Day 1 : Vancouver

In Vancouver, you're never out of sight of towering peaks--or of the sea. It is a prosperous city adorned with flowers lining the streets and lush greenery like Stanley Park. Museums offer fine collections of the dramatic Northwest native arts. Vancouver's Chinatown is the second-largest in the world. The waterfront Gastown district recalls the city's colorful past as a premier Pacific port since the days of the Clipper ships.

Day 2 : At Sea

Day 3 : Sitka

When Alaska belonged to Russia, Sitka was the capital and center for its fur trading empire. Today, Sitka's Russian heritage and magnificent setting make it an enchanting destination. The city features a harbor studded with islands, a backdrop of mountains, and spectacular Mt. Edgecumbe, a volcano often compared to Japan's Mt. Fuji. Sitka displays its past in such attractions as St. Michael's Cathedral with its striking onion-shaped dome, the Russian Blockhouse, and world famous New Archangel Dancers. Visit the Historic Park, with a ruined Indian fort where Tlingit Indians battled Russian settlers in 1804.

Day 4 : At Sea

Day 5 : Kodiak

Day 6 : At Sea

Day 7 : At Sea

Day 8 : At Sea

Day 9 : At Sea

Day 10 : At Sea

Day 11 : At Sea

Day 12 : At Sea

Day 13 : Kushiro/JAPAN

Day 14 : At Sea

Day 15 : Tokyo/JAPAN

Day 16 : At Sea

Day 17 : Aomori/JAPAN

Day 18 : Sapporo/JAPAN

Day 19 : Hakodate/JAPAN

Day 20 : At Sea

Day 21 : At Sea

Day 22 : At Sea

Day 23 : At Sea

Day 24 : At Sea

Day 25 : At Sea

Day 25 : Kagoshima/JAPAN

This large city is an excursion base from which to explore the dramatic coastlines, national parks and volcanic mountains of Kyushu, Japan's third largest island. Mount Sakurajima, an active volcano, can be reached by ferry. To the north, Kirishima-Yaku National Park is a scenic area of smoking volcanoes, craters and lakes. South of the city, Ibusuki, the island's most popular seaside resort, welcomes kimono-clad bathers to its sandy beaches and warm, underwater springs.

Day 26 : Kochi/JAPAN

Day 27 : Osaka/JAPAN

This large, bustling port is the starting point for tours to the ancient cities of Kyoto and Nara, the cultural fountainheads of classical Japan. Kyoto's Old Imperial Palace and the shogunal Nijo Castle remain glorious symbols of the power the city held for over 1,000 years. Until 1868, Kyoto was the capital of Japan, filled with elegant timber buildings and, perhaps more than any other Japanese city, imbued with Kami, the divine spirit. You'll sense it everywhere, for there are hundreds of Shinto shrines and over a thousand Buddhist temples, as well as sacred treasure-houses of religious sculpture, painting and exquisite gardens. Nara, City of the Seven Great Temples, lies in an idyllic setting.

Day 28 : At Sea

Day 29 : Tokyo/JAPAN

Huge department stores brim with shoppers, neon flashes from dusk to dawn, and the entire world pays heed to the slightest fluctuation on the Nikkei Index. From the Imperial Palace and Meiji Shrine to the fabled Ginza district, 20th-century Tokyo is an intriguing composite of East and West. Yuppies sporting Walkmen bow formally in greeting. Women in kimonos and Dior suits stroll side-by-side. Geishas play samisens while disc jockeys play the Top Forty. Japanese houses of wood and paper stand in the shadow of towering steel and mortar. Not far away, one of the world's most impressive sights soars 12,388 feet to its snow-clad peak: Mount Fuji, the majestic symbol of Japan.