AIZU WAKAMATSU

We gather in Fukushima City, the gateway to the Aizu region, for an evening that sets the tone for our mountain adventure ahead. Depending on your arrival time, there's space to explore the city's quiet charms before we come together for dinner, our first taste of Fukushima's distinctive cuisine and a chance to meet fellow travelers who share your curiosity for Japan's hidden corners.

Included: Dinner, Accommodation

Our journey into Aizu's heart begins at a traditional blacksmith's forge, where we witness the ancient art of sword-making, the rhythmic hammer strikes echoing techniques perfected over centuries when this region armed the samurai who defended it. After lunch at Kawamata's roadside station, sampling local specialties in the casual atmosphere where mountain communities gather, we make a quick detour to one of Fukushima's most wonderfully unexpected attractions: a UFO museum that speaks to the region's penchant for embracing the unconventional. By afternoon, we're climbing into the highlands of Urabandai, a volcanic wonderland born from an 1888 eruption that transformed the landscape into a mosaic of jewel-colored ponds and primeval forests. We settle into our mountain lodge with time to explore the famed Goshiki-numa (Five-Colored Ponds) trail, where mineral-rich waters shimmer in otherworldly blues and greens, or ease into the evening at the natural hot springs fed by the volcanic waters.

Included: Breakfast, Blacksmith visit, UFO Museum, Lunch, Dinner, Accommodation

We descend from the volcanic highlands to Kitakata, a city so devoted to ramen that it boasts more noodle shops per capita than anywhere else in Japan, and it’s not uncommon for locals to start their day with a bowl. Today we don't just eat the famous Kitakata ramen, we learn to make it ourselves and then get to tuck into it for lunch. The afternoon unfolds through layers of Aizu's samurai heritage: the spiraling wooden corridors of Sazaedo Temple, an architectural marvel where ascending and descending pilgrims never cross paths, followed by the commanding presence of Tsuruga Castle, reconstructed symbol of Aizu's fierce loyalty during the final days of the shogunate. We check into Shosuke no Yado, a traditional ryokan where we can ease into the evening with hot spring baths, preparing for a kaiseki dinner that showcases the mountain and valley bounty of Aizu.

Included: Breakfast, Ramen making class with lunch, Temple and castle entry, Dinner, Accommodation

Our final day ventures deeper into Aizu's mountain heart, where Ouchi-juku awaits — a miraculously preserved Edo-period post town where thatched-roof houses line an ancient highway once travelled by feudal lords and merchants. Wandering these atmospheric lanes, now filled with craft shops and soba restaurants where noodles are famously eaten with a single leek stalk, you'll feel transported to the Japan of woodblock prints and samurai processions. We pause for lunch among these historic buildings before continuing to Tonohetsuri, a dramatic river gorge where volcanic rock has been carved by eons of rushing water into pinnacles and caverns draped in greenery, crossed by a precarious suspension bridge that offers views into the gorge's mysterious depths. From this final glimpse of Aizu's raw natural beauty, we make our way to Shin-Shirakawa Station, carrying memories of a region where tradition isn't performed but lived, where mountains still shape culture, and where Japan's unconventional spirit thrives far from the well-trodden paths.

Included: Breakfast, Ouchi-juku entry, Lunch, Tenohetsuri entry

Fukushima and Shirakawa Stations are easily accessible by Shinkansen.

Tokyo: roughly 1.5 hours

Kyoto: 3.5-4 hours with a transfer in Tokyo

Osaka: roughly 4 hours with a transfer in Tokyo