A very busy trip. Lots to see and do along the way.
You need to be fit and active to complete the site seeing due to the number of steep stairs encountered as you get to the top of the ancient castles.
Plenty of Japanese food, raw fish, individual BBQs, Ramen etc.
Well coordinated by the travel company as getting a group to the correct rail wasn't aways easy at busy stations.
Meet some good fellow travellers (mostly from Oz !)
Could have done with some extra days at the end to unwind and see more of Sapporo ( our train was delayed due to wind and rain- the only bad weather we had during our 21 day trip !)
Loved Japan can't wait to return soon !

The question about recommending this holiday is really difficult to answer. We enjoyed it and Wendy Woo are a great holiday company, which we've used before. But there were too many visits to temples and shrines for our liking, too many early starts and too much Japanese food, which wasn't always very tasty. I appreciate that you should embrace the culture, but the culinary balance wasn't quite right for us (and a few others in our group). The itinerary clearly showed what we'd be doing each day, and it was certainly a full on holiday packed with things to see and do. If you're going to Japan I suppose it's best to see as much of it as possible as it's such a long journey, but it was a bit exhausting (mainly because of the early starts, 0800 most mornings). The tour guides were very good, and there's plenty of other interesting things on the schedule. We loved the Japanese culture, cleanliness and overall feel about Japan.

Hoishi took great care of us for 23 days, 24 hours a day with nothing to much trouble, I will remember her and Japan for a long time, the Japanese are so proud of their country and have much respect for everyone which cemented the greatest holiday.
We had a trip of a lifetime visiting great places and making memories which will last a lifetime

Thank you Hoishi and Wendy woo

We attended a roadshow and committed to our first tour with Wendy Wu. Been wanting to go to Japan for a long time. The staff were friendly and the presentation was informative and interesting.

Ancient Empires of China & Japan
This a fairly fast paced tour but a good way to see the best of the two countries in a short time.
Hotels were generally good but located out of town so not much nearby. All hotels had WiFi and kettles, and most had fridges. The schedule was pretty full so there was little free time to wander round alone for shopping, drinks etc - especially in China. However there was usually a small general store nearby for snacks and sundries.
Guides in both countries (Ian in China and Nao in Japan) were knowledgeable and spoke good English. There were optional activities in China at each place we stopped - they were all excellent but you need to budget for them (about £30 each person per event). The advice in Wendy Wu regarding AliPay and eSims are worth reading. I used a Holafly eSim - great in China but not such good coverage in Japan. I was able to use my social apps normally in China via the eSim.
In China, as part of the tour, the local guides will take you to "approved" stores attached to varoius cultural activities such as silk making; teracotta army, jade factory etc etc. Be prepared for a hard sell (I guess the local guides get a cut); the prices are very negotiable and if you want to buy something there you should aim to pay 40-50% (or less if you are a good haggler) of the initial asking price
Alipay is universally accepted and is the easiest way to pay, although Mastercard was accepted in larger premises. Cash was also widely accepted.
Food was ok - nothing too extreme although the veggies suffered a bit from lack of choice, especially in Japan. Fortunately they ate fish, otherwise it would have been an austere diet for them.
Be prepared for some long days with plenty of walking and a bit of stair climbing. And a lot of eating - the tour caters for 3 meals a day !

First class advice and information over the phond .

An excellent two weeks with a real mix of accommodation, an excellent guide Yumi and some great sights. Mount Fuji on a clear day, lots of gorgeous snow monkeys, onsen baths with ryokans, even a night in a Buddhist monastery.

No fuss, and a faultless 'Discover Japan Tour'.
They did what they said they would do. A1 5Stars.
We booked rather late leaving just 6 weeks preperation.
My only comment would be, a little more guidence would be good regarding the advised upfront-online registration on the Japanese Government Website. There is good tuition on YouTube, this could be included and passed on to UK travellers.

Our guide Seky was superb as was the holiday itself. The programme itself was full on however Tokyo was perhaps the most disappointing element. Hotels all good but there was few places to socialise after dinner with a bar/lounge area.

Apart from the food the whole trip was very good
Food was monotonus and boring in the end
Wish could have more choice
Also last lunch of the trip was a very boring cheap street restaurant which could have been better

An awesome week in japan, places visited ,activities and a special mention goes to our tour guide mywako saito who went above and beyond for us all thank you .

Long way to go for a week but it’s an excellent guided tour. Need to be reasonably fit as there is a lot of walking to cope with the full itinerary. Good hotels good guide good food

The tour was exactly as articulated in the documentation. It was packed with iconic sites . The organisation was brilliant and our tour guide - Yoko - exceptional . Everything was meticulously planned and the quality of the food and hotels better than we expected.

Too much crammed into each day not much free time to relax last hotel was a bit dated. Needs updating. So much going on all rolled into one Could do with no lunch some days as it was mostly the same each day. 6 hour drive on the last day was too much maybe there is another way to take a train and maybe get the luggage transferred overnight

Tricky start when trying to organise flights, and never really resolved satisfactorily. The content was comprehensive, however, the overall walking pace was just too fast. The physical rating was one, indicating long periods of being on your feet, which isn’t a problem, but the speed to keep to the schedule was too much. The tour guide was exceptional, informative and with a great sense of humour.