6 Beauty-Filled Days in Japan

After spending a busy week catching up with friends in London, I was ready for my first-class experience with All Nippon Airways. I was looking forward to lying flat for most of the time and maybe eating a light meal. But when the trays of green tea, Champagne, ramen, miso soup, and fresh fish started arriving at my pod, all desire to sleep left me. The food, facial masks, and selection of Japanese television shows and movies kept me occupied for the full 14-hour flight.

By the time I landed, I was sleepy and so well fed I wasn’t sure I would make it to dinner that night.

My mouth fell open as I keyed into my suite atPark Hyatt Tokyo(3 Chome-7-1 Nishishinjuku). Next to my king-size bed was a wall-to-wall window reflecting the city line.

As it was dark when I landed, the skyscrapers were my first sight of Japan, which not only excited me but made me want to venture out. But upon showering and letting the in-suite Aēsop products moisturize my body and face, I remembered I hadn’t closed my eyes in 24 hours and fell into a deep sleep, robe and all.

The hotel buffet was one of the best I’ve seen, packed with cold, warm, steamed, and fried foods. I ended up having two full plates and lots of little sides while embracing the Japanese celebration of food and savoring a meal for a full two hours, overlooking the capital city.

Japan is home to over 25,000 onsens, and my therapist atHisamatsuyu(4 Chome-32-15 Sakuradai) explained to me that daily or weekly soaks help improve blood circulation. When searching for a public onsen, Hisamatsuyu came up as the most inclusive in terms of genders, ethnicities, and body art. I don’t have tattoos, but Hisamatsuyu also happens to be tattoo-friendly, unlike many more traditional onsens.

After soaking for close to half a day, I rounded out my self-care day by shopping atMatsumoto Kiyoshi, the largest drugstore chain in Japan (1F West Yard Block 2), and picking up traditional J-beauty creams, serums, sunscreens, and hair masks. The texture of each felt completely different to the products I normally use in New York, making me very excited for the next week of treatments.

In an effort to curb my crankiness and borderline travel insomnia, I booked theSleep Well, Wake Wellbody treatment atthe Peninsula(1 Chome-8-1 Yurakucho). The 110-minute massage relieved my sore travel legs and knees from a full day of exploring and flying. The 15-minute facial provided me with a great vacation glow, replacing my just-got-off-a-14-hour-flight skin. That night, I slept for ten hours.

My day started at the classy Ritz-Carlton Tokyo Spa (Tokyo Midtown 9-7-1 Akasaka Minato-Ku). I spent close to an hour enjoying the onsen, steam room, sauna, and other public offerings before settling into my treatment room. For my first Japanese facial, I landed on theSynactif Radiant Facial, a mixture of lymphatic drainage and massage to redefine my facial features. Not only did my face get attention but also my décolleté, back, hands, and arms.

Vital Perfection Uplifting and Firming Advanced Cream from Shiseido, the 150-year-old Japanese brand, is one of my favorite skin-care heroes. It provides my skin with a healthy glow and visibly tones my jawline. Visiting the flagship store in Ginza (3 Chome-3-14 Ginza) and seeing all the special AI innovations that we don’t have in the States was enchanting. I virtually tried on several foundation colors, lipsticks, eye creams, and more. I found out how hydrated my skin was with the brand’s patent-technology machine (I scored a high 85 out of 100 and credit this to all the lush creams I was using while in Japan). My souvenirs: an engraved tube of lipstick, oil-free sunscreen, a wrinkle-smoothing eye cream, and an illuminating serum.

After a full day of walking and shopping, there was no better way to complete day three than aDry Head Therapytreatment at the Tokyo Edition, Toranomon (4 Chome-1-1 Toranomon). After a friend (and, fine, a dozen TikTok posts) recommended I try this traditional Japanese head massage, I was ready to experience all the anticipated benefits (tension relief, relaxation, and improved circulation). And it ended up being the best 30 minutes of my day.

Having lived in New York City and London over the past decade, I am accustomed to good public transit. But Japan takes it to a new level. A bullet train took me safely from Tokyo to Fuji in only an hour. All signs were in Japanese and English, clear and concise for worried travelers. The stations are very clean and have gourmet-food stands, where I purchased chicken in a cup and an iced coffee. Your ticket also includes an en route bento box filled with hot soup, rice, and fish. Once off the train, a car took me toFuji Speedway Hotel(645 Omika, Oyama-cho, Sunto-gun, Shizuoka), where I quickly changed, dropped off my bags, and headed to my first excursion.

After a short 45-minute car ride, I arrived atObuchi-sasaba, one of the most famous green-tea fields in the world. Amid a sea of green grass, trees, bushes, and land that overlooks Mt. Fuji, the 150-year-old tea farm serves green tea to local people and travelers. Not only was it delicious, but it was also filled with vitamin E to help nourish and hydrate the skin while also acting as an anti-inflammatory.

Over the pandemic, my mom and I got obsessed with cars. Fast cars, old cars, colorful cars — it didn’t matter. Our daily walks had us fantasizing about driving them. When I checked into Fuji Speedway Hotel, my mouth fell open while the hotel staff shared the option to drive a race car on the actual A1 course. Situated on top of the speedway that hosts the FIA World Endurance Championship and Super GT races throughout the year, rooms either face the track or the stunning view of Mt. Fuji, Japan’s largest peak. I selected the mountain view, knowing that my time to see the racetrack would be a few hours away.

After hearing the safety rules (don’t surpass the safety car, wear a seat belt, don’t plug in headphones, etc.), I had nothing but adrenaline in my bones. I opted to not have a professional driver with me as I felt comfortable behind the wheel, but if you find yourself a bit nervous, that option is there. With the safety car in front of me, the highest speed I took was 75 mph, which was ideal for the twisty curves and sharp dips of the track. You travel around the course for a total of three rounds. The entire experience takes less than 30 minutes and is so affordable ($31 per person) that you’ll be tempted to drive each day of your stay. If this is too bold for you, the 24-hour hotel gym also features a professional-racing simulator to mimic the same thrill of driving on the course, only stationary.

Ending the day with a massage was the perfect way to unwind before mynine-course robatadinner. Infused with seasonal Shizuoka tea, theOmika Green Tea Compress Massagewas 120 minutes of deep relaxation, something my adrenaline-filled muscles needed after a day on the track.

My morning started at 6 a.m. with a flight over to Niseko, the northern region of Japan, where I checked into the beautifulPark Hyatt Niseko Hanazono(328-47 Iwaobetsu). After taking in the unreal views of my mountain-view room, I got ready for my next beauty service. I love getting my nails done and knew that getting them done in one of the birthplaces of nail art would be an experience I couldn’t possibly miss. My sisters and I have an Instagram thread where all we do is send nail inspo, so I dipped into that folder and decided on a bubblegum-watermelon theme. The village center in Hanazono is small and quite rural, so my options for nail salons were limited to the hotel. Unfortunately, it did not have a salon either but offered to send a local artist to my room. Thrilled at the ability to stay in my cozy room while watching the ski lift, I opted in and had the technician come to me. The service started with a soak, premier filing, buffing, and then a fresh paint job with design. The result: perfect works of art for four weeks without compromising my nail health.

The last time I participated in a snow sport, I was 16 and on a snowboard. In the 15 years since, I’ve thought about starting up again but ultimately was too intimidated by the fear of falling, not to mention the financial commitment. But when I read about Park Hyatt Niseko’s ski facilities, often deemed to have the “best snow on earth,” with true ski-in and ski-out access, I bit the bullet. My day started with a three-hour one-on-one lesson with instructor Becca Wheatcroft.

I started off scootering to practice my balance and get the feeling of sliding, then two-ski shuffling up a hill. Once I mastered this, I graduated to the beginner area until I felt ready to ski down from the gondola, where I learned to turn and practiced stopping. Wheatcroft told me that I was a natural and that most people don’t carry on past the beginner area in their first lesson. I was ecstatic. Feeling on top of the world, I signed up for a snowmobiling tour directly afterward, during which I got up to 45 mph, speeding through a snowy forest. This was a true highlight of my trip.

The majority of spa treatments in Japan start with an onsen soak to prep the skin for service, improve blood circulation, and reduce stress. I had 45 minutes to soak in my private onsen while enjoying serene birds chirping through the speakers and sipping on a hot ginseng tea. The onsen did wonders for my already-sore skiing muscles and acted as a moment for reflection about my time in Japan.

My therapist recommended the specialICOR Clear Facial, which uses natural spring water from Mt. Yōtei, an active stratovolcano close to the hotel’s region. With a natural pH value close to humans’, the water blended perfectly into my skin and left me feeling hydrated and taken care of. It was the perfect way to end the beauty-centric portion of my first visit to Japan. I went to sleep smiling and grateful to have been exposed to the superior quality of Japanese beauty.

I spent the next eight days exploring other cities in Japan (Kyoto, Yamagata, Osaka, and more) and wished I had sprinkled in more self-care moments against the back-to-back shrine visits, buckets of ramen, local karaoke, and shopping. But as they say, Japan will always be there. And I will be back.