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Asia and Oceania
Kosher Tours in Asia and Oceania
Kosher tours in Asia and Oceania for travelers who want the far side of the world without giving up anything they keep: Japan, India and Vietnam with a guide who knows the country, Australia and New Zealand by land and sea, and two cruises between Tokyo and Hong Kong. Every meal is Glatt Kosher Mehadrin, and Shabbat is kept with the local Jewish community or with the group.
The next departures
Six trips to Asia and Oceania, in date order
Three escorted tours, a tour and cruise in Australia and New Zealand, and two fourteen-night cruises in East Asia. You fly in, we meet you, and the touring or the ship, the meals and Shabbat are arranged.
Tokyo to Hong Kong
Japan, South Korea and China, November 2026
- Dates
- November 8–22, 2026
- From
- $7,200 per person
India
India, January 2027
- Dates
- January 11–26, 2027
- From
- $5,500 per person
Auckland to Sydney
Australia and New Zealand, January 2027
- Dates
- January 13 – February 2, 2027
- From
- $8,900 per person
Hong Kong to Tokyo
Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan and Japan, February 2027
- Dates
- February 14–28, 2027
- From
- $7,200 per person
Japan
Japan, May 2027
- Dates
- May 24 – June 2, 2027
- From
- $5,900 per person
Vietnam
Vietnam, December 2027
- Dates
- December 6–15, 2027
- From
- $5,400 per person
Dates and from-prices are the ones published today, per person sharing a double room or cabin, in US dollars. Each page carries the full itinerary, the hotels or the ports, the price and the terms.
Japan · May 2027, and by sea
Japan: a ten-day tour, and two cruises
Our kosher tour of Japan is ten days with the group and an English-speaking guide: Tokyo, Mount Fuji and the lakes of Hakone, the temples of Kyoto, Hiroshima and Miyajima, Osaka, and a Shabbat in Kobe with Japan's oldest Jewish community.
Four nights are at the InterContinental The Strings in Tokyo and five at the ANA Crowne Plaza in Kobe. Dinners are catered at Chabad of Tokyo and at the Ohel Shelomo Synagogue in Kobe. Japan by sea is the November 2026 cruise from Tokyo, and the February 2027 cruise that ends there. Kosher food in Japan, Jewish Japan and every Japan trip we run are on Kosher Japan.
Kosher Tour of Japan, May 2027
India · January 2027
India: Rajasthan, the Golden Triangle and Jewish Cochin
Sixteen days from Udaipur to Mumbai: the palaces and forts of Rajasthan, the Taj Mahal and Old Delhi, then the old Jewish quarter of Cochin, the Kerala backwaters and the synagogues of Mumbai. An 11-day option ends in Delhi.
Shabbat is kept twice: with Chabad in Pushkar, and at the Paradesi Synagogue in Cochin. The group eats at the Chabad restaurants in Delhi, Pushkar and Mumbai, and the domestic flights and the Indian e-visa are included.
Kosher Tour of India, January 2027
Vietnam · December 2027
Vietnam: ten days from Saigon to Ha Long Bay
Our kosher tour of Vietnam runs from south to north with the group and an English-speaking guide: Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, Hoi An and the Ba Na Hills, Hanoi, the karst country of Ninh Binh and a day on Ha Long Bay, with four more nights in the mountains of Sapa as an extension.
Two nights are at the Rex in Ho Chi Minh City, four at Almanity Hoi An and three at Fraser Suites in Hanoi, with both domestic flights included. Dinners in Saigon and Hanoi are at Chabad, and Shabbat is in Hoi An with the local Chabad community.
Kosher Tour of Vietnam, December 2027
China and South Korea · November 2026
China and South Korea by sea: Busan, Jeju and Shanghai
Fourteen nights aboard Holland America's Westerdam, from Tokyo on Sunday, November 8 to Hong Kong on Sunday, November 22, 2026.
After the Japanese ports and a Shabbat in port at Fukuoka, the ship calls at Busan and Jeju Island in South Korea, spends two days in Shanghai and ends in Hong Kong. Meals are cooked for the group by an executive kosher chef and served in a dining area of our own, with packed lunches for the days ashore. The itinerary flags a Chinese visa for the two days in Shanghai.
Kosher Cruise to Japan, South Korea and China, November 2026
We have run a land tour of China before. “We saw everything we wanted to see and the itinerary was very well planned and executed,” Sharon Faith wrote after it; more on the guest reviews page.
Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Philippines · February 2027
Hong Kong, the Philippines and Taiwan by sea, to Tokyo
Fourteen nights aboard Holland America's Westerdam, from Hong Kong on Sunday, February 14 to Tokyo on Sunday, February 28, 2027.
The ship calls at Puerto Princesa, Boracay and Manila in the Philippines, Kaohsiung and Keelung in Taiwan, then Ishigaki Island, Naha and Osaka in Japan. The first Shabbat begins in port at Manila and the second in port at Osaka. Meals are cooked for the group by an executive kosher chef and served in a dining area of our own.
Kosher Cruise to Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan and Japan, February 2027
Australia and New Zealand · January 2027
Australia and New Zealand: a tour and a cruise
Twenty-one days: four touring Auckland and the North Island, then fourteen nights aboard Holland America's Noordam from Auckland to Sydney, and two days in Sydney and the Blue Mountains.
New Zealand
The North Island first, with the Waitomo Glowworm Caves, Hobbiton and a Shabbat in Auckland; then the ship calls at Tauranga for Rotorua, Napier, Wellington, the Marlborough Sounds and Christchurch, and cruises Fiordland.
Then across the Tasman Sea to Hobart in Tasmania, Melbourne and Sydney. Every meal is Glatt Kosher Mehadrin, cooked for the group by an executive kosher chef, with a dining area of our own on board. Three Shabbatot are kept together, one on land in Auckland and two at sea.
Kosher Tour and Cruise to Australia and New Zealand, January 2027
Jewish communities on the way
Shabbat with the Jewish communities of Asia
Far from home, Shabbat is kept with the people who live there.
- Cochin and Mumbai: Shabbat at the Paradesi Synagogue in Cochin's Jew Town, the synagogues of Chendamangalam and Paravur, and in Mumbai the Knesseth Eliyahoo and Magen David synagogues; background in Jewish India.
- Kobe: Ohel Shelomo, founded in the early 1900s by Jews from Iraq and Syria, is the oldest synagogue in Japan still in use, and Shabbat ends with a walk through the old Jewish houses of Kitano
- Delhi, Pushkar, Saigon, Hanoi and Hoi An: the Chabad houses that cater dinners for the group, and in Pushkar and Hoi An keep Shabbat with it
Kashrut
Kosher in Asia, at every meal
Every meal on every trip is Glatt Kosher Mehadrin. How it reaches the table depends on the country, and each page says exactly how.
In India the group eats at the Chabad restaurants in Delhi, Pushkar and Mumbai, and on the other days dinner comes fresh from the kosher kitchen in Delhi, under the supervision of Chabad of Delhi. In Japan, dinners are catered at Chabad of Tokyo and at Ohel Shelomo in Kobe, and breakfast is prepared under our mashgiach in our own dining room at the hotel. In Vietnam dinners are at Chabad of Ho Chi Minh City and Chabad of Hanoi. On the Westerdam and the Noordam an executive kosher chef cooks for the group alone, served in a dining area of our own, with packed lunches for the days ashore. Tell us about any allergy or dietary need when you inquire.
What our guests have to say
What guests said
“Your attention to detail, administrative and organizational prowess and logistical coordination made the excursion as flawless as it was fabulous.”
“The itinerary and all the support staff were truly superb!”
“I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful memorable trip to China.”
Questions
Questions travelers ask about kosher tours in Asia
Where do your kosher tours in Asia and Oceania go?
Japan (Kosher Tour of Japan, May 2027), India (Kosher Tour of India, January 2027), Vietnam (Kosher Tour of Vietnam, December 2027), Australia and New Zealand (Kosher Tour and Cruise to Australia and New Zealand, January 2027), and by sea to South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Philippines.
How do you keep kosher so far from home?
With the local Chabad houses and communities, who cater dinners and Shabbat, and with our own mashgiach, who supervises breakfast and the packed lunches. On the cruises an executive kosher chef cooks for the group alone. Each page names who supervises what.
Where is Shabbat kept?
With a community wherever there is one: in Kobe at Ohel Shelomo, in Cochin at the Paradesi Synagogue, in Pushkar and Hoi An with Chabad, and in Auckland on the Australia and New Zealand trip. On the cruises Shabbat is kept on board, in port or at sea.
Are flights included?
International flights are not. The internal flights in India and Vietnam are included, and on the tours we meet you at the airport on arrival and take you back on the last day.
Do I need a visa?
For India, the e-visa is included in the tour. For the Shanghai days on the November cruise, the itinerary flags a Chinese visa. Ask us about your own passport.
How active are the tours?
These are full touring days on foot at markets, temples and old towns, with the coach in between; in Japan the touring runs from about 9:00am to 6:00pm on most days. Shabbat is always a rest day.
Connect
Shared journeys. Lasting friendships.
Enrich
Memories that touch the soul.
Inquire
Speak to someone about your trip
Call the line for your region, or send an inquiry and we will come back to you.
- Israel+972 2 992 9801
- USA / Canada+1 646 240 4118
- Europe+44 207 048 6168
- Australia+61 39 999 7496
- South Africa+27 83 377 1908
Speak to Shelley in reservations. Every missed call and message is returned.
Since 1991 · Glatt Mehadrin