Japan at the Counter.
Kaiseki, a working market at six in the morning, a counter that seats eight, and a brewery that will actually talk — the food trip built around what can be booked, not around a wish list.
How long is the Japan at the Counter itinerary and who is it for?
8 nights. Food-led clients, small private parties and agents whose brief says "the best sushi in Tokyo" and who need to hear early what that request really costs in lead time and in seats.
Last updated: 13 September 2026
Why it runs in this order.
Three kitchens, not one. Tokyo for the counters and the volume, Kyoto for kaiseki and the vegetable tradition, the Japan Sea coast for the fish and the sake — so the eight nights read as three different cuisines rather than eight dinners.
The programme.
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Days 1–2Tokyo
Arrive Haneda. First morning at the Tsukiji outer market while it is still trading rather than at eleven when it is shopping, then a tempura or yakitori counter at lunch, which is where the same kitchens are reachable at a fraction of the evening constraint.
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Day 3Tokyo
One counter dinner, booked at the point the house opens its book — typically one to three months and by introduction. Seats are for a stated number and cannot be moved on the day; a party that grows by one after confirmation loses the table, and agents need that in writing to the client.
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Day 4Kanazawa
Shinkansen across. Omicho market mid-morning for the winter crab and shrimp the Tokyo counters buy from, then an afternoon on gold leaf and lacquer, which is why the region's lacquerware ends up under the food rather than beside it.
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Day 5Kanazawa and the Noto side
A sake brewery visit arranged as a working conversation with the brewer rather than a tasting counter, plus soy and miso producers who still ferment in cedar. Small houses, small groups — this day does not scale past about eight people.
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Days 6–8Kyoto
Down by rail. A kaiseki dinner in a machiya-scale room with the seasonal progression explained rather than served silently, Nishiki market early, a tofu and yuba lunch, and one morning on knives and cookware with a party that will actually use them.
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Day 9Kyoto or Osaka
Out from Kansai, or half a day in Osaka first, which is the honest counterweight to eight days of refinement — standing kushikatsu and okonomiyaki, eaten where the queue is local.
What the net rate covers.
- Eight nights across Tokyo, Kanazawa and Kyoto
- Restaurant reservations made at the moment each house opens its book, with the party size fixed in writing
- A kaiseki dinner and a sushi counter dinner, sourced to the client's budget band rather than to whatever is still free
- A brewery and a fermentation producer visited with an interpreter who knows the vocabulary
- Market mornings with a guide who can buy and cook, not only point
- 24/7 duty desk
What it does not.
- International air
- Meals outside the named dinners and the market days — deliberately, because a food client should not be over-booked
- Travel insurance
When to ask.
Six months for the trip, but the two counter dinners set the real clock: many houses open a given month one to three calendar months ahead, and some take no first-time booking without an introduction. We need the party size, any allergies and whether the client will sit at a counter with strangers before we ask — changing any of those later means asking again from the back of the queue.
Japan at the Counter — what agents ask.
How long is the Japan at the Counter itinerary?
8 nights. Three kitchens, not one. Tokyo for the counters and the volume, Kyoto for kaiseki and the vegetable tradition, the Japan Sea coast for the fish and the sake — so the eight nights read as three different cuisines rather than eight dinners.
Who is the Japan at the Counter programme for?
Food-led clients, small private parties and agents whose brief says "the best sushi in Tokyo" and who need to hear early what that request really costs in lead time and in seats.
How far ahead does it need booking?
Six months for the trip, but the two counter dinners set the real clock: many houses open a given month one to three calendar months ahead, and some take no first-time booking without an introduction. We need the party size, any allergies and whether the client will sit at a counter with strangers before we ask — changing any of those later means asking again from the back of the queue.
What does Explera quote for this?
A confidential net rate to the travel agent, which you mark up yourself. We do not publish prices and we do not sell to your client — everything runs white-label under your brand.
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