Bulgukasa Temple, Gyeongju, Korea
Japan & South Korea Tours
| Tour Name | Visiting |
| 9-day Japan Express | Tokyo – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Tokyo |
| 10-day Timeless Japan | Tokyo – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hiroshima – Miyajima – Tokyo |
| 10-day Best of South Korea | Seoul – Jeju Island – Busan – Gyeongju – Seoul |
| 12-day Essential Japan | Tokyo – Mt. Fuji – Hakone – Kanazawa – Takayama – Shirakawa-go – Osaka – Nara – Kyoto |
| 14-day Best of Japan | Tokyo – Mt. Fuji – Hakone – Kanazawa – Takayama – Shirakawa-go – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hiroshima – Miyajima – Tokyo |
| 17-day Japan & South Korea | Tokyo – Mt. Fuji – Hakone – Kanazawa – Takayama – Shirakawa-go – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hiroshima – Miyajima – Busan – Gyeongju – Seoul |
| 18-day Classic Japan | Tokyo – Mt. Fuji – Hakone – Kanazawa – Shirakawa-go – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hiroshima – Miyajima – Nagasaki – Naha – Tokyo |
| 19-day South Korea & Japan | Seoul – Gyeongju – Busan – Tokyo – Mt. Fuji – Hakone – Kanazawa – Takayama – Shirakawa-go – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hiroshima – Miyajima – Tokyo |
Best Time to Visit South Korea
Korea has four distinct seasons with spring (April – June) and autumn (late September-November) being the best for visitors. Spring flowers in April and May and autumn leaves in late October and early November will intoxicate nature lovers.
Korean winter is cold while summer hot and humid. Japan’s main island, Honshu, can be described the same way.
Best Time to Visit Japan
Climatic patterns in Japan are diverse ranging from subtropical islands in the south to sub-arctic winter temperatures in northern Hokkaido.
Like neighbouring Korean Peninsula and most of China, Honshu (literally “Main Island” or “Main Province”), the island we travel across, has cool and cold weather in winter (Jan-Mar). June and July is rainy season across Japan except Hokkaido – a popular destination for Japanese to escape summer heat. Autumn (September to mid-December) is usually cool and clear on Honshu. Cherry blossom season from late March to early April and the autumn foliage season (November) see huge influx of international visitors to join the large number of local vacationers on the move.
If you have a choice, you should stay away from Japan during their Golden Week holiday (end of April to early May) when hotels and air flights get incredibly expensive. For the high prices, you’d be rewarded with overcrowding at all the tourist sites – a phenomenon that rivals China’s National Day holiday week (Oct 1-6).
Winter (Jan-Mar) is supposed to be low season for Japan’s tourism industry, not anymore. The rapid rise of middle class throughout Asia and the decline of the Japanese Yen against so many currencies in the past few years ensure Japan is overrun with international visitors all year round. That said, in winter hotels, the single biggest budget item for many, can be had for less than half of the price of high season.
Best time to See Cherry Blossoms
In general, the milder the climate, the earlier the cherry trees bloom. In subtropical Okinawa you’ll see cherry blossoms opening up as early as January while in Hokkaido you’ll have to wait till May.
In most of the cities on our itineraries, the cherry blossom season lasts from late March to early April for about two weeks. However, in the mountainous areas such as Mt. Fuji and Hakone outside Tokyo, Shirakawa-go near Kanazawa, and Arashiyama on the western edge of Kyoto, cherry blossoms are still abundant in late April due to cooler climate.
You’ll find beautiful cherry blossoms all over the Korean peninsula around the same time when cherry trees bloom on Japan’s Honshu Island.
Japanese Golden Week
The public holiday stretches from April 29 to the first few days of May. This is one of the busiest times of year for Japanese to travel and every major tourist site is packed with visitors. That’s why we don’t offer Japan trips overlapping the Golden Week.
Testimonials
After exhaustively researching tours to Asia we decided to book a trip to China with Laurus. Several months prior to the trip we added on the 13 day Japan tour as it was a short flight away. This back to back was a leap of faith as we booked with Laurus based on reviews, the website and our interactions with Laurus. We made the right decision! The tours exceeded our expectations.
The tour of Japan was wonderful. Our guide Addy stayed with us for the entire tour and she was terrific. She didn’t just provide information, she kept us interested and even used sang with a samurai puppet. We were on the go all day long. The hotels were quite nice and centrally located. Most of the restaurants were small local places and the food was delicious. Highlights of the trip included meeting with a geisha, who spoke perfect English, visiting Nara and seeing the sika deer and going to Shirakawa-go.
Without any reservation I would highly recommend Laurus. They are genuinely concerned that you are given the best quality tour available at a reasonable price.
Maureen S and Larry L
Boynton Beach, Florida
As repeat customers (first to China, and now Japan), we recommend Laurus to other people interesting in exploring Asia. We have found the guides to be well-informed; the accommodations, excellent; and the service, high-quality. We were very fortunate to have met Julius Yan, the owner and founder of Laurus, on both of our tours. He traveled with us in Japan, and greatly enhanced our experience there. He is extremely dedicated to providing an outstanding and personal experience for his clients. He is well-versed in Asian history, and provided cultural and historical perspectives that added depth to our experience.
Suzanne B and Mark S
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
We arrived home yesterday safe and sound. Thank you for a wonderful tour in Japan!
Based on what we heard from our friends about their trip to Japan with your company last year we knew we had picked the right company in choosing Laurus Travel for our own Japan vacation. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience. Your company delivered as promised and then some. There is no doubt in our mind that we received superior value for our money. Upon checking with the others in the group, we learned that our fellow travelers all felt the same. Laurus Travel should be proud of itself because this is the opinion from a bunch of seasoned travelers who have gone on tours with a large number of tour companies.
Thank you again for a wonderful trip!
Janice and Sheldon R
Calgary, Alberta
Best Time for Cherry Blossom Viewing across Japan
Best time for autumn foliage viewing in Japan is between mid-November and early December