& Disney Parks Summer School Break Tour#1 Tokyo, Kamakura, , & Disney Parks

May 31st – June 8th, 2021 7nts/9days from: $2495 double/triple $2995 single Cancel for any reason up to 60 days prior-FULL REFUND!

Maximum Tour size is 24 tour members!

Birds’ Eye View of Tokyo Tsukiji Fish Market Tokyo Disneyland

Join us on this fun filled 7-night Tokyo & Disney Parks Tour.

Tokyo, a that prides itself on constant renewal and reinvention; it seriously never gets old. It has everything you can ask of a city, and has it in spades: a rich, cosmopolitan dining scene, more cafes, and bars than you could visit in a lifetime, fantastic public transport, and grassy parks – plus it's clean and safe. Really, what's not to love?

We begin with 3 nights close by to the Disney Parks and then 4 nights at the Sunshine City Prince Hotel, in Ikebukuro, one of ’s top downtown areas. Dotted with large department stores, restaurants and direct access to the Sunshine City Mall, there’s never a dull moment. By the way, there’s one complete free day to shop till you drop or sightsee on your own!

More yet, a visit to Kamakura, home to the Great Buddha, The Cup Noodles Museum for a hand-on experience, TeamLab Borderless, a world of artworks without boundaries and the recently opened Shibuya Sky.

The favorites, Tsukiji Outer Market, Ameyoko Market, and the largest Daiso in Tokyo to enjoy traditional shopping and experience Japanese culture at its best are included.

Besides a day each at Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea, on the historical side, visits to Tokyo Museum and Meiji Jingu Shrine. The highlight of visiting Meiji on a weekend, you can witness the pageantry of a traditional Japanese wedding procession.

Itinerary/Details

Day 1 – May 31st, 2021 Monday – Depart from Honolulu

Hawaiian Airlines #863 Departs Honolulu 1:40 pm – Arrive Haneda 5:10 pm + 1

Check in for international flights begin 3 hours prior. Please meet the Panda Travel representative at the Hawaiian Airlines check-in counters located in Terminal 2, Lobby 4.

Day 2 – June 1st, 2021 Tuesday – Haneda-Disney Parks Area

On arrival in Tokyo, please make your way to the baggage claim area and then proceed to customs clearing. On exiting customs, our local guide will be there to meet us for the drive to our family friendly hotel, Hotel Mystays Maihama, close by to Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea.

After check-in, if you would like to pick up something to eat or maybe a head start on shopping, meet your guide in the lobby for the short walk over to Ikspiari, a popular shopping mall with many dining options. Nearer to the hotel is a Larson’s convenience store.

Accommodations: Hotel Mystays Maihama free

Day 3 – June 2nd, 2021 Wednesday – Tokyo Disneyland (B)

After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby at the designated time as we are off to Tokyo Disneyland. While the hotel offers a complimentary shuttle, our guide will arrange for taxis to take us there.

For the return, on your own, you can either take the hotel’s shuttle, walk, or take a taxi. Our guide will provide you with the shuttle schedule. The taxi back to the hotel is approximately $8-$10 and can accommodate up to 4 persons. The walk back is approximately 20-minutes.

Enjoy your day at Tokyo Disneyland!

Accommodations: Hotel Mystays Maihama free

Day 4 – June 3rd, 2021 Thursday – Tokyo Disney Sea (B)

After breakfast, please meet guide in the lobby at the designated time as we are off to Tokyo Disney Sea. It is a short distance away, less than 10-minutes. We will be walking over.

On your return, you can either take the hotel shuttle or walk back. Enjoy your day at Tokyo Disney Sea!

Accommodations: Hotel Mystays Maihama free

Day 4 – June 4th, 2021 Friday – Disney-Kamakura-Yokohama-Tokyo (B)

After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 9:00am. We bid our good-byes to the Disney Parks and off to explore.

The morning begins with a drive to Kamakura, once the political center of Japan, when Minamoto Yoritomo chose the city as the seat for his new military government in 1192. The Kamakura government continued to rule Japan for over a century. It remained the center of Eastern Japan for some time before losing its position to other .

Today, Kamakura is a very popular tourist destination. Sometimes called the of Eastern Japan, Kamakura offers numerous temples, shrines, and other historical monuments.

Once here we will be visiting the Great Buddha of Kamakura, a bronze statue of Amida Buddha, which stands on the grounds of Kotokuin Temple. With a height of 13.35 meters, it is the second tallest bronze Buddha statue in Japan.

The statue was cast in 1252 and originally located inside a large temple hall. However, the temple buildings were destroyed multiple times by typhoons and a tidal wave in the 14th and 15th centuries. So, since 1495, the Buddha has been standing in the open air.

The Great Buddha rises serenely from its base, with gorgeously draped garments that you can hardly believe are forged from bronze. The serene expression is so evident; you feel the peace the artists intended to convey. The Great Buddha of Kotoku-in is an iconic image that represents Japanese culture. It is not just big, but beautiful.

This Great Buddha or as is commonly called is a National Treasure and one of the centerpieces of the city's cultural heritages.

For a small donation, you are permitted enter the Buddha and see from the inside how it was cast. Take a few moments to enjoy this unique experience.

Just steps away is Komachi dori shopping street where you will have free time to walk around, shop for souvenirs and enjoy some delicious snacks and foods. This is a good spot for lunch on your own.

One must stop here is at Kamakura’s famous cookie store for a sample. These dove-shaped butter cookies make for a great Kamakura souvenir and omiyage gift.

The dove motif was inspired by the plaque above the main prayer hall at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine, where the character for "Hachi" is shaped to look like a dove.

Kotokuin Temple Great Buddha of Kamakura Komachi dori shopping street

On our way to Tokyo, a stop in Yokohama to visit an always favorite, CUPNOODLES Museum. The museum shows the history of instant ramen noodles using a combination of exhibits and hands-on workshops. It was opened by the Nissin Food Company, whose founder invented instant ramen noodles in 1958 as a fast and convenient food.

Enjoy time to walk around, a short film introducing the history of instant noodles, together with unconventional exhibits such as a replica of the shed where instant noodles were invented and a visual timeline of instant noodle products from around the world. A small collection of modern art pieces is also on display.

No visit here is complete without experiencing the hand-on workshop where you can create your own original cup noodle by mixing and matching a variety of soup flavors and toppings as well as designing your own cup.

Feeling a little hungry, drop by the Noodles Bazaar Food Court, designed to look like an Asian night market complete with the hawkers and traffic. The noodles bazaar serves eight different noodle dishes and canned drinks from around the world. The small portions cost 300 yen and are a fun way to sample a variety of flavors.

CUPNOODLES Museum Noodles Bazaar Food Court

We now make our way to Tokyo and our hotel, arrival by 5:15pm. The remainder of the afternoon and evening is free. If you are not familiar with the Ikebukuro area, the Panda Travel escort will set a meeting time for a short walking tour.

The lobby of the hotel connects to a huge shopping and entertainment mecca with four towers, including a 240-meter-high skyscraper with an observation deck on the top. Sunshine City is typically open from 10 am to 8 pm seven days a week. We are also less than a 10-minute walk from the Ikebukuro JR Station. The third floor of the mall is practically all restaurants and stays open until 9:30pm.

There is 24-hour Family Mart convenience store right off the lobby in case you would like to pick up food, snacks, or beverages. Within a 5-minute walk is a 24-hour supermarket, Seiyu, in case all you want is a light dinner bento to bring back to the room.

While most of the mall stores will be closing by 8:00pm, the third floor offers a variety of dining and the restaurants are typically open until 9:30pm.

Sunshine City Prince Hotel & lobby Family Mart in hotel lobby

Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel Free

Day 5 – June 5th, 2021 Saturday –Tokyo (B/L)

After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 8:30am as we are off on a full day tour of Tokyo.

The morning begins with a stop at Tsukiji Fish Market which has the distinct honor of being the world's largest seafood market. While the inner auction market has moved to a new location, this popular outer market is alive and well.

If you’re a foodie, love markets, enjoy photography – or simply like visiting unique places – then you’ll probably love Tsukiji.

We will remain here for 1.5 hr. so that you have ample time to walk around and enjoy the outer market, visit knife-making artisan shops, tasting candies, nuts, and spices, and learning more about seasonal produce in Tokyo.

After a good stroll around the market, there’s nothing like a sushi breakfast to complete the experience. There are plenty of sushi shops – make sure to choose one where you see locals dining. If you don’t feel like sushi, there are other options including ramen, donburi and more.

Tsukiji Fish Market

From here we are off to Ueno and Ameyoko Shopping Street, famous throughout Japan for its wide variety of products.

The name "Ameyoko" is a short form for "Ameya Yokocho" (candy store alley), as candies were traditionally sold there. Alternatively, "Ame" also stands for "America", because a lot of American products used to be available there when the street was the site of a black market in the years following WWII.

You can get just about EVERYTHING here, clothes, bags, cosmetics, fresh fish, dried squid, and spices are sold along Ameyoko. It is quite the scene to just walk around through the very crowded and narrow streets. An awesome place to sightsee, shop and eat! Enjoy some free time here to explore on your own.

Ameyoko- best spot to find omiyage items

Lunch time and we are off to enjoy a buffet at a local restaurant.

This afternoon, a visit to Meiji Jinju Shrine, located right in the middle of one of Tokyo`s most popular areas is an amazing urban oasis, Meiji Jingu. It is a shrine that is dedicated to the souls of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shoken. After the Emperor’s death in 1912, the Japanese Diet passed a resolution to commemorate his role in the and the construction of a shrine where his soul would be enshrined was undertaken. The area around an iris garden in Tokyo where Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken had been known to visit was chosen as the building’s location. With the passing of the resolution, construction began in 1915, formally dedicated in 1920 and finished in 1926. When you enter the grounds of the shrine, probably the first thing that will get your attention is the, “” (the traditional gate to a ) you pass under. It is enormous and majestic, completely impossible to miss. There are three torii in total between the Harajuku entrance and the main building. But once you pass under the first one, you enter the forest which blocks out the sights and sounds of the city. While walking along the path to the shrine you will pass huge barrels of . These barrels are donated every year by Meiji Jingu Nationwide Sake Brewers Association to the enshrined deities at the shrine, and they make for a great photo opportunity for the visitor. About five minutes past the sake barrels you`ll come to the entrance of the main shrine area, from where you can see the Mode Gakuen building far behind in the distance. The two buildings really contrast each other. Mode Gakuen, an icon of the modern age – and Meiji Jingu an icon of ages past, but still relevant in the modern era as it one of the main places for News Years prayers and is still very culturally important. Being that it is a Saturday, enjoy seeing a Shinto wedding procession in front of the main building. You won’t be able to see an actual wedding ceremony itself, but the processions are very impressive. They are quite solemn, led by the priests and miko (women or girls who assist in the ceremonies), and the bride and groom walk under a large red parasol.

Meiji Shrine and wedding procession

Now, back to our hotel, arrival by 3:30pm and the remainder of the afternoon and evening is free.

Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel Free

Day 6 – June 6th, 2021 Sunday –Tokyo (B)

After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 9:00am as we are off on another touring day of Tokyo.

The morning begins with a visit to the Edo Tokyo Museum, a permanent exhibition that vividly illustrates the Tokyo of past (known as Edo until 1869). Through its exhibits and interactive way, you can experience and learn about various aspects of earlier Tokyo, the way of life, architecture, culture, and political climate. Through numerous models of towns, figurines and life-sized figures, the museum makes it interesting to find out about how towns were constructed in the past.

From here, we are off to spend some quality time at Tokyo’s largest Daiso at Alcakit Kinshicho, one of the largest shopping malls in the region, right beside the JR Kinshicho Station. This Daiso takes up an entire floor and when you see it, the only words imaginable will be “Oh my gosh, this place is HUGE!”. Enjoy free time here for shopping and lunch on your own.

This afternoon, a visit to Asakusa, the traditional, low-rise, down, and dirty Tokyo of yesteryear. Although on the surface it is ye olde Japan, this was the first part of the capital to have significant western influence. It was even the site of Japan’s first cinema.

Attractions in the area include one of Tokyo’s most historic temples – Sensoji, and the impressive Kaminarimon Gate that marks the entranceway to the temple. Also, you cannot miss Phillip Stark’s ‘Golden Poo’ on the roof of the nearby Asahi Breweries headquarters.

Sensoji Temple dates to 645, but with the original destroyed in the air raids of 1945, today’s building is a 1958 reconstruction. At the top of the steps, as a mark of respect, clap twice and bow your head. It’s also customary to make a small offering by tossing coins into the wooden rack.

The Five Storied Pagoda was built in 1973 and amongst others; it stands in honor of comedians! Standing 54 meters high, reinforced with concrete and steel, and like all pagodas, running down the center is a giant pillar of Japanese Cypress tree wood.

Once through the gate you will be in Nakamise Shopping Arcade. The street is lined with colorful, lively stalls selling traditional knick- knacks, festival foods and rice crackers. There are over 50 shops along this shopping street. No worry, you will have time to shop and enjoy lunch on your own.

Asakusa, Sensoji Temple

Now, back to our hotel, arrival by 4:00pm and the remainder of the afternoon and evening is free.

Accommodations: Sunshine City Prince Hotel Free

Day 7 – June 7th, 2021 Monday – Tokyo (B)

After breakfast, enjoy a complete free day in Tokyo to do whatever you please. There is still much to enjoy and quite a bit to do right at your doorstep.

Ikebukuro offers plenty of entertainment, shopping, and dining opportunities. It is the battle ground between the Tobu and Seibu conglomerates which operate large department stores on each side of the station. Recently it has also seen fierce competition from two of Japan's largest electronic retailers, Bic Camera and Yamada Denki.

Enjoy time at Sunshine City, a huge shopping mall connected to our hotel. It has four towers including a 240-meter-high skyscraper with an observation deck on the top. The main tower is the second highest building in Tokyo. The Sunshine City Prince Hotel is housed in one of the smaller towers at the complex. The lower levels of Sunshine City are a monstrous maze of shops and tourist attractions, as well as a theatre.

Two recent additions to the mall include a Mega Pokémon store as well as Snoopy Town.

The tower’s elevator is an attraction, being the fastest in the world it takes only thirty-five seconds to reach the top. The highlight of the ride would have to be the illuminated dolphins and unicorns, ambient music and beautifully dressed lift operators making the trip to the top an interesting journey.

The center opened in 1978 and is Tokyo’s oldest “City within a City”. It sits on land that was once occupied by Sugamo Prison.

The Sunshine International Aquarium is a popular attraction where there are plenty of great underwater exhibits to entertain the whole family. There are the usual sharks, stingrays, tropical fish and sea life, but the most popular exhibits are the penguins, seals and sea otters which are well worth the entry fee. The aquarium sits on the 10th Floor, which gives it the title of the world’s highest aquarium.

There are feedings at the aquarium every hour and one of the largest tanks holds over 120 tons of water. The seals do performances during the day.

Another great family attraction is the planetarium, where you can learn about the solar system and the universe. The Cosmic Safari takes visitors on a journey to see the wonders in outer space.

The Bunka Kaikan building is home to the Ancient Orient Museum which has an amazing collection of artifacts and is well worth a look.

The Sunshine City complex is also home to the Namco Namja Town. Namja Town is a collection of food theme parks and other interesting dining establishments. The centre has a series of kittens as mascots and there are plenty of them to choose from in the gift shop. Some of the food parks include Ice Cream City and the Tokyo Dessert Republic. Then for the Gyoza lover, there is Ikebukuro Gyoza stadium, the list goes on with dozens of tasty attractions. There is a small fee to enter the complex and then the fun begins. There are various carnival amusements at Namja town too, like a haunted house, merry-go- round, and video shooting games. Make sure you go hungry as there is so much to try across the two jammed packed floors of food and adventure.

One store no visitor to Japan should miss is Tokyu Hands, a shop that can only be described as a cross between a hardware store and a hobby shop. It is a great place for gift shopping, as many of the items for sale can’t be found outside Japan. This store is one of their largest.

Accommodations: Sunshine Prince Hotel Free

Day 8 – June 8th, 2021 Tuesday – Tokyo-Haneda (B)

It is our last day in Japan, but we will be making the best of each minute until our arrival at the Haneda Airport later this evening.

After breakfast, please meet your guide in the lobby by 9:30am.

The morning begins with a visit Shibuya Scramble Square, a new landmark facing the world-famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing. It is without a doubt the busiest and most iconic pedestrian crossing in the world and we will be part of the action. After the crossing, it is off to Shibuya Sky, the new 360° open-air observation deck with unobstructed views of Tokyo’s skyline.

In addition to the breathtaking views, the rooftop also features hammocks for cloud watching and an observation compass to help you identify major landmarks in the distance, Tokyo Tower, Tokyo Stadium and even Mt Fuji, on a clear day.

On your way down, enjoy free time to explore any of the 212 shops, ranging from skincare to fashion, hone décor, books, groceries, and electronics. There is something here for every shopper. We will be visiting here for 2-hours. You may want to have something to eat here.

While in the area, a must stop is at one of Japan’s unofficial landmarks, the Hachiko statute, a homage to the faithful Akita dog. He waited at Shibuya Station every day for his master, even after his death. Today, it is one of the most popular meeting places in Tokyo.

Now, off to Odaiba that begins with quite an experience, visiting TeamLab Borderless, a world of art without boundaries, a museum without a map. Immerse yourself in borderless art, this vast, complex, three-dimensional 10,000 square meter world. Wander, explore and discover. Enjoy a leisurely 2-hour stay here.

Close by, Divercity Shopping Center where you can enjoy time for shopping and either a late lunch or early dinner on your own. Don’t forget to take a moment and get a photo in front of the Gundam Statue. This new Unicorn Gundam is 24 meters in height whereas the original was only 18 meters.

Now, off to the Haneda Airport and begin our check-in process for the flight home.

Hawaiian Airlines #864 Departs Haneda 8:15 pm – Arrive Honolulu 8:50 am