Review

We loved our trip. It was a trip of a lifetime that we\'ve looked forward to for years. We had a little bit of a slow start on the first day. The Tokyo sky tower was a let down and over crowded. Our guides seemed confused at the process and there was too much waiting...and there\'s so much to see in Tokyo. Overall the itinerary was well planned with plenty to do. Plan for 30 minutes more in the Peace museum in Hiroshima. It was a long day to get to Nagasaki and then we just had 1/2 a days\' worth of sight seeing the next day. Wish more had been planned for the distance we traveled. Wish we\'d had 30 minutes more in Dejima. Wish that we had been been prepared a little more on what to do on Miyajima. Wish someone had told me that we should take the ropeway up and down the mountain. We walked down and it was a very very difficult long long hike. Missed seeing high tide!Overall it was perfect, well thought out and organized.

Excellent! The Prince hotel in Tokyo is so busy and hectic; that makes it a little hard to gather as a group. The smaller hotels and ryokans were easier to navigate. Loved the variety. Even in Koya-San!

Overall excellent. Disappointed at sayonara dinner. Lovely setting, but the food was poor quality and the service was mediocre.We never went hungry! Appreciated guides who could say, \"buy a sandwich before we leave so we don\'t have to spend our touring time in a restaurant.\" Planned meals were prepared and ready for us to eat. Miyajima was a feast. Probably the best food of the entire trip.

All were excellent and tried very hard. Impressed with their skills trying to work with all of us. Sachiko was so sweet. Very hard to understand her, though, and I\'m not sure she could understand us. It was like herding cats for her handling us in the hustle and bustle of Tokyo. Takayama: Hiro\'s English was better, and he had good guide skills. JJ was incredible: efficient, kind, fun, knowledgeable and such a hard worker. We had one member of our group who could be very demanding and sometimes negative. JJ tried hard to win her over, and indeed she did. JJ was a mother hen when we needed that, all through crazy busy Kyoto and up the mountains! We only had the next Hiro in Hiroshima for a short time, and he was very easy to understand and kept our group on time when one of us (could have been my husband!) delayed the group by 20 minutes. Nagasaki tour guide was most professional of all, but I felt we were on a time schedule. Wish she had told us more of what we could do on our free time. Chiko in Hokkaido was everything you want in a guide. Clear and generous and willing to take us to places not \"on tour\" so we could make good use of our time in Sapporo, Noboribetsu, and Hakodate. Because of her, I think Hokkaido was my favorite area to visit. Mako was excellent as well in Sendai and Nikko. It was a great day in Matsushima. Wish we\'d had another hour or two there. Etsuko had a hard job taking care of us for our last few hours before leaving Tokyo for home. She had to deliver changes in plans for travel to the airport for some of our tour group which made one tour member livid. Etsuko tried to explain to her and make peace. I appreciated her professionalism when she was under so much pressure.

The tour handbook (gaijin and getas) is out of date. It would have been helpful to have more accurate info re tipping guides, ATMs, credit cards, the step by step process to enter Japan. I wish I had realized how often I\'d be carrying my things while our main luggage was being transported. I would have brought a back pack, not a cross-body bag, or have used a small roller bag. There was always plenty of room on the trains for a roller bag.I was glad to have the list of lodging to figure out our \"laundry\" schedule. Tip: the washing machines and dryers in the women\'s onsen in the Nagasaki hotel are nicer than the laundry facility available for all hotel guests. Wished I had known that before committing myself to those other washers!I never had to use an extra battery charger because there was always a power outlet on the train.There was always shampoo, conditioner, and body wash in every lodging, including the monastery.I have never had the skills to use chop sticks. I am glad I packed a few plastic forks.Bottled water was always available in the hotels. No need to bring own water bottle.Little coin purse was indeed helpful.

Except for the confusing first day on tour, the trip was organized exceptionally well. Our group did not have a lot of shoppers, so we didn\'t need much shopping time. We liked to see more of the sights. I\'m glad we went everywhere we went. Really feel we received a great exposure to the best of Japan.

I was worried about the stamp we needed to get on our passports so we could activate the Rail pass, and then we didn\'t have a rail pass. (That needs updated in the tour planner). But I was so impressed to receive our little wallet full of train passes all in order with our reserved seats for the entire trip. That worked so remarkably well. I was impressed with the time that went into that planning. Taking public transportation worked remarkably well. I was also very appreciative of being able to take taxis to the train station, etc. instead of the bus when needed.