We will be in Kochi and would like to explore the Shimanto River area, it looks beautiful! I see there are a lot of tea farms and we'd love to do a tea ceremony as well as bike along the river. I also see there are wooden boats (?on the Japanese name) where we can cruise down the river and enjoy lunch. Ive tried searching the forums but haven't been able to find any information. If anyone has any tips or has traveled to the area, I'd love to hear about it and any suggestions you have.
Thank you!

Kochi is great, but having your own rental car is necessary for properly exploring the Shimanto area. The old chinkabashi bridges are cute to discover, and you can also rent bicycles in places (such as Ekawasaki) And there is lots of tea grown around there, but doing the tea ceremony isn't really a thing done much in the countryside. Yusuhara has neat architecture, the Karst has great views, and the Ashizuri area (southernmost tip) is also lovely. More info can be found on the Visit Kochi website
https://visitkochijapan.com/en/
And you didn't say when you are going, but summer can be dreadfully hot and humid there. Actually, I think one of the highest ever recorded temperatures in Japan (41 C) was along the Shimanto a few years back. So avoid the summer, or you may regret it.
Have fun!

Thank you so much for your reply! It looks beautiful, we are hoping to bicycle but i didn't realize the area is about an hour from kochi proper. Exploring hiking along the niyado river or just relaxing on katsurahama beach! Any ideas are greatly appreciated. Looking to do something other than temples since we will be seeing so many. Happy travels!