This Month on Maction Planet – May 2026

May 2026 was a month of serendipity and the accumulation of moments that remind you why Japan never gets old. Guests old and new, returning families and first-timers, day tours and multi-week adventures: the full spectrum of what Maction Planet does, compressed into a single month. On the Kanpai Planet side, the biggest Ben Nevis release in Thompson Brothers history made its way onto the channel — and the Kanpai Planet Club launched. We continue…

Featured image: May in the Aso caldera means rolling emerald grasslands stretching across one of the largest volcanic calderas in the world -128 kilometres in circumference, home to five central peaks whose ridgeline, seen from Daikanbo, forms the Nehanzo: the silhouette of a reclining Buddha. Daikanbo itself sits at 936 metres on the northern caldera rim, the highest of Aso’s seven rocky promontories. My guests and I had just taken in the view and were heading back down when, in the middle distance, a figure in red and blue overalls caught our eyes. Super Mario, it turned out, was also a fan of Japanese volcanic geography. There wasn’t much conversation but the photo opportunity more than made up for it. Here we go!

One of these things is not like the other.

This photo was taken on the second full day with Glenn [not pictured], Alyssa, Leah and Mark. The next day, we flew to Fukuoka for just over a week in wonderful Kyushu!

Yanagawa, often called the Venice of Kyushu for its 930 kilometres of historic waterways, was the destination for a day trip from Fukuoka – and timing was everything. We arrived to find the city in the middle of the Okinohata Suitengu Festival, an annual celebration held each 3rd to 5th May at Suitengu Shrine on the banks of the canal.

Serendipity ran through this entire Kyushu trip. Checking into Hotel Okura Fukuoka, I did something I almost never do: lingered in the lobby for no particular reason. Three minutes later, three Hakata geigi swept in – geigi being the local term for what the rest of Japan calls geisha or geiko – performed a short dance, and continued on their way to a function in the dining room. The small crowd that had gathered, myself included, was delighted.

A day trip from Kagoshima brought us to Hioki and one of my favourite distilleries in Japan: Kanosuke. Founded in 2017 by Yoshitsugu Komasa – the fourth generation of a family that has been making spirits in Kagoshima since 1883 – the distillery sits above Fukiagehama Beach on the west coast of Kagoshima Prefecture, facing the East China Sea. At its heart are three copper pot stills built by Miyake Industries, each with a different size [6,000L, 3,000L, and 1,600L], neck shape, and lyne arm angle – a configuration that allows the team to produce an unusually wide range of distillate characters. Enormous thanks to the entire Kanosuke team for their exceptional hospitality.

Back in Tokyo for the Natsu Basho — the May Grand Sumo Tournament at Ryogoku Kokugikan — we watched both the Juryo and Makuuchi divisions from ringside seats. The tournament had already been rocked before it began: Yokozuna Onosato had withdrawn due to injury, leaving Hoshoryu as the sole Yokozuna. On opening day, Hoshoryu faced Takayasu, suffered a hamstring injury mid-bout, and hobbled from the dohyo. He was confirmed withdrawn the following morning. This photo captures the aftermath of that final bout – the moment the gravity of the situation was becoming clear. It was a bittersweet day in a tournament that ultimately produced a worthy champion: Wakatakakage, who claimed his second career yusho in a playoff against Kirishima.

An afternoon art tour brought Nathan, Rosalind and I to the Mori Art Museum in Roppongi for the Ron Mueck exhibition, running 29 April to 23 September 2026. The centrepiece that stopped everyone in their tracks was Mass (2016–17) – one hundred oversized human skulls, reconfigured for each venue it visits, filling the gallery with an atmosphere that is simultaneously overwhelming and oddly serene. Mueck, born in Melbourne in 1958 and now based in the UK, has spent three decades producing hyperrealist figurative sculpture that manipulates scale to unsettling effect. I had first encountered his work earlier in the year at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, where his exhibition Encounter was running.

Four days in Tokyo with Chapin and Angie culminated in an evening at Bar Centifolia, the reservation-only cocktail bar in Azabu-Juban presided over by Yuzo Komai – Suntory Cocktail Award champion, ice diamond sculptor, and one of the most-watched bartenders on social media. Komai’s signature move is carving a large block of ice into a perfect diamond using nothing but an ice pick and a knife, a performance that sits somewhere between precision craft and theatre… and setting fire to bar counter. A fitting end to a great four days.

It was a privilege to guide Michelle and her family around Tokyo on 20 May, and to have planned the majority of their trip. A Maction Planet tour can take many forms: bespoke guiding for individual days or experiences, multi-city itinerary planning and consulting, or end-to-end Pan-Japan tours. Whatever shape your adventure takes, we are here for all of it. On this particular afternoon, the shape it took was Daily Chico in the basement of Nakano Broadway – home of the legendary Tokudai soft serve, a preposterous tower of eight different flavours. Large.

The Peninsula Tokyo has one of the city’s great hotel lobbies, in no small part to Lying Dragon Gate – a bamboo sculpture by Japanese artist Keisen Hama depicting a dragon lying protectively atop the universe, a symbol of strength, harmony, and good fortune. It was the perfect starting point for a full day with Mary and Charlie, covering the city efficiently and ticking off every goal they had set for their Tokyo visit, and then some.

The tour on 26 May given to Peri and Spencer was a gift – quite literally. It had been arranged by their mother Kim, a returning Maction Planet guest, as a combined engagement and birthday present. That alone set the tone for a special day. Peri and I first met back in 2018, so there was history to pick up alongside the itinerary – which included restaurant reservations at places that require the kind of local knowledge and relationships that you simply cannot TikTok your way into. Part way through we fuelled up at Turret Coffee, now celebrating its twelfth year.

There are sunsets, and then there is the sunset at Meiji Jingu Stadium. The sun drops behind the Shinjuku skyline – the NTT Docomo Tower cutting its familiar silhouette to the right – and for a few minutes the whole ground is bathed in an aura that makes it very easy to forgive whatever is happening on the field. Which was useful, because the Swallows and the Saitama Seibu Lions took their interleague contest all the way to extra innings before the Lions edged it 2–1. How annoying. Regardless, much fun was had by Peri, Spencer and I.

The best kind of word-of-mouth is the kind that happens organically. Mary, having enjoyed her day with Maction Planet on 23 May, encountered Cyndi and her daughters at the Sumo… and the recommendation that followed led to two days of guiding across the city. This photo was taken on 27 May, day two, as we gathered beneath the guardian lions at the entrance of The Peninsula Tokyo to say goodbye. Cyndi and her daughters were fantastic company, and it was a privilege to show them Tokyo.

This photo was taken at the end of the evening of the first full day of what will be two weeks around Japan with John, Kimberly, Lizzie, Nick and Sarah. We were in the backstreets of Tokyo, in a traditional tatami ryotei, in the company of two geisha. An ozashiki – a geisha gathering – is one of those experiences that simply cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world: the combination of classical dance, music, conversation, and the quiet formality of the setting creates something that stays with you long after the evening ends. A perfect way to begin what promises to be a very special trip.

Back in January 2026, at Dornoch Castle Hotel, I sat down to taste the Thompson Brothers Ben Nevis 52-year-old, distilled in 1973, vatted from two refill hogsheads, bottled at 40.1% ABV across just 390 bottles, and priced at £750. It is the oldest whisky the Thompson Brothers have ever released, and the video covers how they acquired two 52-year-old casks at short notice, the Japan connection that launched their independent bottling operation, and whether 40.1% ABV on a whisky this old is a risk or a triumph. My verdict on whether £750 was worth it is waiting for you over on Kanpai Planet. Support the channel and access exclusive content at kanpaiplanet.com/join.

Maction Planet runs bespoke Private Tours and Experiences in Tokyo, and beyond. To book yours, or to purchase a gift card, contact us at info@mactionplanet.com

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