Discover a lesser-known side of Tokoname pottery, shaped by centuries of making practical vessels for everyday life.
With more than 1,000 years of ceramic history, Tokoname is one of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns. The town became particularly known for producing large ceramic vessels, including crocks used for storing, preserving, and fermenting food.
This tradition has a natural connection to the wider Chita Peninsula, where brewing and fermentation have flourished for generations. Together, they reveal two distinctive elements of the region’s heritage: pottery and fermentation.
Begin along Tokoname’s atmospheric Pottery Path, where brick chimneys, historic kilns, ceramic-lined slopes, workshops, and galleries reveal the legacy of this centuries-old pottery town.
Continue to Yamagen Toen, the only pottery workshop in Tokoname still dedicated to making traditional crocks. For 60 years, beginning with its first-generation potter, the workshop has continued this craft using local materials and methods that remain largely unchanged.
Third-generation artisan Yuji Koie welcomes you inside the working studio and introduces the craft firsthand. Follow the process from raw local material to workable clay, and see how traditional crocks are shaped.
Then take your place in the workshop and create a fermentation crock of your own. Using a mold, shape your vessel and choose your preferred color before leaving the firing and finishing to the artisans.
Crocks like these have long supported Japan’s fermentation culture, serving as vessels for miso, umeboshi, pickled vegetables, and other preserved foods. Creating one here connects Tokoname’s history of crock-making with a tradition you can bring into your own kitchen at home.
Your finished crock will be ready several months later. Before leaving, browse TOKOTAME STORE, where Yamagen Toen’s popular pastel-colored Tokoname ware brings a contemporary touch to the town’s ceramic tradition.
Perfect for travelers drawn to traditional craftsmanship, Japanese food culture, and meaningful encounters with the artisans who keep local traditions alive.
Meet your professional, English-speaking guide at Nagoya Station Tourist Information Center and travel together to Tokoname by train.
Stroll through the heart of Tokoname’s historic pottery district, shaped by more than 1,000 years of ceramic production. Follow atmospheric lanes past brick chimneys, historic kilns, Clay Pipe Hill, working pottery studios, and galleries while discovering how pottery remains woven into everyday life in Tokoname.
Travel by taxi from the Pottery Path to Yamagen Toen.
Step inside Yamagen Toen, the only pottery workshop in Tokoname dedicated to authentic traditional crocks. For 60 years, beginning with its first-generation potter, the workshop has crafted these vessels using local materials and time-honored methods.
Third-generation artisan Yuji Sabae will guide you through the working studio, showing how raw local material is transformed into pottery clay and how the crocks are shaped.
Then create your own ceramic crock, traditionally used for fermenting and preserving foods such as miso, umeboshi, and pickled vegetables. Shape your crock using a mold and choose your preferred color before the artisans complete the firing and finishing process.
Your finished piece will be ready several months later and can be shipped to you for an additional fee. You can also browse TOKOTAME STORE for Yamagen Toen’s popular pastel-colored Tokoname ware.
Return to Tokoname Station by taxi.
Guests who wish to spend more time in Tokoname may end the tour here and continue exploring independently, including lunch and further sightseeing around the Pottery Path.
Travel back to Nagoya with your guide.
Arrive at Nagoya Station, where the tour concludes.
Nagoya Station Tourist Information Center
This tour includes walking through the Tokoname Pottery Path. Some sections have slopes and uneven surfaces.
This package tour includes statutory accident compensation in accordance with Japan’s Travel Agency Act. We also recommend that travelers purchase their own travel insurance for broader medical and travel-related coverage.
This experience is booked on request. We will respond to the request within 5 days
| Cancellation Date | Cancellation Fee |
|---|---|
| No-show or cancellation after tour departure | 100% of the tour price |
| On the tour date | 50% of the tour price |
| 1 day prior to the tour date | 40% of the tour price |
| 2 to 7 days prior to the tour date | 30% of the tour price |
| 8 to 10 days prior to the tour date | 20% of the tour price |
| 11 or more days prior to the tour date | Free |
Tokoname City