Day Tour from Kanazawa: Gold Leaf, Japanese Sweets and Ninja Star
Description
The city of Kanazawa, with its beautiful gardens, historic districts and delicious local foods, is more than just the sights within it. Why not get hands-on experience with Japanese and local cultural activities while exploring some of the lesser visited areas along with some the popular ones. The area is famous for its traditional crafts such as gold leaf, Japanese sweets, pottery, kimono-making, etc. On this tour you can try out using gold leaf, making Japanese sweets and also getting a chance at throwing two different types of ninja stars. If you are someone who wants to dive deeper into the culture of the city while walking around the city, this is the tour for you. Led by one of our local English-speaking tour guides, you will do three different workshops and see some of the sights that don’t normally make it onto the main Kanazawa tours. Experience the other side of this wonderful, beautiful and traditional city.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Enjoy the contrast between the modern high-rises with the older buildings as we walk towards the market.
Prepare to spend an hour meticulously placing gold on your plate. Don't worry about mistakes, the professional assistants can fix just about anything!
Higashi Chayamachi, encountering an old style bridge and a former temple district in the hills.
Start the Japanese Sweets Making Experience. Enjoy making the sweets you have been eating with matcha during your stay in Japan. There are a few different kinds so you can try a variety of tastes and textures.
Walk through many different sites on your way to the final area. This includes stops at Ishiura Shrine, outdoor art, D.T. Suzuki Museum and Shofukaku before entering the Temple District on the west side of the city.
Here we will walk the back way to Nishichaya District through this area that contains many temples. Enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of these, at times, maze-like streets that have existed for centuries.
Learn more about ninjas and try throwing two different types of throwing stars at the Ninja Museum
Arrive in the Nishi Chayamachi area. The other main geisha area of the city, enjoy the atmosphere before heading into the Ninja Weapons Museum. Here you can learn more about ninjas and try the throwing star experience.
The final stop of the tour before heading back is the nightlife area of the city. There are some interesting streets that look straight out of an old 1970's film. Feel free to stay here and have dinner or head back to the station with the guide.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- All listed events, activities, and experiences are subject to availability. Please note that while certain tour options may appear bookable through our platforms, this does not guarantee that every experience can be carried out as scheduled in the tour itinerary. Many activities require direct confirmation with our partner venues, and availability may vary based on the date and other factors. Should any part of your ordered itinerary require adjustment or deviation from the original schedule, or if a specific experience is unavailable, we will contact you promptly to discuss suitable alternatives or amendments.
Reviews(6)
I had an amazing day with Zack he was very a good interpret, had a lot of knowledge about the city, and good recommandation. Big tour city and unforgetable expérience
A great experience walking experience to see the sights of kanazawa. The tour guide Daniel was friendly and informative. The group size was small so departure from all stops was punctual. This trip is suited for everyone to have an experience only Kanazawa can provide.
We walked about 8 miles and covered soooo much of the area. I REALLY liked the activities- the ninja star and spike throwing, the gold foil, and making our OWN sweet Japanese treats. These activities added so much to the tour. Definitely would recommend!
Amazing experience. The museum is located at the top with a nice selection of qeapnns and armor. At the bottom there's teh store, and at the back the thrwoing shuriken experience which I super fun. Chinatsu was super friendly. 5 stars.
Mike was great, and this tour had some of everything! He knew his subject matter and was relaxed and conversational sharing the history of the neighborhoods, shrines, and hidden gardens we strolled. Mike kept the pace comfortable for a slow person like me. Who knew I could enjoy 20k steps in a day. The walking was nicely interspersed with stops for a project with gold leaf, sweet making, and the ninja museum with star throwing. Each of these was well done and a lot of fun. I also appreciated Mike pointing out the types of places to eat that I said I would like. For example, I said I would like to try wagyu but on a budget, so he showed me a butcher in the market that sells grilled wagyu skewers - i ate there today and it was as good as a dream. He also showed me a gyoza place; I will try that tomorrow. On the day of my tour, he pointed out several options that would suit me for lunch. The one I settled on had Japanese pancakes that were like a souffle. Delicious. Wish I could give this more than 5 stars
The day tour was really fun! Our guide Garrett was very nice, he took us around Kanazawa getting the most out of the city best spots and walking through less known streets to see things we could not really discover otherwise while always giving a lot of information. All while doing very nice activities which we really like, especially the gold leaf lab! Thanks again for this very enjoyable day tour recommended to anyone visiting the city of Kanazawa!
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to review us! It makes our day to know that you could have fun exploring some lesser known (but amazing) places Kanazawa has to offer. We understand that a tour guide can truly enhance the experience, and we're so glad Garrett went above and beyond. We really appreciate your support, and we hope to see you again in the future! Snow Monkey Resorts
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