Japan’s Inland Sea: Islands of the Setouchi Triennale Aboard Guntu

October 18 – 29, 2025

Starting from

Art Destinations Small Ship & River Cruises

Sail through centuries of Japanese artistry and innovation aboard the luxurious 19-cabin Guntû.

Cruising aboard the luxurious, 19-cabin Guntû, enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at islands transformed into open-air museums during the Setouchi Triennale, one of Asia’s largest contemporary art festivals. 

A Once-in-a-Lifetime Land-and-Sea Adventure

Experience centuries of artistry and innovation with curators on this journey, which also features stays at elegant hotels like Naoshima’s Benesse House, a museum and resort designed by Tadao Ando. Delight in exclusive visits, including an after-hours tour of Hiroshima’s all-new Simose Art Garden Villa, a look at Naoshima’s underground Chichu Art Museum also designed by Ando, and an expert-led tour of Narukawa Art Museum’s collection of nihonga paintings on paper and silk created using traditional techniques in Hakone.

Highlights

Lecturer

John T. Carpenter

Lecturer

John T. Carpenter, the Mary Griggs Burke Curator of Japanese Art in the Department of Asian Art, has been with The Met since 2011. From 1999 to 2011, he taught the history of Japanese art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. He served as head of the London office of the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures. He has published widely on Japanese art and has helped organize numerous exhibitions at the Museum, including Designing Nature (2012–13), Birds in the Art of Japan (2013), Brush Writing in the Arts of Japan (2013–14), Celebrating the Arts of Japan (2015–17), The Poetry of Nature (2018–2019), The Tale of Genji: A Japanese Classic Illuminated (2019), and, most recently, The Three Perfections: Japanese Poetry, Calligraphy, and Painting from the Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection (2024–25). In September 2023, he led The Met’s first-ever journey by train to Japan’s “Deep North” aboard the exclusive Train Suite Shiki-shima.

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