Review

The variety of the location was excellent. We enjoyed the short stays in Tokyo and Osaka, but short times were enough and our favorite locations were the small villages. The set of activities was varied (maybe a little heavy on shrines).

The best part of the trip was the small ryokan stays along with the western hotel experience. If we were to return we would go heavier on the ryokan - which would also mean less time in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. But this was our first trip to Japan and we were learning.

Every meal that was selected by the tour was awesome (except the Koya-san temple). The locations selected by the Hiro in Tokyo was a hidden gem. The two lunch spots selected by Ken in Kyoto was amazing.

Everyone of them were great. William stood out as a native english speaker that could understand ALL of our questions. Since this was heavy on shrines, the guides should be able to describe Shinto more clearly. The other minor miss was JJ not being able to describe the difference between “Esoteric” Buddhism and other forms of Buddhism. We enjoyed our time with everyone of them.

The detailed itinerary that was specific to us as participants in a group was a very nice touch. We didn’t have to read what others were doing and parse out what applied to us. The details was spot on and helped us everyday. The communication and tour set up was great as well.

I was blown away by the attention we received as we traveled and were handed off from one guide to the next. There must be a reason why you arrange different guides for each location and it worked well to provide a variety of perspectives. The only downside was that each guide started with a blank slate and seemed to have to cover some basics just to be sure we knew them.

I loved the use of public transportation to maximize the efficiency of travel. In Honake we were put on taxis when it was clear the group was up to a walk uphill to the hotel. If we were on a bus, it would have been drudgery to wait for loading and then always going at bus speed.