Tokyo Fun Hikes and Day Trips

Mikoshi Togyo (2024 event)

◾️After you have applied to join this event, please contact Mark Sensei via the Line application quoting your FULL NAME and this message: [Kurayami Matsuri - 5th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
If you would like to bring a guest, please ask me via Line.

◾️参加されるイベントの名前(フルネーム)と日付を付けてマーク先生にLINEしてください。
例:[Kurayami Matsuri - 5th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
定員の都合上、お連れ様がいる時は事前にLINEでご相談ください。

We will meet at Fucchu station at 5pm. Please kindly ensure you arrive punctually.

Fuuchu is a small city 20 minutes outside of the heart of Tokyo. Normally a quiet town, it's home to Okunitama Shrine, one of the largest shrines in the Kanto area.

The Shrine was founded during the 2nd century AD, and was renamed Okunitama during the Meiji period. The Kurayami festival which is centered around Okunitama Shrine, is also associated with Utagaki which is an ancient ritual gathering of peasants and farmers.

This cultural significance has continued into modern times as teenage boys and girls usually go to the festival together on dates, so the festival has a very strong youth turnout.

During all this the shrine is incredibly busy, with food stalls and games at every corner. There is even a haunted house. The three major events are the horse ride which takes place on the first night, the giant taiko drum floats which happen on the second night, and then the all night shrine event happens on the third to the fourth. The shrine carrying is very rowdy and goes on till the morning.

Words cannot describe just how beautiful this festival really is. If you're in Japan during this time, it is a must-see.

Event blog
Event schedule

Event fee:
¥800 - early discount if you pay by 26th April (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1250 if you pay between 27th April- 4th May early evening (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1500 in cash on the event day (5th May) - please bring the correct money (see the NOTE below).

NOTE: requesting to pay on the day of the event is upon the understanding that you will either attend the event OR arrange for the event fee to be paid via PayPay within 24 hours. Failure to do so may result in your removal from the group. See the cancellation policy below.

If you don't have PayPay, please ask a friend or coworker to do the transaction for you (give them cash!).

Cancellation policy:

• Full refund given if cancellation is notified BY LINE MESSAGE at least 24 hours before the event start time.
• Cancellation within 24 hours of the event start time or no-showing requires full payment of the event fee.

Tokyo Fun Events open chat group on LINE
Tokyo Fun Events on Instagram
Tokyo Fun Events on Facebook

After the event, you may submit a review/evaluation. Please kindly rate appropriately as a low evaluation has an impact on the group. Things you should clearly understand in advance:

1. I (Mark) am not a tour guide. For many events this will also be my first time, and events are mainly organised based on intensive internet research.
2. Nature cannot be guaranteed, so flower festivals may be impacted by the recent climate.
3. We aim to depart on time, however bus schedules might change. This is unavoidable.
4. We request participants arrive EARLY. In rare cases we might wait a few minutes if we do not need to take a bus.
5. The number of participants is not guaranteed. However we will not have large groups.
6. The event finish time might be earlier or later than advertised. The hiking time might be longer/shorter than anticipated. Return bus times are not guaranteed.

How to calculate your review appropriately:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars) = Everything was as described.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars) = The event was generally ok, but there were a few things that you weren't happy with (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars) = The event was disappointing (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️ (2 stars) = The event was poor (please provide further details).
⭐️ (1 star) = The event was terrible (please provide further details).

◾️After you have applied to join this event, please contact Mark Sensei via the Line application quoting your FULL NAME and this message: [Ashikaga Flower Park - 6th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
If you would like to bring a guest, please ask me via Line.

◾️参加されるイベントの名前(フルネーム)と日付を付けてマーク先生にLINEしてください。
例:[Ashikaga Flower Park - 6th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
定員の都合上、お連れ様がいる時は事前にLINEでご相談ください。

We will meet at Ashikaga Flower Park station at 2.45pm. Please kindly ensure you arrive punctually.
Note: it seems there is ONE train per hour. The 2.02pm Ryoma Line train from Oyama arrives at 2.36pm.

Additional fees (subject to change):
See here about the variable admission fee
It seems it will range from ¥900 to ¥2300, depending on the condition of the blooms.

Event fee:
¥800 - early discount if you pay by 26th April (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1250 if you pay between 27th April - 5th May early evening (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1500 in cash on the event day (6th May) - please bring the correct money (see the NOTE below).

NOTE: requesting to pay on the day of the event is upon the understanding that you will either attend the event OR arrange for the event fee to be paid via PayPay within 24 hours. Failure to do so may result in your removal from the group. See the cancellation policy below.

If you don't have PayPay, please ask a friend or coworker to do the transaction for you (give them cash!).

Cancellation policy:

• Full refund given if cancellation is notified BY LINE MESSAGE at least 24 hours before the event start time.
• Cancellation within 24 hours of the event start time or no-showing requires full payment of the event fee.

Tokyo Fun Events open chat group on LINE
Tokyo Fun Events on Instagram
Tokyo Fun Events on Facebook

After the event, you may submit a review/evaluation. Please kindly rate appropriately as a low evaluation has an impact on the group. Things you should clearly understand in advance:

1. I (Mark) am not a tour guide. For many events this will also be my first time, and events are mainly organised based on intensive internet research.
2. Nature cannot be guaranteed, so flower festivals may be impacted by the recent climate.
3. We aim to depart on time, however bus schedules might change. This is unavoidable.
4. We request participants arrive EARLY. In rare cases we might wait a few minutes if we do not need to take a bus.
5. The number of participants is not guaranteed. However we will not have large groups.
6. The event finish time might be earlier or later than advertised. The hiking time might be longer/shorter than anticipated. Return bus times are not guaranteed.

How to calculate your review appropriately:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars) = Everything was as described.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars) = The event was generally ok, but there were a few things that you weren't happy with (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars) = The event was disappointing (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️ (2 stars) = The event was poor (please provide further details).
⭐️ (1 star) = The event was terrible (please provide further details).

**** UPDATE - please see the photo images or this INSTAGRAM link. Note that there will be fewer poppies than described below due to a shortage of poppy seeds this year. However these have been replaced by tansies (Lacy Phacelia, or “Hazerisou” in Japanese, which blogger said were “blooming beautifully on 1st May.
****END OF UPDATE

Each year in May you can see 30 million poppies, give or take, at Japan’s largest poppy field: Poppy Happy Square. Moreover, there is a lively festival at the poppy fields during the period of bloom, which is usually mid May. The poppy festival is actually just one part of a larger Kōnosu Flower Festival. In 2024, the Kōnosu flower festival was on from May 11th to the 19th.
*Therefore we might change the event date to May 18th. We will surely know about 3 weeks in advance.

Poppy Happy Square (also known as the Mamuro Poppy Field) is acclaimed because it is the largest poppy field in the whole of Japan. It is also thanks to this that the Konosu Poppy Festival is famous throughout the Kanto plain. The Mamuro poppy field is most commonly referred to as Poppy Happy Square. It is approximately 12.5 hectares or 125,000 square meters and has over 30,000,000 poppies. Moreover, the field is located at Japan’s longest riverbed width embankment with Japan’s longest embankment bridge in view.

◾️After you have applied to join this event, please contact Mark Sensei via the Line application quoting your FULL NAME and this message: [Konosu Poppy Festival - 11th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
If you would like to bring a guest, please ask me via Line.

◾️参加されるイベントの名前(フルネーム)と日付を付けてマーク先生にLINEしてください。
例:[Konosu Poppy Festival - 11th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT
定員の都合上、お連れ様がいる時は事前にLINEでご相談ください。

We will meet at Kōnosu station at 11.15am. Please kindly ensure you arrive punctually. It seems there is a Shonan-Shinjuku line train arriving at 11.04am

We might take the “Flower Go” 「フラワー号」Mamuro course 「馬室コース」bus from JR Konosu Station’s west exit to the kyuushoku sentaa 「給食センター」. The poppy fields are about a 5 minute walk from this bus stop. There might also be a free shuttle bus.

The thirty million poppies include the common variety, Icelandic and California poppies. They typically start blooming late in April. However, in 2024 they are actually late and as of April 25th they weren’t really blooming. The common variety are the red poppies also referred to frequently as the remembrance poppy in English.

Furthermore, other blooms grow in the fields. They have purple mustard fields most years. Moreover, in 2021, they added three Baby Blue Eye fields for the first time. Two of them are quite small, but one is a decent size and it is beside a field of Orange California Poppies.

There are food vans at the fields during the period of the festival, weather permitting. There is also a flower picking event in one of the fields. It costs 100 yen to pick five flowers.

Please bring your lunch. We will find an appropriate area to eat.

Additional fees (subject to change):
According to this blog post, there was no admission fee in 2024
There might be a bus transport charge to/from Kōnosu station ⚠️

Event fee:
¥800 - early discount if you pay by 30th April (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1250 if you pay between 1st-10th May early evening (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1500 in cash on the event day (11th May) - please bring the correct money (see the NOTE below).

NOTE: requesting to pay on the day of the event is upon the understanding that you will either attend the event OR arrange for the event fee to be paid via PayPay within 24 hours. Failure to do so may result in your removal from the group. See the cancellation policy below.

If you don't have PayPay, please ask a friend or coworker to do the transaction for you (give them cash!).

Cancellation policy:

• Full refund given if cancellation is notified BY LINE MESSAGE at least 24 hours before the event start time.
• Cancellation within 24 hours of the event start time or no-showing requires full payment of the event fee.

Tokyo Fun Events open chat group on LINE
Tokyo Fun Events on Instagram
Tokyo Fun Events on Facebook

After the event, you may submit a review/evaluation. Please kindly rate appropriately as a low evaluation has an impact on the group. Things you should clearly understand in advance:

1. I (Mark) am not a tour guide. For many events this will also be my first time, and events are mainly organised based on intensive internet research.
2. Nature cannot be guaranteed, so flower festivals may be impacted by the recent climate.
3. We aim to depart on time, however bus schedules might change. This is unavoidable.
4. We request participants arrive EARLY. In rare cases we might wait a few minutes if we do not need to take a bus.
5. The number of participants is not guaranteed. However we will not have large groups.
6. The event finish time might be earlier or later than advertised. The hiking time might be longer/shorter than anticipated. Return bus times are not guaranteed.

How to calculate your review appropriately:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars) = Everything was as described.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars) = The event was generally ok, but there were a few things that you weren't happy with (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars) = The event was disappointing (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️ (2 stars) = The event was poor (please provide further details).
⭐️ (1 star) = The event was terrible (please provide further details).

◾️After you have applied to join this event, please contact Mark Sensei via the Line application quoting your FULL NAME and this message: [Kamakura Daibutsu - 17th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT

◾️参加されるイベントの名前(フルネーム)と日付を付けてマーク先生にLINEしてください!
例:[Kamakura Daibutsu - 17th May] MARK's LINE ACCOUNT

We'll leave Kita-Kamakura station at 9.30am, so please ensure you arrive at least 10 minutes earlier.

We’ll visit Tokei-ji and Jochi-ji temples, and then take the Daibutsu Hiking Trail.

At the end of the hiking trail is Genjiyama Park, which has the statue of Minamoto no Yoritomo, the famous Japanese Samuri. We will take just a short rest/lunch break here, as we will be visiting a cafe a little later.

After the park, we will visit Zeniaraibenzaiten Shrine. Especially popular with people in the business world, it is said that performing a ritual coin washing here will multiply your wealth.

Located nearby is Sasuke Inari Shrine. Legend has it that Minamoto Yoritomo, the first Shogun of Kamakura was visited in a dream by an Inari, (a white fox) who advised him when to attack his enemies, thus ensuring a victory. Out of gratitude, Sasuke Inari Shrine was built in the 12th century to honor this messenger. You'll be surrounded by countless foxes of all shapes and sizes. Set within a dense forest canopy, this interesting shrine has a rather surreal and at times, slightly eerie atmosphere.

Near to these shrines is Cafe Gula. We'll have a rest break at this lovely little cafe. The drink & cake fee is just ¥300.

We'll then make our way to Kotoku-in, the home of the daibutsu (big buddha), and then Hase-dera.

Around Hase-dera there are various souvenir shops.

The hiking course is not difficult, so regular sneakers/trainers should be fine.

From Hase we'll take the Enoden to Enoshima, and visit the Enoshima Sea Candle, with views of Mount Fuji.

The event will end at approximately 5.45pm at Enoshima.

You need to bring:

• Additional money for temple fees
• Lunch/snacks

Event fee:
¥800 - early discount if you pay by 8th May (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1250 if you pay between 9th-16th May early evening (PayPay, or in cash at an earlier event).
¥1500 in cash on the event day (17th May) - please bring the correct money (see the NOTE below).

NOTE: requesting to pay on the day of the event is upon the understanding that you will either attend the event OR arrange for the event fee to be paid via PayPay within 24 hours. Failure to do so may result in your removal from the group. See the cancellation policy below.

If you don't have PayPay, please ask a friend or coworker to do the transaction for you (give them cash!).

Cancellation policy:

• Full refund given if cancellation is notified BY LINE MESSAGE at least 24 hours before the event start time.
• Cancellation within 24 hours of the event start time or no-showing requires full payment of the event fee.

Tokyo Fun Events open chat group on LINE
Tokyo Fun Events on Instagram
Tokyo Fun Events on Facebook

After the event, you may submit a review/evaluation. Please kindly rate appropriately as a low evaluation has an impact on the group. Things you should clearly understand in advance:

1. I (Mark) am not a tour guide. For many events this will also be my first time, and events are mainly organised based on intensive internet research.
2. Nature cannot be guaranteed, so flower festivals may be impacted by the recent climate.
3. We aim to depart on time, however bus schedules might change. This is unavoidable.
4. We request participants arrive EARLY. In rare cases we might wait a few minutes if we do not need to take a bus.
5. The number of participants is not guaranteed. However we will not have large groups.
6. The event finish time might be earlier or later than advertised. The hiking time might be longer/shorter than anticipated. Return bus times are not guaranteed.

How to calculate your review appropriately:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars) = Everything was as described.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars) = The event was generally ok, but there were a few things that you weren't happy with (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars) = The event was disappointing (please provide further details).
⭐️⭐️ (2 stars) = The event was poor (please provide further details).
⭐️ (1 star) = The event was terrible (please provide further details).