Eat Sleep Cruise
#18 US
We Took a Two-Week Japanese Cruise (Here's What Nobody Tells You)
We spent two weeks exploring Japan by cruise ship, sailing to 9 ports across Japan and South Korea aboard a Viking Ocean ship chartered by Japanet Cruise, where we were the only Americans on board. This is the Japan cruise experience most travelers never see. 💲Save BIG with MEI-Travel cruise deals: https://bookmeicruise.com/?apid=escy 🌎Save Up to 40% On Shore Excursions: https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/?id=1603014 UP NEXT - 6 Cruise Lines EVERYONE is Switching to in 2026: https://youtu.be/M-4eM2avmPU Subscribe to the Eat Sleep Cruise YouTube Channel if you love to travel and cruise the world! https://www.youtube.com/@Eatsleepcruise1 Most people fly into Tokyo and hit the same tourist trail for two weeks. We did it completely differently: 15 days by cruise ship, surrounded almost entirely by Japanese travelers, seeing a side of Japan you can't reach when you're always packed in with other tourists. In this video we break down every port, every regional meal, and exactly what a Japan cruise itinerary like this is really like. 🚢 THE SHIP & THE TRIP ✅ 15-day sailing on a Viking Ocean ship chartered by Japanet Cruise ✅ Japanese-operated cruise with curated shore excursions, cultural programming, and onboard performances ✅ All-inclusive package with pre and post-cruise hotels, flights, and excursions ✅ Honest breakdown of what $30,000 per couple actually includes and who it's for 🗺️ PORTS WE VISITED ⛩️ Yokohama & Kamakura: the Great Buddha of Kotoku-in and Hokokuji Bamboo Temple 🏯 Shingu: 467 steps to Kumano Nachi Taisha, the UNESCO pagoda framed by Nachi Falls 🏝️ Sasebo: cruising the Kujukushima islands of Saikai National Park, plus Sasebo lemon steak 🇰🇷 Busan, South Korea: Gamcheon Culture Village and hands-on makgeolli brewing 🥁 Onboard: taiko drumming performances and traditional Japanese cultural programming 🚤 Maizuru: Ine Bay funaya boathouses and Amanohashidate, one of Japan's three great views ✨ Kanazawa: gold leaf application, the Higashi Chaya geisha district, and Kenrokuen Garden 🛶 Sado Island: taraibune tub boats, a taiko drumming lesson, and a French restaurant twist 🌫️ Hakodate: the star-shaped Goryokaku fort and the foggy Mount Hakodate ropeway 🗼 Tokyo Extension: Shibuya Crossing, Meiji Shrine, Sensoji Temple, and a sumo training session 🗻 Mount Fuji: the Chureito Pagoda cherry blossom shot everyone chases 🍜 THE FOOD From fresh Nachi-Katsuura tuna and Kumano beef to Korean black pork galbi, Kaga cuisine in Kanazawa, and refined French dining on a remote Japanese island, this trip was a tour of regional Japanese food most cruise passengers never taste. 🌸 WHY A JAPAN CRUISE IS DIFFERENT A Japanese-operated cruise to Japan is structurally different from a Western cruise line running the same route. The excursions, the onboard culture, and the passengers change the entire experience. If you're researching Japan cruise itineraries, cruising Japan and South Korea, cherry blossom cruises, or whether a Japan cruise is worth it, this is the firsthand look we wish we'd had before we booked. 0:00 We Spent 2 Weeks in Japan On a Cruise Ship 1:30 What Is Japanet Cruise? 2:36 Exploring Historic Kamakura Before the Cruise 4:16 Boarding Viking Eden in Yokohama 5:17 How Included Shore Excursions Worked 5:46 A Rainy Day at Shingu’s Sacred Shrines 6:38 Cruising Through Sasebo’s Island Coastline 7:24 Spending a Day Across the Water in Busan 8:05 Seeing Maizuru by Sea, Sandbar, and Izakaya 8:58 A Full Day in Untouched Kanazawa 10:18 Discovering Remote Sado Island 11:38 Ending the Cruise in Historic Hakodate 12:56 Life Onboard Viking Eden 14:07 Onboard Cultural Programming 15:54 Dining Onboard 17:56 How Much Did It Cost? 20:06 Post-Cruise Tokyo 21:49 Mount Fuji Day Trip 22:58 Final Morning: Sumo Stable 23:32 Is Japanet Cruise Worth It ---TRENDING VIDEOS FROM EAT SLEEP CRUISE------ The 10 Major Cruise Lines Ranked Worst to Best: https://youtu.be/n6ThEY2l2r0 40 Cruise Hacks We Swear by After 100 Cruises: https://youtu.be/ivvzrns5QOI 15 Things We Stopped Doing on Cruises: https://youtu.be/GtkBjn5GvJA Best Cruises for Couples: https://youtu.be/fenNj5GmLdM Join us on Social Media as we “Sea the World, One Port at a Time.” Instagram: https://instagram.com/EatSleepCruise Facebook: https://facebook.com/EatSleepCruise Twitter: https://twitter.com/EatSleepCruise TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@eatsleepcruise