoned with a veil of spun sugar that melts into the broth, creating a subtle depth and rounded sweetness the enhances the natural umami of the beef—an experience available only in this setting.
Hyogo Prefectural Budokan — The Discipline of the Samurai
At the Hyogo Prefectural Budokan, a leading martial arts institution in the region, you may choose from a selection of disciplines including judo, kendo, karate, naginata, kyudo, and aikido. Under expert instruction, you will engage in foundational training that reflects the enduring philosophy of budo—the cultivation of mind, technique, and body as one. This experience is not performance, but practice. Not spectacle, but discipline.
Located in the southwestern region of Hyogo Prefecture, Himeji has long flourished as a cultural, industrial, and strategic gateway to western Japan. Effortlessly accessible via the Sanyo Shinkansen—with direct connections to Kyoto, Osaka, and Hiroshima—and within convenient reach of Kansai International and Kobe Airports, the city offers both refinement and ease.
Yet beyond its accessibility lies something far more compelling.
Centered around the UNESCO World Heritage Himeji Castle, the city preserves an atmosphere where history is not just displayed, but lived. Ancient temples with over a millennium of devotion, enduring samurai traditions, pristine natural landscapes, and a deeply rooted culinary culture together form a destination that reveals the essence of Japan.
This is not merely sightseeing—it is immersion, an invitation to draw closer to the true spirit of the nation.