White-water rafting? Been there, done that, and so last decade. Adrenaline junkies can now immerse themselves in the water with only a helmet and a life jacket by canyoning, a relatively new adventure sport that uses natural canyons as a real-life adventure park. Tour operator Canyons offers the roughly two-hour Big Mononoke, where you’ll slide down waterfalls up to 25m tall, zip-line down rivers and jump off precipices from a height of six metres, all in the middle of Okutama’s lush nature (Okutama is just 90 minutes from central Tokyo).
Looking for a bigger rush? Combine it with a packrafting tour and speed down the white water of the Tama River. However, if you prefer to ease into something less strenuous, opt for the relatively milder Mononoke tour – the jumps aren’t so tall and you’ll have time to chill in the river. Be aware that under-13s cannot participate in the Okutama tours; they can, however, join the rafting tours in Minakami, Gunma prefecture.