Yokohama Highlights Tour: Exploring the Portside City

For most people visiting Japan they often explore the city of Tokyo. However, as Japan’s second largest city and only being 40 minutes away via train, the picturesque port city of Yokohama is a perfect alternative and day trip for those wanting to venture out from the Capital and explore a different city!

Located in Kanagawa prefecture famed for places like Hakone, Kamakura and Enoshima, Yokohama is a city rich in history and urban flare. What was as a small fishing village for centuries, expanded and become a key city shaped by trade and innovation during the mid-19th Century. The city now has the perfect blend of modern and traditional elements with its open waterfronts, historical architecture and urbanised development offering visitors a fun and cosmopolitan atmosphere.

HIGHLIGHTS 

• Ride the Yokohama Air Cabin urban ropeway and take in the impressive views of Yokohama from above!

•  Visit the Cupnoodles Museum and customise your very own Cupnoodles!

• Visit Japan’s largest Chinatown!

• Explore Yokohama’s stunning waterfront, iconic architecture and enjoy a foot bath experience overlooking the sea!

• Visit the historical site where the Treaty of Kanagawa was signed in 1854!

DESCRIPTION

The tour will begin at Shinjuku Station where you will meet your tour guide. You will meet directly outside of Shinjuku station’s SOUTH GATE EXIT/ENTRANCE for the Odakyu Line, by the Baskin Robbins ice cream shop. Once everybody has arrived, you will officially start the tour and your tour guide will escort you to the train! The train journey will take approximately 40 minutes.

For our first destination we will hop on the Yokohama Air Cabin. This innovative urban ropeway will provide you with a great first impression of the city! We will ride the ropeway across the city and port where you will enjoy fabulous panoramic views of the sea and cityscape, seeing many of its most famous and iconic landmarks. The ride takes approximately 5 minutes.

Once we have arrived on the other side of the Air Cabin ropeway, we will take a short walk to one of Yokohama’s most popular attractions, the Cupnoodles Museum! This interactive food museum is a fun and engaging way to learn about one of Japan’s most successful inventions the Cupnoodle, now beloved by many across the world! Here, you will learn all about how the creator of Cupnoodles Momofuku Ando came up with the idea, see how the product has changed over time, see creative art installations, an original animated film and the opportunity to customise your very own pack of Cupnoodles in the museum’s in house factory. During this experience you will design your packaging and create your very own unique flavour by choosing from four soups and twelve toppings. The museum boasts that in total there are 5,460 flavour combinations to create!

Once we have enjoyed exploring the Cupnoodles Museum and with our customised Cupnoodles in hand, it will he time to take a short walk over to Yokohama’s famous Red Brick Warehouse. Here, your guide will provide you an overview of this landmark’s history and design which is reminiscent of more Western architecture. We recommend taking some photos of the structure which looks beautiful against the backdrop of the sea and cityscape. You will be able to take some free time to explore the unique shops inside or get yourself a coffee at one of the stylish cafes!

After our short stop at the Red Brick Warehouse, it will be time to take a walk across to Yokohama’s Chinatown, the largest in all of Japan. Here you guide will give you an introduction to the area where you will also visit two of Chinatown’s temples and shrines. After the guided portion of Chinatown, it will be your lunch break! Where better to take your lunch than Chinatown! we highly recommend that you try the local food in the area at many of the street food vendors, cafes and restaurants.

Once we have explored Chinatown and had lunch, we will walk over to Yamashita Park and the harbour front of Yokohama! Here you will enjoy wonderful views overlooking the sea and cityscape. Your guide will point out major points of interest along the way such as an historic ship, an impressive harbour terminal walkway and viewpoint, and more. Here, we will also stop off at a popular Portside cafe where you will enjoy the traditional Japanese experience of a foot bath overlooking the sea! While we are here, please feel free to enjoy a drink or refreshment.

For our final destination in Yokohama, we will pay a visit to the small but highly significant Yokohama Archives of History Museum. This historical museum was the location of the signing of the Treaty of Kanagawa in 1854 between Japan and the USA. As a result, the historic buildings have been carefully preserved and managed, and the museum was opened in 1981. The museum is dedicated to telling the history of Yokohama as it became one of Japan’s first treaty ports that opened to international trade in the mid 19th Century. This is a great final stop to gain further context on the wonderful city of Yokohama before we head back on the Air Cabin and train to return to Shinjuku.

MEETUP POINT

Outside Shinjuku Station South Gate Baskin ROBBINS @ 09:00am

You will meet your tour guide outside of Shinjuku Station’s South Gate Baskin Robbins. You will recognise the South Gate entrance as it has many ’Lumine 2’ signs across the station entrance building. You will meet your tour guide outside of the Baskin Robbins ice cream shop directly outside of the station entrance. Please look out for the tour guide with a ’Snow Monkey Resorts’ tag. Once everybody has met, we will enter Shinjuku station together to begin the tour.

You will meet your tour guide outside of Shinjuku Station’s South Gate Baskin Robbins. You will recognise the South Gate entrance as it has many ’Lumine 2’ signs across the station entrance building. You can see signs in the left of the second photo above for Baskin Robbins, just past the ’Lumine 2’ sign. You will meet your tour guide outside of the Baskin Robbins ice cream shop directly outside of the station entrance. Please look out for the tour guide with a ’Snow Monkey Resorts’ sign. Once everybody has met, we will enter Shinjuku station together to begin the tour.

NOTES

Included

• Return Train Tickets from Shinjuku Station to Yokohama Station

• Yokohama Air Cabin Round Trip Ticket

• Admission fees for Cupnoodle Museum and Experience, Chinatown Temples/Shrines and Yokohama Archives of History Museum   

• Foot Bath experience 

• Local English speaking guide 

Excluded

• Trains and transport before and after the tour

• Food and drink

OTHER INFORMATION

• Please book this tour as far in advance as possible so that we can make the necessary arrangements. It is advised you book this tour no later than 7 days in advance of your chosen tour date.

• Please note that timings may be subject to change depending on public transport conditions on the day of the tour.

• The Cupnoodles Experience is very popular, and depending on how busy it is we may not be able to do it the same time as visiting the Museum. We may need to return to do the experience later on in the day as our final activity before we depart Yokohama.

• This tour involves several hours of walking in the outdoors. We recommend that you wear shoes and clothes which are easy to walk in. Please check the weather forecast before you head to the meetup point and prepare an umbrella or rain coat if necessary.

• There will be free time during the fish market/ lunch break and Odawara Minaka portion of the tour for guests to enjoy the locations at their own pace. However, please make sure that you are at the respective meetup points at the time stated by your guide on the day of the tour. If you get lost or need assistance, feel free to call the number which is listed on your tour pass, and our staff will assist you immediately.

• Due to this being a walking tour, it is advised that you do not bring any luggage or large bags with you on the tour. It is advised that you check if your hotel can store your luggage for you until after the tour, or you store your luggage at lockers at a suitable location such as selected train stations with appropriate storage. For example, many stations in Tokyo will have lockers, especially the larger train stations such as Ikebukuro, Ueno, Shinjuku, Shibuya and Tokyo. Odawara Station also has coin lockers if needed.