Culture & Religion

Gain deep insight into the beliefs, values, and customs of the local people of Japan as you take part in a range of courses, from encountering the spiritual through the Hakusan Faith with its venerable history of 1,300 years in pilgrimage, to exploring the significant and indispensable ways water features in the lives of Gujo Hachiman and Ogaki residents.

Area Map

Experience Content

Hidden Charms: Uncovered Wonders of the Hida Region

Go beneath the surface, right into the heart of the lesser known gems of the Hida Region from Takayama City, to Hida City, to Shirakawa-go, and finally, Gero City in this special tour made convenient and very accessible by car.

North Gifu

Reveries of Wedded Bliss: Wedding Photoshoot at Japanese Traditional Town Takayama

A picture is worth a thousand words. Preserve your precious wedding moments into a series of everlasting photos taken in the dreamy Japanese Fairytale Village Shirakawa-go. Begin eternal memories of your wedded bliss right here, right now.

North Gifu

Reveries of Wedded Bliss: Wedding Photoshoot at Japanese Fairytale Village Shirakawa-go

A picture is worth a thousand words. Preserve your precious wedding moments into a series of everlasting photos taken in Takayama. Begin eternal memories of your wedded bliss right here, right now.

North Gifu

Intertwinings of Sake and Culture: Experience Hida Furukawa

Invigorate your senses as you experience the way of life in the mountains of Hida Furukawa, and how it connects and blesses people across generations.

North Gifu

Vitality Unending: Gujo Hachiman Town Guided Walking Tour

From the scenic Igawa Lane with its vivid, well-loved and well-fed carp, to a spectacle of energetic, lively Gujo Odori moves, to the grand Yoshida River that children leap into for respite from summer's sweltering heat. Feel vitality unending for yourself, bubbling just beneath the surface here in Gifu's Town of Water.

Central Gifu

Life Springs Eternal: Hakusan Culture Pilgrimage 1-day Tour

Enter the sanctuary of the Hakusan Shinko (Hakusan Faith), and encounter the spiritual culture of Japan from ancient times as you make your pilgrimage in honorable shiroshozoku (white robes).

Central Gifu

Life Springs Eternal: Hakusan Culture Half-day Tour

Enter the sanctuary of the Hakusan Shinko (Hakusan Faith), originating from Mount Hakusan, one of Japan's Three Holy Mountains. A guide will show you the ins and outs of correct etiquette when visiting a shrine, and walk you through powerspots and local sites of Important Cultural Properties of Japan. You will also receive blessings from the chief Shinto priest during your visit.

Central Gifu

Minowashi Unfurled: Create Your Original Japanese Paper with a Master Craftsman

Enwrap yourself in the fine art, history, and process of traditional Japanese papermaking. Put your knowledge to practice as a master craftsman guides you with creation from kozo (paper mulberry) to fine Minowashi.

Central Gifu

Lessons Where I’m From: Japanese preschool education and cultural activities at Oblige International Preschool

Here at Gifu City’s Oblige International Preschool, experience firsthand how traditional Japanese culture is fostered through education.

Central Gifu

Traversing Time and Taste: Nakatsugawa-juku walking course and Japanese tea tasting paired with traditional seasonal sweets

Walk parts of the historical Nakasendo at Nakatsugawa-juku and go back in time to the Edo period. Spend a moment traversing time and taste with a delightful range of Japanese tea and kurikinton here, just like the travelers of old.

Southeast Gifu

Journey to the Past: Customize Your Nakasendo Hike (with guide and car)

Embark on a special journey along the Nakasendo Trail (also known as the Samurai Trail for its regular use by Shogun rulers traveling with samurai guards) tailor-made just for you.

Southeast Gifu

Revolving Stages, Involving Roles: Star in a Country Kabuki Play – trip to Tsukechi Gorge and lunch included

All the world's a stage, and this one has a role with your name on it! Check out one of Gifu's treasured local specialties, ji-kabuki, or country kabuki, distinct from other types of kabuki for its down-to-earth atmosphere and strong connection to the local community.

Southeast Gifu

Poetry in Motion: Mizu-manju making, masu making, sake brewery and tasting tour in Ogaki

Experience it all for yourself here, where folk tales are born of, that speak of the intimate connection between the lives of the local people and the sustenance afforded by water.

Southwest Gifu

Heavenly Promenades: Tea harvesting at Gifu’s Machu Picchu, Kaidan Meguri at Tanigumi-san Kegon-ji Temple

Harvest tea leaves and stroll through the lush, verdant tea fields of the Kamigare Tea Plantation in Kasuga Village, Ibigawa Town, a little-known region dubbed "Gifu's Machu Picchu".