In Japan, Journey Back in Time

Get a Grip
Two huge guys shoving each other around in a ring may not tick traditional western boxes in terms of what constitutes a “proper” sport, but sumo is nevertheless a pretty amazing spectacle with deep cultural and religious links in Japan. It’s also one that will earn you bragging rights forever if you can blag ringside tickets at the hallowed Ryogoku Kokugikan arena in Tokyo.

You can go one better than this thanks to the Palace Hotel Tokyo, which is offering a couple of “Grappling Tokyo” packages. This doesn’t include you getting into the ring, you’ll be relieved to hear. Instead, the off-season experience (only available for the two weeks leading up to each sumo tournament) includes a behind-the-scenes tour of a sumo wrestling training stable and the chance to chat with the fighters over a lunch of traditional chanko nabe (a protein-rich broth containing mostly meat, designed to bulk them up), prepared by the wrestlers themselves. Yes, you heard right—sumo dudes will cook your lunch.

The experience includes two nights’ accommodation, breakfast, private transportation, a sumo sports broadcaster as your personal guide, a translator, a seat at the morning’s wrestling practice and finally, lunch and picture-taking with the sumo wrestlers themselves.

Meanwhile, during the tournament season a similar deal is offered, except you can’t dine with the sumo boys as they will be busy trying to hurl each other out of the ring. Instead you will get the chance to actually watch the action from a safe distance. There are three grand sumo tournaments a year held in Japan’s capital, with the next set to start on January 11.

Rates for the Grappling Tokyo experience start at ¥627,000 ($40,120) for the off-season lunch package and ¥500,000 ($32,000) to attend the tournament.

1-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 100-0005, Japan, (+81) 3-3211-5211, tiny.cc/hk-grapple.