Japan has recently been in the limelight for the wrong reasons with regards to ‘accessible travel’. However, InsideJapan has recently launched the first in a news series of ‘accessible’ itineraries to open up Japan and its culture in this surprisingly wheelchair-friendly destination.

The UK’s biggest independent Japan travel specialist has been tailoring travel across the Land of the Rising Sun to suit a vast range of interests and customer needs for over 17 years. A trip to Japan can be daunting for any traveller, but perhaps more so for those using a wheelchair. Having consulted with partners on the ground such as Accessible Japan blogger, Josh Grisdale and Hideto Kijima of the Japan Accessible Tourism organisation (who was at the centre of the recent news from Japan), InsideJapan has created its first fully accessible ‘Golden Route’ trip, giving wheelchair travellers the chance to sample Japan and its culture without barriers.

As Japan becomes more popular and with huge international events around the corner, such as the Rugby World Cup 2019, Tokyo Olympics 2020 and the accompanying Paralympics, accessibility will be of increasing concern for travellers to Japan. Thankfully, Japan is reasonably advanced and well placed to welcome visitors with accessibility issues.

Taking in the neon glow of Tokyo with a private guide, heading to Mt Fuji, visiting the temples of Kyoto and riding the sleek Bullet Train are not an issue and accommodation is carefully selected to ensure that there are no surprises for disabled guests, other than the various cultural differences found across Japan.

InsideJapan’s Product Manager, Ruth Hubbard said, “At InsideJapan, our mission is to introduce this amazing country and its wonderful culture to the West. Through working with our ‘accessible experts’ and with the new ‘Wheelchair Accessible Golden Route’ as great example of what we can do, we are now better placed than anyone to do that”.

The 10 night ‘Wheelchair Accessible Golden Route’ has just been launched and cost from £3,370pp (based on two people sharing and excluding international flights). The trip includes 10 nights accommodation (with breakfast everyday), private airport transfers and guiding in wheelchair accessible vehicles in Kyoto, Mt. Fuji and Nara, all transport between destinations in Japan, pocket Wi-Fi, and a number of other experiences.