By TSUKASA FUKE/ Staff Writer
January 28, 2020 at 07:00 JST
The luxury tour will conclude with a farewell party at the Kashino Club in the Hiroshima district of Matsushige, Tokushima Prefecture. (Tsukasa Fuke)
TOKUSHIMA--Indigo dyeing, high-end cuisine, samurai armor you can try on--Tokushima Prefecture boasts an array of traditional and cultural charms that have now been united into an all-in-one tour.
For those with deep enough pockets.
The three-day, two-night luxury tour costs 1.2 million yen ($10,900) per person, with the first scheduled for March.
The "Tokushima Golden Plan 2020," aimed at reviving traditional Awa region culture that started with indigo dyeing," was developed by East Tokushima DMO, a tourism and community development entity based in the eastern part of the prefecture.
Participants can gain hands-on experience in a natural indigo lye fermentation method handed down since the Edo Period (1603-1867) to make a bandana at the Hon-Aizome Yano Kojo factory in Aizumi.
The Ryotei Shimada restaurant in Tokushima will be rented out for participants to enjoy fine food and flower arrangements from traditional culture cultivated by indigo merchants.
At the Tokushima Castle Omote-Goten Garden and neighboring Tokushima Castle Museum, visitors can suit up in samurai armor or kimono to pose as feudal lords and princesses and enjoy traditional "wagashi" confectionery and tea served in "Yusan-bako" (picnic lunchbox).
They will be encouraged to take the stage with female Awa Odori dancers at the Awaodori Kaikan hall in Tokushima.
The fun does not stop there.
Participants will have the Otsuka Museum of Art in Naruto all to themselves, and then dine in the Sistine Hall while listening to a string quartet.
A cruise ship will be chartered to take them to see the Naruto whirlpools up close.
Participants will stay both nights at Hotel Ridge in Naruto, with an Awa-style "ningyo joruri" puppetry show presented by the Seinen-za troupe in the evening.
The luxury tour will conclude with a farewell party at the Kashino Club in Matsushige, which is recognized as a tangible cultural property by the central government.
"It is a travel product that unites the charms of local communities and offers an incredible experience for wealthy tourists from the United States, Europe, Australia and other areas," said Koichi Tamura, a senior member of East Tokushima DMO. "It will also foster confidence and pride among residents."
The tour is scheduled for March 11-13. A minimum of 10 people is required, with a maximum of 20.
For more information, visit the official website (https://www.east-tokushima.jp/en/).
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