Secret spots & hidden places tours for big cities & Kyoto peak seasons

My “secret spot” tours are designed to put clients in places that they have all to themselves without any tourists at all. This is essential for peak season in Kyoto (late March to early May, and November) when the Ancient Capital receives 10 million Japanese domestic tourists in each of those months. It is also a great option for early morning clients visiting Tokyo or Kyoto. And these secret spot tours are ideal for experience full moon in style in Japan's biggest cities, and in the countryside.

My guided and self-guided city tours of Tokyo, Kyoto and other major centers are based on standard tour routes found in most guidebooks and online. I have simply improved those standard routes by adding and subtracting places to visit. However there are situations and client interests that require more creative solutions than just adding value or subtracting tourist traps from established city routes.

For a better understanding of YJPT's tour and service design and design process, expenses, and prices please see my compact but informative full service pricelist in JPY and USD, all retail priced.

Secret spot tours are secrets that I would like to keep and for that reason they are always self-guided independent tour experiences. Just you and your family or small group. No guide. Just you. This also makes these experiences very special because they are unique and a bit of an adventure that unfolds before you like a well designed tea ceremony garden path.

While I would like to keep my secrets I can share the flavor of these places without giving away their location.

In Kyoto, my top 5 secret spots can be described as follows. All the off-the-beaten-track sub-valleys and ravines of the main Kyoto valley. There are secret spots all along the east side of the Kyoto, up above the city’s most famous attractions. Along the northern and the northwestern edges of the Kyoto basin there are more spots that are just outstanding in the early morning hours, and also at other times of day. The west side of the valley also has a couple of locations that will simply amaze. One features some of the finest rice terraces in the county. And yet when you are there Kyoto’s Arashiyama tourist center is just a 30 minute cab ride away. So for the rice terraces, a client can experience the best of the Arashiyama bamboo forest zone in the morning and then head into the hills for the afternoon as the masses build and gridlock rages in the peak season periods.

In Tokyo there are also a lot of secret spots. Much more than you might think truth be told. There are unique cemeteries full of illustrious graves. There are temples & shrines that few guidebooks mention. And many of these secret locations are stunning in the early morning hours before the city fully wakes up. There are also spiritual centers on the edge of the city that are really ancient and really special. And there are hiking destinations that start less than an hour from the city center.

Secret spot tours are not just about the location they are also all about timing. What is the place like at first light? If gloomy not so great. If flooded with morning light, then perfect. The same applies for sunset spots that you would have pretty much to yourself. Kyoto has many outstanding Buddhist cemeteries that are empty at sun set but which offer incredible views over the valley. All easy to get to if you know where they are. Then it’s just a matter of timing it right. And that’s easy too because the internet provides precise astronomical information.

Another occasion for a secret spot tour is full moon in Japan. Full moon can be an amazing experience in any city if you know where to be and when. It’s much easier in the countryside because the visibility of the sky makes finding a good spot for full moon much easier. That said, I recommend full moon secret spot experiences whereever you go.

If you are going to be in Kyoto in late March, April, Golden Week (first week of May) or November, then a secret spot tour is just thing. Learn more! Email me today and I'll tell you a secret or two . . .

Guided tour FAQs (start time and location; itinerary design; expenses; tips . . .). Self-guided tour FAQs (design; delivery; types; expenses . . .).