Aizu Gourmet Day Tour

  • 3 destinations
  • One Day

Bring an empty stomach to this one-day tour of Aizu cuisine and drink! This wonderful tour can be enjoyed any time of the year, making it an exceptional choice to add into your existing travel plans for the area. Travel by train, local bus, and taxi to reach your destinations and let your appetite lead you to your goal! How many new foods will be added to your favorites?

Leave from Kitakata Station to try Fukushima’s famous Kitakata ramen for an early lunch at the popular Shokudo Hasegawa. The gentle flavor of the broth lends itself especially well to the ramen’s toppings and the texture of the homemade noodles. Kitakata Ramen is one of the most famous types of ramen in Japan, and Kitakata City is crowded with shops and diners, with Hasegawa being a popular spot to dine!

From there, travel to Aizu-Wakamatsu Station, where you will have easy access to many of the most wonderful sightseeing spots of the region—but you’re here for food and drink! You’ll go on to Suehiro Sake Brewery where you can learn how the drink is made and—at the end of the tour—enjoy a wide variety of free samples (so long as you aren’t driving). 

Finally, head over to Mitsutaya and treat yourself to some of their delicious hearth-roasted skewers. The flavors will melt in your mouth and warm you up should it prove a cold day. Finish off back at Aizu-Wakamatsu Station with a full stomach and plenty of memories.

Start

Kitakata Station

From Kitakata Sta., get to Shokudo Hasegawa in 10 min by taxi (or 30 min by local bus).

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Shokudo Hasegawa

  • Aizu Area
  • 60

This ramen shop has the characteristically simple flavors of Kitakata Ramen with their curly noodles. The Shokudo Hasegawa is one of the oldest ramen shops in Kitakata City. They use an original plump curly noodle with a satisfactory broth with flavors including soy sauce, salt, miso, and spicy miso.

From Shokudo Hasegawa, take a taxi for 10 min to Kitakata Sta. From there, take the Ban-etsu West Line to Aizu-Wakamatsu Sta. (15 min). From Aizu-Wakamatsu Sta., take a taxi for 10 min to Suehiro Sake Brewery. (Or drive there in 35 min)

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Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura

  • Aizu Area
  • 60

Come observe sake brewing at Suehiro Sake Brewery, established in 1850. This experience is highly recommended. After you’ve gained an understanding of nihonshu (Japanese sake) from their experts, you’ll be able to apply your new knowledge at a tasting and select your souvenirs.

Mitsutaya is a 3 min from Suehiro Sake Brewery.

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Mitsutaya

  • Aizu Area
  • 60

Mitsutaya is a speciality shop with roots starting from the end of the Edo Period (around 1835). The store interior is a renovated miso storehouse, which gives you the opportunity to enjoy a local Aizu meal called 'Miso Dengaku'. This is a deeply desirable meal taken simply by a charcoal hearth. Each skewer is cooked one at a time, with delicious foods like konjac, deep-fried tofu, round mochi, and a speciality called 'Shingoro Mochi' on the ends. Each is coated in miso for an unforgettable and savory flavor.

Reach Aizu-Wakamatsu Sta. in 8 min by taxi.

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Finish

Aizu-Wakamatsu Station

Other Trips

One-Day Drive in Minamisoma City
One-Day Drive in Minamisoma City
Driving

One-Day Drive in Minamisoma City

Located in the Northeastern part of Fukushima prefecture, Minamisoma City is one of the main hubs in the prefecture’s coastal area. The city perhaps draws the most crowds in July for the Soma Nomaoi festival, an event featuring horseback riders in samurai attire, which developed from an ancient samurai practice of military drills with horses. Outside of the event times, visitors can still experience Minamisoma’s equine traditions year-long. Once a vital enclave for the Soma samurai clan, Minamisoma specialized in manufacturing and the military during the most pressing years of Japan’s modernization. Many samurai customs continued; for one, people kept breeding and caring for horses even when this practice disappeared from most other places in Japan. In 2011, the city suffered greatly from the triple disaster triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake. Despite difficulties, people have sought to pass on their heritage to new generations, adapting samurai traditions to modern times to continue cultivating their love for horses. The city is reachable from Tokyo in a few hours by car or public transportation, but this itinerary is designed specifically for driving. By horseback riding along the coast, having lunch at a cafe that has made a significant impact on the community after the 2011 triple disaster, and visiting a National Historical Treasure that is over 1,000 years old, you will travel through ancient history, medieval history, and modern times in Minamisoma.

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