Home > Tours > Traditional Culture > Authentic Japanese tea tasting at a tea plantation with a view of passing steam trains
Could this be the only place in the world to catch this sight? Enjoy the tea of Japan at the plantation itself while steam trains pass by!
Why not taste authentic Japanese tea in Japan's most famous tea production area of Shizuoka?
In this experience, you get to try out tea picking at the 300 year old "Sakyoen" tea estate, get a manufacturing plant tour, indulge in the freshest of tea tasting, and cross Horai Bridge (Horaibashi), which is Guiness certified as “the world's longest wooden footbridge” (total length 897.4m) at a place a 15-minute drive from Sakyoen. Please note that the tea picking experience is limited to May, June, and September, with tea plantation tours offered at other times.
Sakyoen is a tea plantation in Kanaya and Shimada City (more like a town) areas of Shizuoka Prefecture, renown not just for tea, but for steam trains too. Sakyoen has a heritage spanning over 13 generations and 300 years, since the Edo era. Over this time, Sakyoen has been focused on the development of Japanese tea, harvest, and manufacturing. Experience freshness at hand, in the midst of a tea plantation that steam trains run alongside. The painstaking and dedicated work of tea production shows itself in the product, where a sweet scent graces each tea leaf. By all means, don’t pass up this opportunity to taste the best of Japanese tea at the source.
Horaibashi, crossing the Oigawa River, is a wooden footbridge with a length of 897.4 meters, and a width of 2.4 meters. As a valuable historical landmark, it is a tourist spot that represents the Shizuoka Prefecture and draws a large number of tourists. Famous as one of the few pedestrian toll bridges in the country, in 1997 it was recognized by the UK’s Guinness as "the wooden footbridge which boasts the longest length of the world." Also referred to as a "bridge of longevity," there is popular folklore associated with the bridge.
＜Schedule＞
1. Drive up to tea plantations from Kanaya Station, 15 minutes
2. Tea picking in tea garden (tour), 45 minutes
3. Tea plantations to Sakyo Garden transfer, 5 minutes
4. Factory tour and tasting at Sakyo Garden (break), 60 minutes
5. Transfer from Sakyo Gardens to Horai Bridge, 20 minutes
6. Bridge crossing experience at Horai Bridge, 30 minutes
7. Transfer from Horai Bridge to Shimada Station, 5 minutes
・Tea plantation tour and tea picking experience (as the season permits).
・Commemorative photograph of the steam train passing by the plantation.
・Tea manufacturing factory tour and manufacturing process commentary.
・Garden-fresh “new” (just produced) tea tasting.
・Crossing of the world’s longest wooden footbridge, the "Horai Bridge."
・Experience timing is subject to change depending on Sakyo Gardens restrictions, so please contact us in advance.
・The tea picking experience is limited to May, June, and September, with tea plantation tours offered at other times.
| Price | From ¥11,000 / person / ¥11,000 for 2 persons or more |
|---|---|
| Duration | 3 hours (approx.) |
| Hours of availability | 11:00-16:00 |
| Inclusions | ・English interpretation and guide |
| Exclusions | ・Snacks & drinks |
| Participants | 2-4 people |
JR "Kanaya" station ticket gate
Tour end location: JR "Shimada" station south exit
Hans and Jana（Japan ）★★★★★
Japanese Tea Tastung at a Tea Plantation with a view of passing Steam Locomotive
It was a wonderful tour and we enjoyed the time at the family Sakyoen.
We were very impressed about our Guide Hiroyo-San and her kind-fullness. We had so much fun when Tea-picking and we sang a original Japanese Tea-picking-Song. Thank you so much to Hiroyo!
Michael（Germany ）★★★★★
Great green tea!!
Drinking great green tea is a pleasure. Yet understanding which steps are needed to make such a well-tasting drink with the tea leaves plants make the experience even better. Hence, we decided to do the tea tour to learn more about the process of growing, harvesting and processing the tea leaves to be able to sip a great cup of tea. We came with curiosity and many questions for the tea farmer (Yuichiro) and interpreter (Akiyo) that showed us around. Yuichiro showed us his tea plant fields and answered us all questions we had regarding the technical and economical aspects of tea production. We even had the chance to visit his home to have a tea tasting and to see the „production line“ (it‘s a small family production) for tea. We highly recommend doing this tour, it was a great experience, we really enjoyed the hospitality and enthusiasm of our host(s) and guide(s)!
