Makinohara plateau, Japan's largest tea plantation was surprisingly cultivated by samurai about 150 years ago. By visiting the tea museum there to learn everything about tea and experience tea ceremony. Then, we'll visit Chagu'sba Terrace to enjoy a refreshing view of tea fields. Their eco-friendly tea production method has been designated as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System. Last visit is Kakegawa Castle, a wooden castle reconstructed by the same method in samurai days.
Kakegawa station (or Shizuoka station)
It takes 1.5 hours by Shinkansen from Tokyo.
Meeting up and get on a local train for 12 minutes to Kanaya station.
Then taking a taxi for 5 minutes.
It is a perfect facility to know more about tea. You can learn the history and production of tea, various tea culture in the world, Japanese tea culture including tea ceremony experienced in the tea house and garden. Lunch menu using tea is recommended. You can also buy some tea and enjoy the taste of famous matcha ice cream, if you like.
Leaving the tea museum, we can enjoy driving by a chartered taxi to the tea fields designated as GIAHS.
The tea field view from Chagusaba Terrace on the summit of the hill, which has the TEA('Cha' in Japanese) letter on the hill side can be enjoyed. If the weather on the day is good, Mt. Fuji can be seen as well.
Depending on your request, we can drop by a tea factory to deepen our understanidng the tea process.
Driving back to Kakegawa to visit the castle. It was reconstructed with a wooden structure by the same method in samurai period. You may have a feel dating back to samurai period.
It takes about 10 minutes walk from the castle to Kakegawa statoin.
Shinkansen is available both for Tokyo and Kyoto, Osaka.
Kakegawa station (or Shizuoka station)
Shizuoka is the No. 1 Tea producer in Japan. Across the prefecture, there are many tea production areas. Among them, Makinohara plateau is the largest tea plantation in Japan. Surprisingly, the land was cultivated by samurai about 150 years ago.
We’ll visit the Tea Museum there. If you are a tea lover, this is the perfect facility to learn everything about tea including a variety of tea cultures. It has a Japanese tea house and garden. You can experience an authentic tea ceremony there.
After that, we'll visit Chagusaba Terrace to enjoy the tea field view. Around that area, their eco-friendly tea production method has gained attention and has been designated as GIAHS(Globaly Important Agricultural Heritage System) . Depending on your request in advance, we can drop by a tea factory and the like on the way.
Last visit is Kakegawa Castle, a wooden castle reconstructed by the method in those day. You may feel the atmosphere dating back to Samurai period.
I think it will be a special experience for you to spend a day in the spacious tea fields developed by samurai!
Guide fee
- Transportation for a guide to and from Kakegawa station: 3,200yen (appreciated paid in cash on the day)
- JR local train from Kakegawa to Kanaya: 330yen/person
- Taxi fare from Kanaya to the tea museum: less than 1,000yen/ a regular size taxi
- Chartered taxi fare for 2 hours: A chartered regular taxi(up to 3) 13,000yen/ 2 hours, a chartered van-taxi(up to 8) will cost 19,400yen/2 hours.
- Admission fee for the museum is 300yen/person, tea ceremony experience is 500yen/person
- Kakegawa castle: 410yen/person
- Lunch
* The taxi company says that a credit card is available, but still in many places in Japan, it will often be asked paid in cash, especially local areas.
I can guide you in cities other than Shizuoka if you pay my transportation fee.
Tea Museum is closed on Tuesday.
A view of Mt. Fuji depends on the weather on that day.
Hiroyo provided us an incredible tour of the Fujinomiya area, and went above and beyond by helping us solve issues outside the scope of the tour! She was organized, thoughtful, knowledgeable, and had a great energy. She not only facilitated a tour of some amazing locations (with the tea farm being our favorite!) but she truly elevated the tour through her commentary, attitude, and visual aids. If you’re reading this and considering a tour of the area around Mt. Fuji, do not pass up a tour with Hiroyo!
Thank you very much for giving me such a great review! I’m so happy to hear that you and your friends enjoyed the tour here. I’ll tell your comment to the tea farm, they will be pleased as well. I hope you can fully enjoy the rest of the trip! If you have another chance to visit to Japan, I’m always happy to welcome you, hopefully with the goddess of Mt. Fuji like today!! Let me tell you again, thank you so much for having me as your guide! Hiroyo
Our first time in Japan could not be better: learning about mount Fuji story, tasting top Japanese soba, entering the local natural amenities, enjoying Hiroko experience and kindness! Really thanks from our family!
Thank you very much for your warm review. Im happy to hear that you and your family enjoyed the experience. I hope the your stay in Japan will be memorable. If you have another chance, I will welcome you hopefully with Mt. Fuji here! Thank you so much!! Hiroyo
One of the best tours we have ever had by far. Hiroyo was prompt and made sure the tour was paced so we all could enjoy it as see as much as possible. The tea farm is lovely, and the owner is very nice. He described the plants, harvesting and how they process the leaves. It is a very informative tour, and the area is beautiful. Then you get to experience the tea. I cannot say enough about the tasting. We tasted tea over three ways and were able to taste snacks made from tea products. The owner's wife was so nice and answered all of our questions. We then had the opportunity to purchase lovely tea pots and products. We toured some of the sites in the town. It was lovely with great views of Mt. Fuji. We proceeded to a distillery tour. This was my husband's favorite. The tour guide was very knowledgeable of the distillery process and kind enough to answer all of my husband's questions about the history of Sake and best of all we got to taste many different kinds. Oue group age ranged from 27 to 55 and Hiroyo was very kind to ensure the pace of the tour was not too much for any of the members. She stopped whenever we asked for pictures and more information on many sites. Highly recommend this tour.
Dear Tanya, Thank you very much for your warm comments! It is always my great pleasure to welcome tea lovers here! Yes, as you mentioned, the tea farm couple is always very nice. Maybe because of the mild climate here in Shizuoka, local people are very kind. The tea grown with their great care naturally tastes great. Not only tea, but sake is also produced with all the blessings of Mt. Fuji. So I hope you can enjoy both of them at home now! If you have another chance to visit here, I’ll always welcome you! Thank you so much!! Best wishes, Hiroyo
Hiroyo was a great tour guide. She worked with our family to come up with a tour itinerary that fit all of our needs. We are a family of three with vastly different interests, but Hiroyo was able to include something for everyone in the tour. Hiroyo speaks fluent English, is very tentative to your request and makes meeting easy. She was prompt and met us at our hotel to begin the tour early. We had four stops planned, and they were all great. She recommended the best transportation to ensure we were able to make all of our stops within our tight timeframe. The Toshogu Shrine was beautiful, and she was able to add historical information. The Museum was informative, and Hiroyo interpreted everything we needed to make the experience more fulfilling. Hiroyo was mindful of our walking pace ability and adjusted when needed. She also was able to adjust our lunch spot to accommodate my son's Japanese food exploration desires. I cannot say enough. I highly recommend her tour.
Dear Tanya, Thank you very much for your great comment! I’m so happy to hear from you that your family could enjoy the day! It was really nice for me as well to visit the places related to Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa in Shizuoka City with you who are very interested in the history. The city has more places to visit and more foods to enjoy as Shogun Ieyasu decided to spent the last years. If you’d like to taste another kinds, I’ll show you around the city anytime! Great thanks & Best wishes, Hiroyo