Guided & self-guided Japan private tour stories, reviews & testimonials
The guided and self-guided Japan private tour stories, reviews and testimonials below are all different. And in the high end travel design market, very client is different. This is so important in the almost invisible private travel industry. To be clear, less than 3% of all international travelers use private travel services.
My guided Japan private tours are designed by me, OKed by you, the client, and then the licensed guide follows what was OKed. OK?
And don't make the mistake of assuming self-guided tours (Sgts) are a set of headphones in a museum setting. My self-guided tours are something else. And I have been designing and making these tours since 1990, all over Japan! Sgts are practical: they save you time, lots of time! Sometimes they save you money too because of my expert route and logistics designs. Sgts also feature commentary and historical insights (mine) to improve the quality of your travel time. Self-guided tours can be timed or planned for 2, 4, 6, or 8 hours. They can be 100% walking tours; across Tokyo for example. Or they can be with a car or van + driverm where the same bilingual PDF is used by the client and the driver. Or they can be made for public transportation and hopping ahead where advantageous in a taxi. Typical Sgt tour PDFs include maps, detailed walking instructions, lunch options, and places you have requested. Self-guided Japan private tours are ideal for those on a budget, as they are 66% less than a guided Japan private tour with a licensed guide. But this tour style is also very popular with international travelers who want guidance, expert travel guidance, but don't want to be with a human guide. In this case, the Sgt design makes you feel 100% in control and confident because you dont' have to think too much. The guide is me and I am in the PDF from start to finish. Learn more!
Email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.
Two young guys from Dallas (26 and 27 years old): November 2022. Kyle and Mason were in Japan for 14 days and never saw a local tour guide once. But with my self-guided tour programming they hiked up and around Mount Fuji, partied in Tokyo and Osaka and Fukuoka, saw a sumo tournament, explored the manga | anime worlds of Tokyo and Osaka, and avoided the crowds in mapleleaf-peak-season Kyoto. When they were in Japan I only heard from them (email | text) when I had questions! Clearly, every day and night of my self-guided programming was all they needed!
Sarah Packard (USA) and her two kids (9 & 11 years of age) spent 10 days in and around Tokyo and never met a local tour guide on their manga, anime explorations in April 2019. The Packard family trip was focused 100% on the children's interests. They dressed up in kimono in Asakusa, experienced a "ninja" meal at Ninja Akasaka, visited the key districts for anime, manga and popular youth culture, and spent a couple of days in the Disney resort. All of their travel was with subway, train and tram (with a couple of strategic taxi rides). The kids had a ball and mom wasn't too stressed at all! Perfect!
Ian Hart (65), a helicopter pilot in Ireland, traveled to Japan with his wife in October 2018. They rented a car on arrival at Kansai International Airport and for the next 10 days Your Japan Private Tours planned their daily driving itinerary across Shikoku Island (4 days) and Kyushu Island (5 days). My job was to make sure that Mr Hart (65 years old) and his wife didn’t get lost (so I provided detailed Google map links and Google map pins for each days route) and that they saw what they came to Japan for: places of natural scenic beauty (the seaside rice and mikan tangerine terraces of Ehime Prefecture) and no temples or shrines (but they did visit two exceptional historical gardens and toured a famous bonsai growing area). On their last two days on Kyushu, I directed their drive to the off coast islands south of Kumamoto and booked them into a high end seaside hot spring spa. Mr Hart and his wife were pleased with my planning and the trip was a success (and we never once spoke on the phone!).
The Valerian family from San Diego, California, came to Japan in January 2016. Special request: Day trip from Tokyo to see the snow monkeys. Most of the Valerian family's 10 day trip from Tokyo to Kyoto involved guided Japan private tours (I also provided all their transfers with my unique A to B transfers and special airport and train station pick ups by a driver and a private van). However, seeing the snow monkeys in Nagano was something they really wanted to do and without a guide. If they had gone to see the monkeys with a guide they would have had to pay for the guide's train fares and getting to Nagano using the bullet train and another private rail company was not inexpensive. Your Japan Private Tours designed a day trip from Tokyo starting at 8:00 in the morning. The famliy was back in Tokyo on same day by 18:30 for a reserved Japanese steak dinner. [we have planned and executed the snow monkey day trip from Tokyo many times over the years].
Learn more! Or email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.
Mr and Mrs Wolf from New Zealand sailed their yacht to Japan in the summer of 2017 and then moored the boat in the Osaka area for 14 days and travelled from Osaka to Nara, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Shirakawa, Takayama, Hakone and Tokyo. Your Japan private tours booked all their accommodation (night by night) and provided custom independent Japan self-guided tours for all of their trip. They were only with a guide for one day in Kyoto and for one day in Tokyo at the end of their trip. In Kanazawa they took the train, bus and a taxi to the stunning rice terraces on the sea on the rugged off-the-beaten-track west coast of the Noto Peninsula (famous as the center of Japan’s lacquer craft industry). In Hakone, I programmed in a bit of hiking as well as a focus on the contemporary art museums of the area (The Pola Art Museum, the Hakone Museum of Art and the Narukawa Art Museum). This trip involved a lot of bus and off-the-beaten-track travel and the selection of small traditional places to stay along the entire route. I did all the research and created a perfect day by day itinerary for the couple using self-guided tours and my powerful A to B transfers and a few special dinner experiences as well.
Mr Andy White of the USA visited relatives in Tokyo in May of 2018. Mr White was a passionate collector of Japanese ceramics for the tea ceremony and ikebana flower arrangement culture. He asked Your Japan Private Tours to create a 5-day trip from Tokyo by train that included Kyoto (for ikebana and ceramic studio tours), Kyushu (Arita, Imari and Karatsu porcelain specialty tours, all self-guided), Hiroshima | Miyajima before returning to Tokyo. Your Japan Private Tours booked all the hotels for Mr White’s trip (budget hotels but with specific needs like good wifi and breakfast included), provided A to B transfers for all the major travel days, and the day to day programming with specialty self-guided tour itineraries. Mr White was very happy with my services and got see exactly what he requested in a very short time.
Mr Mohammed from Kuwait and his Italian wife travelled across Japan in April 2016 for cherry blossom viewing and super high end cuisine experiences. As a very wealthy couple from the Middle East, I was surprised by what they wanted for their Japan trip. 1. They didn't want to be with a guide at all but they wanted to have a private luxury car and driver everywhere they went (Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto). 2. They wanted to experience the best popular tourist sights and attractions for cherry blossom viewing and they wanted to have the best food Japan had to offer. Your Japan Private Tours created daily English-Japanese itineraries for the driver and the client including high end long lunches on most days. For dinner I booked the couple into some of the finest sushi and steak and tempura restaurants in Tokyo and Kyoto. The only time they were with a local tour guide in their 14 day trip was for 3 hours in Kyoto during a private maiko geiko (geisha) dinner banquet performance. Other than those few hours I planned and facilitated a very pleasant time them without any guides at all. An interesting client to be sure!
Mr Williams and his son Steven of the USA came to Japan to scuba dive and see Japan’s incredible national parks on the island of Hokkaido in the autumn of 2015. They had never been to Japan before. Your Japan Private Tours took care of the entire trip (train and taxi travel only). Mr Williams and his son took a scuba diving trip to see the sharks off the coast of the Izu Peninsula (about three hours from Tokyo) and then moved north by train to Aomori and Hokkaido. Your Japan Private tours planned every day in detail, booked the traditional inns and bed and breakfasts along the way, designed the A to B transfers for the entire trip, and provided reserved cuisine experiences in Tokyo, Izu, Aomori, and Sapporo.
Learn more! Email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.
Reviews of Your Japan Private Tours tour services from past clients
Haha!
I don’t plan anything 3 weeks in advance. And your guys are superb. Really. We are happy. — M Sack, USA, 3pax, Tokyo, Oct 2022
Dear Ian,
With your excellent detailed help we certainly packed in a wonderful intense variety of experiences. Your Japanese translations were super helpful and all transport arrangements clicked like clockwork. Cherry blossoms way beyond expectations. No doubt you pulled strings! Both guides were lovely and generous and flexible and informative. ALL our accoms were excellent. Ryokans and Temple totally memorable. Food was fabulous!!! THANK YOU!!!
— William Constance, Australia
Dear Ian,
We just arrived back in Mexico. Thank you very much for outstanding job, everything was perfect in Japan.
— Cynthia, Mexico
Our only negative comment, on TripAdvisor (thankfully no longer on TripAdvisor; thank you TripAdvisor!). Client: Elite French boutique travel agency and their client, a Mexican billionaire & family. Assignment: A 1st class family trip across Japan with two nannies, two tour guides, and two private 747 jet pilots.
Jan 24, 2017: TripAdvisor: Definitely not trustful. We planned a trip and he simply tried to charge us 30% more than it was planned. Our reply (as we are not on TripAdvisor and the conversation has been closed and supposedly removed!): The family's private 747 jet broke down in Shanghai but they still arrived on a commerical jet in Hiroshima, as planned. Ian Ropke of Your Japan Private Tours coordinated and planned and logistically handled the rest of the trip from start to finish: Hiroshima, Osaka, Tokyo. Van for luggage, van for family, daily itineraries, dinner coordination, private mobile wifi, finding an extra Spanish speaking guide and liasing with both guides throughout the trip. On arrival in Tokyo from Osaka @ 23:00, the French travel agent in Mexico City (Louis N.) requested a special traditional Mexican birthday cake and clown for the following morning (8 hours later). I facilitated this request (through three Mexican restaurants open until 3 am) but the guides and the nannies were so exhausted that no action was taken with the Mexican restaurants. At this point, frustrated, exhausted and all my work done for the remainer of the family's time in Tokyo, I stepped away from the assignment for the remaining 3 days in Tokyo. The client French travel agency refused to pay me for the work I had already done in advance for Tokyo. I did not ask for 30% more. I asked to be paid for what I had already done. Louis made his nasty and baseless remark after we had settled the matter (i.e., I settled for about USD 1,000 less). I asked him to remove the comment on TripAdvisor but it was too late by then. The thread had been closed. And then removed (on my request). And now, after Covid, all evidence of this nasty "revenge" remark have been removed. Thank you TripAdvisor!
— Louis N, France | Mexico: Co-owner of an elite concierge travel agency in Paris, France (with a branch office in Mexico City).
Learn more! Or email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.
Dear Ian,
We would like to take this opportunity and thank you for three very interesting and enjoying days in Kyoto and Nara. Your knowledge and very good service made those three days an experience we will not forget for long time. Thank you again for your excellent service and you can be sure we will recommend your service to all our friends that plan to visit Japan.
— Jill R., USA
Hi Ian,
I wanted to let you know that my private tour yesterday in Kyoto was outstanding in every way!! She was a terrific guide, we hit some incredible shrines, temples and palaces and were even fortunate enough to participate in a new year festival performance at a local shrine. I won't hesitate to recommend your services to friends and colleagues.
— Todd L., Canada
Dear Ian,
Thank you again from Mexico City. Our group of doctors had a wonderful time with the Spanish-speaking guides you provided and thank you also for your superb conference services!!! Our time in Tokyo so relaxing and interesting!
— Ernesto K., Mexico City
Dear Ian,
We had a great day today. The guide was fabulous!!! Thank you for your attention to the details and all the great advice!
— Kathy B., San Diego
Hi Ian,
I had a great time in Kyoto. Thanks for organizing a memorable tour and getting me into all those special locations I wanted to photograph!.
— Thanks, Andre B., France/USA
Dear Ian,
We are back in Buenos Aires. Thanx to you our business and pleasure trip to Tokyo and Kyoto was a great success and we really had a lot of fun in a very short time!
— Sebastian T., Argentina
Ian-
Thanks again for arranging the tours of Tokyo and Kyoto for my wife and me. Ms. Ando gave us a great tour of Tokyo while Fumi's tour of Kyoto was simply superb! We'll definitely be back in touch as we want to bring the rest of the family next time.
Thanks, Ms. Natasha V., Russia
Ian-
Thanks again for a wonderful experience for the whole group. It was great, and you made it look quite effortless, which is the sign of mastery. Of course, you and I both know it is not effortless at all.
Mr. Steve R., USA
Learn more! Or email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.
Dear Ian,
Just a quick note to thank you for the excellent service you provided on our recent trip to Kyoto. Many, many thanks for your thoughtful guidance. We would be happy to recommend your services to any and all. Please feel free to use us as reference if you need us. Thanks again.
Skyler M., Canada
Dear Ian,
Just wanted to write and thank you for the great tour in Tokyo. We absolutely loved our guide and had a wonderful afternoon with her.
Candice H., Singapore
Dear Ian:
A big thank you for your services while we were in Tokyo. We felt very special to have such a professional and courteous driver. Our guide was delightful and knowledgeable.
— Samantha W., United Kingdom
Ian:
You are the best; thanks for making our trip stress free, unique and wonderful. Michael and I thoroughly enjoyed your company. If you ever pass through LA, I hope you will call.
— Bill R., Los Angeles
Hi Ian,
I had a great time on the tour your organized. The guide was perfect. I really enjoyed my stay in Japan and will come back one of these days. Thanks.
— James L., New York City
Ian,
I wanted to thank you once again for the great tours you lead us on last week. I want you to know that your leg work to find Hiroto and his family for me was much appreciated. Our visit was nostalgic and emotional -- very moving for me, and I think Hiroto as well. It was a very special visit. Thank you for the memories my children have of Kyoto. If you're ever in Milwaukee, call us. Thank you.
— Sybille Y., USA
Ian-
Thank you for the fun time in Kyoto. I am sure that you have never had a group quite like ours. At least we got to about 3 temples/shrines and most importantly Joni and Carolyn got to shop. Your guidance was superb and you found exactly the things we were looking for. I am going to try to post a note about your services on FlyerTalk.com.
— Spencer N., USA
My full service pricelist, retail prices, in JPY and USD. for tours, transfers, restaurant experiences and more!
Learn more! Email me today at yourjapanprivatetours AT gmail DOT com. Or text me on Whatsapp @ +1-415-230-0579.