Top Kamakura Classes & Workshops

Would you like to know how to write your name in Japanese? We can show you several ways to write your name in Japanese and make an original seal as a unique souvenir of your trip. Seals are used in place of signatures on important documents. In Japan, the hanko seal is considered to be a part of one’s identity. After you design your hanko seal, we will engrave your name. Your original seal will be ready anytime in the afternoon of the experience!

Soba noodles are a Japanese specialty, and a versatile ingredient that can be used in a variety of dishes. Get more out of your trip to Japan by learning cooking skills you can use when you get home. Enjoy a cooking lesson with a master soba chef who teaches you the traditional way of making soba. No need to worry about language barriers—an English textbook is provided to read alongside the chef commentary.

Yoko & Reiko, we both have experience of study abroad and also love cooking and learning foreign culture. Yoko owned a restaurant in Tokyo before settling down here. Reiko is a food journalist and knows a lot about food. We would like to share pleasure of Japanese home-style cooking we learned from mom and grand mother with you. Kamakura is surrounded by ocean and hills and Yoko's house which is our studio has good access to both them. In comfortable atmosphere of Japanese household, we would like to share great time with you!

You're invited to a Japanese garden party at a traditional-style home in Kamakura. Join your host in a cooking lesson to prepare a seasonal menu, then sit down to enjoy the classic dishes at an outdoor table surrounded by cherry blossom and bamboo trees. It's an immersive way to enjoy Japanese cuisine and hospitality in a serene, private environment you won’t find in any restaurant.

In this course, you can experience Zen at an ancient Zen temple. You will be able to see Zen art, learn about Zen story paintings, and experience Zen meditation. This three-hour course is a beginner-friendly course that will teach you the Zen way of thinking in an accessible manner. Kamakura is the birthplace of Zen in Japan and is a popular tourist destination for foreigners. The venue is the Zen temple "Kigen-in," which usually prohibits tourists from entering. Before and after the zazen experience, we will draw the circular Zen symbol "Enso," which is a kind of Zen art. After this, we will perform Zen meditation (3 times) and listen to a commentary on the paintings of Zen and learn the philosophy of Zen by combining what you have learned and your Zen experience. When you draw an Enso for the second time, you will draw on our handmade paper, certified by UNESCO. You can experience the transformative power of Zen by comparing the two Enso.

Skip dinner in a restaurant and try your hand at cooking UNESCO-listed Japanese cuisine during this 2.5-hour cookery lesson in a local Kamakura home. Under the guidance of a local resident, you’ll learn to prepare dishes from either ‘washoku’ or ‘shojin’ (vegetarian) cuisines before feasting on the fruits of your labor. Choose to make dishes including shouga-yaki (ginger pork), ton-jiru (pork miso soup), tofu steaks, and vegetable chowder. Receive personalized attention in a small group limited to five food lovers.