Full Day Walking Tour in Matsumoto: Matcha Tea and Stunning Art

The first stop will be the Matsumoto City Museum, housed in an expansive and new building nearby the castle. Inside you will find a number of well thought out exhibits showcasing both artifacts from different eras of the region's history as well as dioramas and reconstructions that will make the city's story clear. Your guide will be ready to explain about these displays, and answer any questions you may have. By the end of your time here, you will have a deeper understanding of Japanese history and will find the rest of the day all the more enjoyable when you see the facts you learned in the museum reflected on the city streets.

Enjoy a walk around the outer grounds of Matsumoto Castle with your guide to explain its history and secrets, and get a chance to see the gates and moats of the castle up close. Please note we will not be going inside the castle on this tour.

One of Matsumoto's two national treasures, the Kaichi School played an important part in the educational history of the city and its beauty can still be enjoyed from the outside today. Your guide will show you around this area, little visited by most tourists, and bring you to some secret drinking wells located nearby as well. Please note we will not enter the Kaichi School on this tour.

You will have time to explore Nawate Street (also known as Frog Street) and Nakamachi Street, two of Matsumoto's most charming streets and lined with quaint craft stores and delicious Japanese snack offerings. On Nawate Street especially, frogs are king, and all sorts of cute frog statues, souvenirs, and photo opportunities are to be found! This theme was decided to raise awareness of the pollution which had decimated the downtown frog pollution in the 1960's, and it worked! Today the clear and clean Metoba river runs right along the street and offers a great place to soak your feet and cool off in summer. Nakamachi, on the other hand, is just one street over and home to a number of preserved old warehouses which today hold restaurants, cafes, and souvenir shops. Just in time for lunch, your guide will give you a tour of the area and some great recommendations on where to eat before giving you around 1.5 hours of free time to do with as you please.

After free time will be a visit to what may be one of the most anticipated stops of the day - The Matsumoto City Museum of Art. Most famous for its collection of art installations by Yayoi Kusama, who was born and raised right here in Matsumoto, it is one of the city's most unique attractions. A number of paintings from Kusama's early career, as well as her more recent interactive pieces involving lights and mirrors, are on display and are sure to interest anyone. You can even take pictures in a completely yellow room housing one of her famous giant, polka dot pumpkins!

The final activity for the day will be a Matcha Tea experience at a local cafe right near the art museum. Run by a Matsumoto local who studied tea ceremony for years, his shop is small but full of character - you can even pick your own tea cup to drink from all, all of which were made in his own backyard! The bitterness of the Matcha pairs perfectly with the sweet 'wagashi', or Japanese sweets, and they even each other out on your tongue. Famous around the world in recent years, no trip to Japan would be complete without trying this most classic Japanese drink.