Review

Chris Jaser

Best of Japan

October 8, 2023 - October 22, 2023

Overall this tour made our first trip to Japan a life changing event. As someone who was a bit concern about being on a tour and not being able to fully experience Japan, this tour eased those concerns very quickly. I felt like I could really enjoy Japan without having to worry about the logistics of how do we get to the places we want to visit, booking our hotels and getting on the right transportation. Samurai Tours went above and beyond what we expected and we are already looking to plan another trip to Japan soon. Hopefully through Samurai Tours again.

Itinerary

I would give a 4.5 if I had the option as, in my opinion, I felt like visiting Nagoya wasn\'t necessary needed. Like I understand that we needed to stop there to get to Takayama, but I did not feel like we needed to visit the museum. If anything either an extra day in Takayama or another city would be suffice. That said I would consider this very minor in my overall experience on the tour.

Lodging

As someone with tattoos, I really appreciate that out of the 6 places we stayed, I was able to enjoy the onsens at 4 of them. Whether it was tattoo friendly or have a private onsens, the fact I had options to experience the baths was very much appreciated.

Food

Food was great. We did not necessary like the food at Koya san (like wasn\'t bad just was our cup of tea). Still though everything else was delicious.

Guides

The guides were amazing! Toshi, Tadashi, JJ, Meiko, and Masa made the trip memorable. If there is any sort of bonus structure or raises, please give each and every one of them a raise because they went above and beyond what we expected. They were even concern about my wife when she was sick from a sinus infection. Offering to take her to see a doctor (which she declined but was thankful for the offer). They were enthusiastic about answering our questions and were really knowledgeable about the areas they took us. Really top tier guides!

Pre-Tour Handbook

The handbook was handy (pun intended) when we got into Japan late due to a delayed flight and we had to find a way to get to our hotel from the airport since we missed our pickup time. It was especially handy when we were communicating to the taxi driver where we needed to go and we were able to show the driver the address of the hotel and he understood.

Tour Organization

Very well organized, everything was smooth going throughout the tour. Not many, if not any, hiccups along the entire trip. Very impressive.

Tour Transportation

Again would give this a 4.5 as this was very minor. Overall the tour transportation was great, however there were times we were thrown into taxis with cash and were sent on our way. I understand that this might have been the only way to get to the places we were going, but there was a little confusion on what we do with the taxi after we got to the destination. Again though this is very VERY minor.

Would you go on another tour operating by Samurai Tours: Yes!

Would you recommend Samurai Tours to friends or family: Yes!