Cruising Japan with Regent Seven Seas: A Planning Guide

Japan is one of the best countries in the world for a first-time luxury trip — and one of the easiest to get wrong on land. A Regent Seven Seas sailing solves most of the hard parts: you unpack once, the ship moves you between regions overnight, and Regent's all-inclusive fare means a generous slate of shore excursions, drinks, specialty dining, gratuities, and the pre-cruise hotel are already handled. Air isn't included in the fare on Japan sailings outside of rare promotions, but I can book flights through Regent's Air department at their preferred negotiated rates. Here is how I plan a Japan cruise on Regent — and how to get the most out of one.

Why Regent for Japan

Japan is a port-heavy country — the interesting stops are strung along more than a thousand miles of coastline, from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu and Okinawa in the south. That plays to Regent's strengths. On a Regent Japan cruise you get:

• A generous slate of included shore excursions in every port — typically many 4–8 hour tours at no added charge, from a Kyoto highlights day out of Kobe (Golden Pavilion and Nijō Castle) to a Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park visit or, alternatively, a Miyajima ferry-and-shrine day. Longer full-day tours, small-group tours, and tours that include meals are offered as Regent Choice excursions at an added charge. You can stack multiple included tours in the same port, but Regent enforces a strict 75-minute minimum gap between the end of one tour and the start of the next.
• Included pre-cruise hotel night in Tokyo (typically the Hilton Tokyo), plus transfers, so you land, sleep off the jet lag, and board rested.
• Air handled through Regent's air department. Air isn't included in the fare on Japan sailings outside of rare promotions, but I can book flights through Regent Air at their preferred negotiated rates — which usually beat retail on Tokyo and Osaka routings — with the seamless transfers and schedule protection that come with a Regent-issued ticket.
• Small-ship access to Japan's smaller ports (Kanazawa, Sakaiminato, Kagoshima, Hakodate, Miyako-jima) that the mega-ships can't work into an itinerary.

The itineraries that matter

Regent runs a handful of distinct Japan itineraries. The ones I book most often:

• 10- to 12-night Japan intensive. Round-trip Tokyo, or Tokyo to Osaka (Kobe), hitting Shimizu (Mount Fuji), Kyoto (via Kobe or Osaka), Hiroshima and Miyajima, Kanazawa, and a Kyushu stop like Nagasaki or Kagoshima. This is the sweet spot for a first Japan cruise.
• Cherry blossom sailings (late March / early April). The signature sailing of the year on Seven Seas Explorer and Seven Seas Grandeur. Priced accordingly and books 12–18 months out — some suite categories sell out at release.
• Japan & South Korea combos. Add Busan and Jeju, sometimes Incheon for Seoul, for a broader Northeast Asia sailing.
• Japan to Alaska repositioning (late spring) or Japan into Southeast Asia (autumn) — longer 18- to 24-night sailings that cross the Pacific or drop down through Taiwan and Vietnam. Great value per night on Regent. One honest note on the Alaska repositioning: the North Pacific crossing can bring unsettled weather and swell for a stretch of sea days, so it's best suited to guests who don't mind a livelier ship for a few days in exchange for the itinerary.

The ports, honestly

• Tokyo (Yokohama or Ōi). Do at least two pre-cruise nights on your own on top of the included hotel night — one night is not enough for Tokyo.
• Shimizu. Mount Fuji day. Pick the excursion with a Fuji viewpoint and a Hakone or tea-plantation stop; skip the ones that are mostly bus time.
• Kobe or Osaka (for Kyoto). Regent's included Kyoto day works, but the highlight-reel bus tour hits the busiest temples at the busiest times. If Kyoto matters to you, I can arrange a private guide and car for the day, or add a post-cruise Kyoto stay.
• Hiroshima. This is a "pick one" port — Regent's included tours run Peace Memorial Park or Miyajima, not both in a combo. If it's your first visit, the Peace Memorial Park & Museum tour is essential; if you've been before, Miyajima's floating torii and forested shrine island is the more beautiful day. I'll help you decide before we book.
• Kanazawa. Kenroku-en garden, the samurai and geisha districts, and some of the best seafood in the country. An underrated port.
• Nagasaki or Kagoshima. Kyushu is a different Japan — volcanic landscapes, hot springs, and Portuguese and Dutch trading history.
• Hakodate, Aomori, Akita. Northern ports on longer sailings; great for food, onsen, and (in April) later-blooming cherry blossoms after Honshu is done.

Which ship, and which suite

Seven Seas Explorer and Seven Seas Grandeur are the two ships Regent runs in Japan most seasons. Both are 750-guest, all-suite, all-balcony, and quiet — well-suited to a port-heavy itinerary where you want to come back to a calm ship.

For suite category, my rule of thumb on Japan: aim at least at a Concierge suite. It unlocks the included pre-cruise hotel night, priority reservations for specialty dining, and one of the better cabin layouts. If you're celebrating something, the Penthouse categories add a butler, and the top-tier Regent Suite is the only category that includes a private car and driver in every port — genuinely useful in Japan, where a private guide plus car turns a good port day into a great one. See our guide to Regent Suites for more detail on the top categories.

Pre- and post-cruise: don't skip the land

The ship gets you to the coast beautifully. It cannot get you to Kyoto's back streets at 7am, a ryokan in Hakone with a private open-air bath, or a private tea ceremony in Gion. That's where I come in on the land side — I arrange private, English-speaking guides with a car and driver for the days that matter, book tea ceremonies, geisha district walks, and ryokan stays, and quietly handle transfers between cities. My default Japan cruise plan adds:

• 2–3 extra nights in Tokyo pre-cruise at a five-star property matched to how you like to travel, on top of Regent's included night.
• 3–4 nights post-cruise in Kyoto, usually paired with a night at a traditional ryokan — either in Kyoto itself or in Hakone on the way back to Tokyo.

That combination — small-ship Regent sailing plus a proper Kyoto and ryokan week — is the best way to see Japan on a first trip, and it is what I book most often.

When to go

• Late March – mid April — cherry blossom. The signature Japan sailing. Book 12–18 months out.
• May – early June. Warm, green, quieter. Excellent value and one of my favorite windows on Regent.
• Late October – November — autumn leaves. Kyoto and Nikko peak; temples are stunning and the ship keeps the crowds bearable.

Avoid Golden Week (late April to early May) and Obon (mid August) if you can — domestic demand spikes and shore-side hotels for pre- and post-cruise nights get scarce.

Where I come in

Regent's Japan sailings — especially the cherry-blossom departures and the top suite categories on Explorer and Grandeur — book early and quietly. As a Seven Seas Council Member, I pre-register interested clients ahead of each new itinerary release and advocate for them the moment inventory opens, so you're in line for the suite and sailing you want before general availability. From there I layer in the pre- and post-cruise Kyoto and ryokan nights, arrange private guides for the port days that matter, coordinate flights through Regent Air at their preferred rates, and use Regent's onboard booking benefits if you're already Regent guests. If Japan is on your list for a milestone year, our milestone birthday guide shows where it lands alongside Regent's Grand Voyages and World Cruise.