Great write up. We went on Millennium Nov 23 and loved coming back after exploring all day to a elegant calm ship. Our staff were amazing and an absolute highlight.
We were fortunate to have autumn weather (tshirts and thinner clothes were great for exploring but early morning and evenings we would need an extra layer) coming from Adelaide Australia, I should be used to heat, but no I hate it so we were happy to be traveling Japan in Nov.
Shore tours were definitely expensive but in a few places we selected them over running the risk of getting lost, traveling longer distances etc. We explored a few places ourselves and whilst using a few Japanese terms we got by with Google translate. We did organize a personalized tour which was a highlight. Touring with a local we learnt so much more about culture, lifestyle and at castles and shrines an insight into what we were seeing. He also helped to expand our palette by introducing us to more than just sushi.
Probably the only negative I have for the cruise was not enough time to explore and only seeing the touristy places....but it gave us a taste and understanding of what Japan has to offer. Soooo next trip we might ditch the ship and head inland to see the quieter more traditional areas located past the big city ports.
It was a great way to sample Japan.
If I could offer a word of advice for anyone thinking of taking a similar cruise to Japan.... research. Find what it is you want to see in Japan and work out the best places to see/do ...then you can plan a ship tour or do your own thing. If you don't you may end up seeing 7 shrines, 4 castles etc..
We decided to forego Kyoto as time just didn't allow for us to explore in depth instead we hired a guide that would take us on a bullet train to Himeji castle and back, show us Osaka and it's food scene etc....amazing experience.