Mount Fuji is the star here, but the best part is seeing it from several very different angles in one private outing. You move from flower beds and calm lake water to spring-fed ponds and the famous red pagoda view at Chureito. I like the private Alphard van, with hotel pickup, Wi-Fi, water, snacks, and…
Tokyo is a city that can eat up your time before you have even found the right train platform. This 10-hour private tour solves that problem with hotel pickup, air-conditioned transport, and a route linking Asakusa, Tsukiji, the Imperial Palace, Ginza, Akihabara, Ueno, and Tokyo Skytree. I like the way the tour mixes famous sights…
Nikko packs grand shrines, mountain scenery, volcanic lakes, and waterfalls into one long day from Tokyo. This private tour makes the distance much easier, with door-to-door transport and a driver who can adjust the plan for your group. Guides such as Jazib, Atif Cheema, Sikander, Sarfraz, Abdullah, and Chema have been praised for being punctual,…
The unusual part of this experience is not simply drinking matcha. You enter a private Japanese home in Yokohama and sit in a traditional tatami tea room, where a tea master with more than 40 years of study shows you how the ceremony works. I like the rare charcoal procedure, and I like that you…
Tokyo’s tsukudani is not a flashy dish. It is preserved seafood cooked in a sweet-salty sauce, a practical food with roots in the Edo period. At Shinbashi Tamakiya, founded in 1782, this modest pantry staple gets a smart western twist through pairings with sake, wine, rice, pasta, nuts, and furikake. I like two things right…
Kamakura and Enoshima give you two very different sides of coastal Japan in one long day: quiet temple grounds and bamboo in Kamakura, then sea air, island paths, and wide views from Enoshima. The Great Buddha is the headline sight, but the temple tea stop and local rail travel give the day more character than…
Asakusa’s great strength is that its past is still part of the street scene. In two hours, this walking tour connects the Sumida River to Senso-ji Temple, explaining how a 1,400-year-old Buddhist site shaped one of Tokyo’s best-known neighborhoods. You will see the giant lantern at Kaminarimon, the shops of Nakamise, temple rituals, and the…
Lake Ashi’s pirate ship is the surprise star of this day out. You sail past Hakone’s mountains and traditional lakeside scenery, then head to a Mt. Fuji snow area and finish with Japanese barbecue and outlet shopping. It is an efficient way to combine three very different stops without wrestling with trains, buses, and confusing…
Mount Fuji is the star here, but the best part of this private 10-hour tour is how many different ways you see it: from a mountain station, a lakeshore, a shrine path, a pagoda terrace, and a ropeway lookout. You travel in a private vehicle from your hotel, apartment, or Airbnb, which saves you from…
Tokyo nightlife makes more sense when someone shows you where to go. This three-hour evening with guide Yoshi takes you from Omoide Yokocho through Kabukicho and into Golden Gai, with an izakaya meal, five food items, and three alcoholic drinks along the way. I like the small-group format, which makes it easier to ask questions…
Insider guides, cultural deep-dives and current-affairs reporting on Tokyo and Japan, written by people who live here and go to the places they write about.