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Japan self-guided tours: packages, advantages, stories

Shirakawago Village farm house and old cherry tree

My all-Japan self-guided tours--packages, travel services, and morning, day, and night tours--which have been used by my clients since 1990, save you time and money (66% less than a guided tour!). And they are designed by me, with your input, for who you are and how you like to travel, i.e. 100% tailormade like a Savile Road bespoke suit! And my self-guided tours of Japan have been used by a few millionaires and celebrities because they are private, just you and your family or partner or friends, yet logistically perfect for going anywhere. I have been designing and executing Japan self-guided tours and private travel services all over Japan (all 5 islands) since 1990 for all kinds of clients. And since 2015, all my clients (multi-generation families, couples, elderly travelers, business, Bleisure and luxury travelers) have been using my self-guided tours and services as part of their Japan trip, combined with one or several guided tour days. My self-guided tours are flexible and can be designed for train and subway or for a private car and driver arrangement (or a private bus and a driver). Either way, my Japan itinerary designs are customized (based on your travel preferences and interests) to save you time and improve the quality of your time in Japan. No matter where you want to go or how. The choices are all yours. Learn more!

My guided Japan private tours:

  • Are made for who you are and how you like to travel,
  • Save you time, lots of time (and money too sometimes),
  • Improve the quality of your travel time in all ways,
  • Are made to avoid the crowds in super peak seasons,
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My island by island logistics and overviews: Just scroll down to the index and then pick your destination: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, the Japan Alps, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikoku, and Okinawa. Overviews for train travel, history, festivals, and cuisine.

Japan month-by-month travel overviews: Just scroll down to the page menu and click on "when" and pick your month from March to February (as the Japanese year begins with April!

All my self-guided tours of Japan or travel service I design are customized to who you are and how you like to travel. My self-guided travel itineraries, like any great itinerary, follow a timeline and include both specific sights and general guidance for a given time period (4 hours, 6 hours or 8 hours). Most of these PDF (wifi independent) documents include maps, images, graphics. I try to avoid packing in too much but some clients like to move fast. In the end, the final OK, for any itinerary design, is given by the client before I actually design and create the step-by-step instructions for your tailormade Japan self-guided tour, transfer or cuisine experience. You can use public transportation or private vehicles and drivers. You can eat in inexpensive authentic fun places or you choose high-class Japanese cuisine experiences for lunch and or dinner. I know all the options. Learn more!

My self-guided tour itineraries are PDF documents that you download to your phone or device, or you can print them out in advance. Usually, they are wifi independent (but not for countryside driving tours). The average self-guided tour document includes specific, accurate, up-to-date bilingual directions for buying train and subway tickets on the go, detailed walking instructions for each area you visit, maps, the best lunch restaurant recommendations, and historical cultural insights. My value-added Japan self-guided tours are ideal for confident independent travelers, whether you have a sense of direction or not. And they are much less expensive (66% less!) than guided tours. All you have to do is follow the expert instructions step by step, or you can skip ahead if you are in a hurry. The true self-guided story below of two Malaysian sisters (50s) and their 80-year-old architect father is a great example of my work.

To get an idea of what you can do with these self-guided tours, consider this Chinese Malaysian family's 10-day self-guided tour package based on their travel needs and challenges(and they never met a guide!). 1. Two sisters in their 50s traveling with their 80-year-old architect father with a walking cane and a portable wheelchair. 2. They wanted to see Kyoto, the Japanese countryside and experience high-end restaurants everywhere they went. 3. Private sedan or van travel with a driver was also a requirement for travel in the countryside. This family used these services: 1. A private van transfer from Kansai International to Kyoto. 2. Three days of touring in Kyoto and a half day in Nara (using train, subway, taxi). 3. A self-guided transfer by taxi, train and taxi to their Tokyo hotel and 3 days of touring in Tokyo and Kamakura. 4. A self-guided transfer by taxi, train and private van to Hakone | Mount Fuji and one day of touring in the area in a van. 5. A self-guided transfer by van to Shuzenji hot spring village and three days of van & driver touring on the Izu Peninsula. 6. A self-guided transfer by van, bullet train and monorail to Haneda International Airport.

Traveling in Japan is well known for its challenges. English is not widely spoken. And the Japanese writing (three kinds: hiragana, katakana, and Chinese kanji ideograms) is challenging to say the least. Moreover, the Japanese people are extremely shy, introverted, and afraid of making mistakes. My Japan self-guided tours take this into account, and I make it as easy as I can for you to feel in total control from start to finish. Why waste time and make mistakes when you can pay an expert like me to make sure you save time and have a better time on your next Japan adventure?

For example, Tokyo is a huge metropolis that is known for 5 or 6 major shopping and cultural centers, and I know them well. Manga, anime and cosplay? No problem. High art and contemporary galleries and design centers? No problem. Street food or gourmet food tours? No problem.

The much more traditional city landscape of Kyoto are great for tours of all kinds, everything from garden and temple journeys, morning and night. Just let me know your hopes & dreams for your next Japan trip, and I will custom design a great series of days and nights for you in the Old Capital (and in night-time Blade-Runner Osaka). And don't forget super-peak high season months (April and November) make Kyoto extremely challenging for those expecting Zen tranquility and few people. Lucky for you, I have "special" itinerary designs for handling the worst of super-peak Kyoto high seasons (when you can have an extra 300,000-400,000 Japanese domestic tourists in Kyoto every day!). Learn more!

To get the perfect Japan self-guided tour design for your travel preferences and interests it is very important that you give me as much information as possible right from the start. Transportation preferences. Food and dietary | allergy issues. Specific shopping, art or craft must dos, etc. Some clients begin working with me up to 10 months before arriving in Japan and during that time we may exchange 60 or 70 emails. No problem! I give each client all the personal attention they need.

Self-guided tours are especially suited to off-the-beaten-track destinations and adventure tour packages. Many southeast Asian (and from Australia and New Zealand) have been to Japan a couple of times or more, and they are increasingly going to more remote areas of the country. In the past 10 years I have seen a dramatic rise in clients from Singapore, Australia and Malaysia interested in the "rest of Japan." These kinds of clients are interested in experiencing the Japanese countryside and Japan's exceptional nature worlds. I love designing these kinds of trips because they are the Japanese journeys that also moved me the most. On your next Japan trip, consider the Japanese Alps in summer, spiritual tours to remote temples and shrines in any season, hiking tours on the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage route in May or October, deep nature worlds just over the horizon, and winter sports or diving | snorkeling when the season is right.

My unique self-guided tours of Japan are also ideal for city tours and day trips from major destinations. And you can travel around Tokyo or Osaka or Kyoto anyway you like depending on your budget or preferences. And self-guided tours are the best way to do day trips from major centers like Tokyo (so much nearby!). Top day trips from Tokyo: Hakone | Mount Fuji, Kawaguchiko | Mount Fuji, Kamakura, the Izu Peninsula, and Nikko. Kyoto is a great base for city tours and day trips (the northern and western areas of the Kyoto valley are high-value "secret zones"). And Osaka, which is close to Kyoto but also closer to the Japan Inland Sea and the fabulous Ise-Mie-Wakayama-Koyasan circuit, is also perfectly connected to many fine natural, rural destinations. Nara, Shiga (Miho Museum, Lake Biwa, Shigaraki pottery village), Kobe, Kurashiki, Naoshima (Benesse contemporary art island) and Hiroshima are the most popular day-trip destinations from Kyoto or Osaka. But there are also amazing villages and virgin forests close to Kyoto that are simply extraordinary (especially for those from over-crowded Southeast Asian centers). Learn more!

Great self-guided independent Japan tour stories from previous clients

Here are just a few of YJPT's self-guided independent tour (SGT) stories from previous clients to give you an idea of what you can do and how far you can go with a self-guided tour:

Sarah Packard (USA) and her two kids (9 & 11 years of age) spent 10 days in and around Tokyo and used my SGTs to see and experience lots of manga, anime and youth culture attractions. They dressed up in kimono, experienced a high-class "ninja" dinner. All of their travel was by subway and train with a few short strategic taxi rides.

Ian Hart, an Irish helicopter pilot, came to Japan with his wife in October 2018. They rented a car from Kansai International Airport and for the next 10 days drove off-the-beaten-track across Shikoku Island (4 days) and Kyushu Island (5 days). I provided daily detailed driving instructions and all local hotel and inn bookings. Mr Hart and his wife were very happy with my planning and the trip was a success (and we never spoke on the phone once!).

Mr and Mrs Wolf from New Zealand sailed their yacht to Japan in the summer of 2017 and parked their yatch in the Osaka area for 14 days. Using daily SGTs and local accommodation bookings they travelled from Osaka to Nara, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Shirakawa, Takayama, Hakone and Tokyo. From Kanazawa they took the train, bus and a taxi to visit the famous rice terraces of the Noto Peninsula. In Hakone they hiked in the mountains for a day and also went deep into Hakone's contemporary art museums.

Mr Andy White of the USA came to Tokyo in May 2018 to visit family. But he was also a passionate collector of Japanese ceramics for the tea ceremony and ikebana flower arrangement. I created a fast and busy 5-day trip for him that included Kyoto ikebana and ceramic studio tours, and a quick trip to Kyushu to visit the Arita, Imari and Karatsu porcelain areas. I also booked all of his local accommodation for his budget.

Mr Mohammed from Kuwait and his Italian wife travelled the Golden Route from Tokyo to Kyoto and back in 2016. Their interests were perfect cherry blossoms and the most expensive Japnenese restaurants for lunch and dinner (every day). They traveled most in luxury sedans (BMW and Lexus) with a private drivers who didn't speak English. The only time they were with a guide was during a private geisha | maiko banquet in Kyoto during which the guide provided expert interpretations and explainations of the "performances".

Mr Williams and his son (USA) came to Japan to scuba dive and hike in national parks of Hokkaido. It was their first trip to Japan and they did the entire trip by train and taxi. They dove with the sharks off the coast of the Izu Peninsula (about three hours from Tokyo). I provided logistics, accommodation bookings and fine dining everywhere along their route.

Self-guided Japan tours for off-the-beaten-track destinations and adventure tour packages

I have designed self-guided independent off-the-beaten-track tours on all of Japan’s main islands for clients from all over the world. These include driving tours and tours using trains and buses and sometimes a hired car & driver.

What my all-travel packages can do for you and your family:

  • Save you time & money!
  • Improve the quality of your Japan trip.
  • And everything is designed for who you are and how you like to travel.
  • On all 5 Japanese islands since 1990 . . . Learn more!
    •
  • Honshu Island: Independent travel on the Golden Route: from Tokyo to Kyoto & Osaka. And the amazing attractions of places like Takayama, Kanazawa, the Izu Peninsula, Nagano, Naoshima and Kurashiki (to list a few).
  • Kyushu Island: A popular destination for hot springs, mountain villages, ceramics, bamboo baskets, and coastal wonders.
  • Hokkaido Island: Hokkaido is Japan's version of Canada’s wild worlds. But Hokkaido is also about hot springs, incredible flower parks, great skiing, scuba diving and some of the best seafood in Japan!
  • Shikoku Island: Just south of Osaka | Kobe | Hiroshima, Shikoku is known for spiritual travel (especially the 88-temple pilgrimage), wild and stunning natural settings, amazing seaside rice terraces, and empty, seemingly endless coastlines facing the open Pacific.
  • The Islands of Okinawa: Okinawa is well known for world-class beaches, scuba diving and snorkeling, exotic food, and a unique music and martial arts culture.

Self-guided tours are also ideal for city tours & day trips!

Look for this Japanese thumbnail image on my YouTube channelMy YouTube channel's growing video playlist (just input Your Japan Private Tours into YouTube search), created from my huge Japanese photo collection, is also a way to plan or prepare for your next Japan city tours, especially for Kyoto, which is so easy to "capture" on film. Presently, there are 3 videos that showcase: 1. Portraits of Japanese people in daily life (5 min.). 2. The Japanese Shinto religion: images, scenes and symbols (2.66 min.). 3. Japanese Buddhism in daily life: images, scenes and symbols (5 min.). My value-added, expert Japan self-guided tours make getting around Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka easy and fun. Most of my clients choose public transportation because it is the fastest, inexpensive, and great for people watching. Some clients hire vans, luxury sedans and drivers for 8 hours at a time. But directing your driver is always a challenge. I make all these logistical processes very easy with my step-by-step guidance that can be a walking tour (turn left or turn right or go straight until you see . . .) or a driving tour (get off the freeway and follow highway #66 to the first village where your inn is).

You can buy tickets from machines in seconds with these unique, essentially logistically perfect instruction sets, and usually a total stranger will help you! My expert instructions include detailed walking instructions for getting to the right platform and for getting to the right exit for your next destination. When you think you might be lost, simply point to a block of text and someone on the street will confirm your location and point you in the right direction. So you can't really get lost. Though I have designs for that where getting lost is almost the point on the strange edges of Kyoto or in the Aoyama cemetery in central Tokyo.

My independent self-guided tours also include night tours and adventures (18:00-22:00) and serene early morning tour options (6:00-9:00). On my night tours I like to focus on shrines, superstition, people watching, street food, and stunning night views. Popular self-guided night tours include Tokyo (Roppongi | Shinjuku back lanes), Kyoto (Gion & Fushimi Inari Grand Shrine) and Osaka (Abeno Harukas | Bladerunner Dotonbori Namba). My early morning independent self-guided tours (6:00-9:00) are perfect for spiritual travelers (sun rise meditations), nature lovers and photographers. During Kyoto super peak season (April, November), early morning tours are especially good value. I also design early morning "picnic" tours that feature local food shopping the night before, and then, the next morning, a picnic somewhere special. In the serene surroundings of a temple or shrine complex or in an ancient village or historical district on the edge of town.

Explore the following pages and learn how my Japan self-guided tours can work for you in and around Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. Learn more!

  • Tokyo self-guided | guided tours: All of my Tokyo tours feature the best of old & new Tokyo (old traditional neighborhoods, people watching, contemporary | modern culture, and excellent Japan shopping experiences). I also design fascinating night tours of Shinjuku, Roppongi and a few secret after-dark Tokyo destinations. Popular self-guided | guided day tours & day trips from Tokyo: The most popular day tours and day trips from Tokyo include Mount Fuji | Lake Kawaguchi | Hakone, Kamakura, Nikko and the Izu Peninsula.
  • Kyoto self-guided | guided tours: My Kyoto tours include all popular areas and destinations. These can be walking tours, driving tours, craft tours, garden tours or tailored to your personal preferences. My most popular tours from Kyoto: Nara, Shigaraki | Miho Museum, Himeji Castle | Kurashiki | Naoshima, the Tango Peninsula, and Hiroshima | Miyajima (easy as a day trip when you use the bullet train).
  • Osaka self-guided tours: Osaka is famous for its fresh fish & food markets, modern shopping, ceramics, incredible food options and an amazing range of night life attractions. Popular self-guided day trips from Osaka: Nara, Kyoto, Kobe, Himeji | Kurashiki, Naoshima, Koyasan, Hiroshima | Miyajima.

What is a self-guided independent tour? Advantages & disadvantages

What is a self-guided independent tour? A self-guided independent tour or service is a tour or service that is provided as a scripted, bilingual PDF. My self-guided tours & services (cuisine experiences | restaurant reservations) are PDFs that follow a timeline and include tailormade bilingual instructions for getting tickets, for telling a taxi driver where to go, and for everything else. Most self-guided tours also include maps, detailed smart walking instructions and cultural or historical insights for the sights and places during the tour.

What my all-travel packages can do for you and your family:

  • Save you time & money!
  • Improve the quality of your Japan trip.
  • And everything is designed for who you are and how you like to travel.
  • On all 5 Japanese islands since 1990 . . . Learn more!
    •

The advantages and disadvantages of self-guided tours are as follows: 1. Time saved. 2. Easy to follow expert guidance. 3. Customized to who you are and what you want to do. 4. They can be used on a smartphone or they can be printed out in advance. 5. Expert guidance for 65% less than a guided tour. The only disadvantage, if there is one at all, is that self-guided tours do require the client to pay careful attention to each step along the way and the instructions provided. On occassion, the client doesn't pay enough attention and they might get on the wrong bullet train or take the subway in the wrong direction. So if you don't like to be independent then a guided tour would suit you better. Guided tours, though much more expensive, also give foreign travelers the opportunity to speak with their guide about modern Japanese life and other topics of personal interest. And many of my clients choose a combination of self-guided and guided tours.

My Japan self-guided independent tours are expert designed to be flexible and time saving for who you are and how you like to travel (train | subway or private sedan | van & driver). All of my self-guided independent tour designs reflect the specific needs and desires of each and every client, for every budget. I provide self-guided independent travel services anywhere in Japan in English, Spanish and German (as well as other major languages through Google Translate: please inquire).

My logistically-perfect self-guided independent tour designs are the smart way to go anywhere in Japan without worrying about the details.

Self-guided independent tour FAQs

Dragonfly doorway noren textile closeup and noren are featured in my private tours in spring and summer

What are self-guided tours & how are they different? Answer: My independent self-guided tours provide the key guidance you rely on a local tour guide for. My self-guided tours are tours without a tour guide but full of guidance and bilingual instructions sets for buying tickets on the go, for telling a taxi driver exactly where you want to go anywhere in Japan, and a step by step approach to tours for cityscapes or rural towns and villages.

What self-guided tour services does Your Japan Private Tours offer? Answer: I provide all standard custom travel services as independent self-guided services. This includes getting from any A in Japan to any B in Japan for Yen 4,800/1-6 people; add 5% for each person over 6pax (can be designed for taxi travel, train travel and subway | train city travel; including buying any and all tickets on the go). My restaurant reservation services are also self-guided: I call the restaurant and make the reservation in your name (including seating type and cuisine preferences and food issues) and then provide you with instructions for getting to the restaurant and back to your hotel (using taxis mostly; taxis that have been called in by the hotel or by the restaurant or by a total stranger on occasion). I also provide self-guided specialty services such as instructing your personal hired car and driver where to go for hours at a time anywhere in Japan OR for getting to a specially set up interview or craft studio study trip . . . The choices are all yours! I can provide the guidance you will need anywhere in Japan (since 1990)!

How much advance notice is required for ordering an self-guided tour or service? Answer: Generally I need about 72 hours or 3 full days to create what you will need. However, I have also designed and sent out independent self-guided tours with 24 hours notice. I am flexible and fast but sometimes also too busy to handle a last minute request. Please inquire.

Planning international trips is a time-intensive process and getting it right depends, in the end, on what you know and who you know. Your Japan Private Tours (YJPT) founder and owner, Ian Ropke, has been providing high-level Japan travel consulting services to individuals, families, groups and companies since 1990. Everyone is special at YJPT and I look forward to advising and helping you plan a great itinerary for your trip and, if also required, connecting you with friendly reliable English speaking guides anywhere in Japan.

Thank you for taking the time to read this little overview. When you are ready let me know how I can make your trip to Japan interesting, fun and relaxing from start to finish. The more you tell me about your preferences and interests the better the design.