Tokyo Private Tours

  Great, busy day  - We had a fabulous, fun filled day with Seiko along with lots of laughter and jokes. She met us promptly at the port and off we went on a... read more train and subway to see the main sights of Tokyo. She was very knowledgeable and customized the tour to fit our needs even making a slight change during the day to adapt for us. Be prepared for lots of walking, lots of steps and lots of subways-but it was actually what we were prepared for even some rain. Would highly recommend her and the tour to anyone!

  Hakone Hike and Lake Ashi  - Our day hike with Rie from The Backstreet Guides was just amazing. She took our family
of four to a traditional tea house, up through the Hakone forrest,... read more and down to Lake Ashi. At Lake Ashi, we ate at an amazing bakery and drank Macha Latte while looking at the Lake. It was one the best parts of our trip!

  Historical Tokyo tour  - We enjoyed this tour with Mana, she was amazing and we covered so much history and beautiful gardens full of cherry blossoms. Some of the best places were the small... read more streets and quiet shrines and wonderful tiny shops . It was raining most of the day but we still enjoyed it all. Thank you Mana for a wonderful and inspiring day.

  Outstanding Tour by Rie  - Rie was an outstanding tour guide. She took us to two markets, two shrines, and other fascinating places. She was punctual, knowledgeable, patient with our slow pace of walking, and... read more very kind. We highly recommend her without reservations.

  Fantastic day tour of Tokyo with Junko from Backstreet Guides  - Fantastic tour of Kyoto with Junko. She was incredibly knowledgeable, friendly, and took us through all the major sights of Kyoto AND encouraged us to take fun detours along the... read more way. Having a private guide like Junko was perfect - much better than the giant tours swarming Kyoto.

  We completed two half day walking tours of Tokyo. We had a fabulous guide by the name of Yoko and she was fantastic. If you have not visited Japan before,... read more then this is a great way to learn about the basic customs and an excellent way to understand how the public transportation works especially the train system. Make no mistake, Tokyo is always busy so get accustomed to dealing with crowds.

Our trip was for 9 days and we had purchased a Japan Rail Pass which we did not want to activate until day 2 as we needed it for longer trips in the latter half of our stay, so she helped us purchase Pasmo travel cards (tap on and off) which can even be used on vending machines. It costs 500 Yen per card (refundable) plus whatever you need for fare costs. You need to purchase one for the guide as well. On day 2 she then helped us activate our Japan Rail Passes at Tokyo Station which was remarkably quieter than Shinjuku-Ku Station and also assisted us to book our trip to Kyoto.

We visited the outer market at Tsukiji. This was filled with traditional Japanese foods and food-related items. We then went on to Asakusa to have a look at the Buddhist Sensoji temple and then had lunch (Chicken rice bowl) at a side street restaurant. From there we traveled to Yanaka which is a suburban shopping street. We could have spent more time there however we needed to get back to our hotel for another commitment.

On day 2 we started off going to the East gardens of the Imperial Palace which stands on the site of the original Edo Castle and is home to the emperor. We then moved on to the Shinto Meiji Jingu shrine. After that we had a ramen lunch.
From there we were taken to the Harajuku and Omotesando districts. This is a crazy busy and vibrant area. We also got to visit a photo booth store where we experienced a Japanese teen hangout zone. We also asked Yoko to take us to the Shibuya Scramble which was not a problem, so don’t be afraid to tailor the trip if you need to.

This is a walking tour and you do walk a reasonable amount including traversing stairs and escalators. If you don’t enjoy walking or crowded public transportation then this trip is not for you. We however could not recommend it more highly! Thanks Yoko for your excellent knowledge and for taking care of us so well over the two days!

  The Best  - The Backstreet Kyoto Tour was amazing! Our guide Saki was such a knowledgeable and impressive tour guide. We visited and learned about all the major Kyoto sites. Also we had... read more time for a great lunch and a wonderful shopping experience. Overall, it was a superb day! Highly recommend this tour.

  Exceptional Tokyo Experience with Backstreet Guides and Rie  - Our experience with Backstreet Guides was absolutely perfect. Planning our trip was really fun thanks to Hiroko, who helped us craft a thoughtful two-day itinerary: she made sure everything flowed... read more well in terms of travel distances and incorporated all the special stops we wanted to include. Her attention to detail made a huge difference and it was incredibly rewarding to see it all come to life during our visit.

Our guide Rie was phenomenal! She is a true professional who brought so much knowledge, energy, and joy to our time in Tokyo. Her historical context added so much meaning to every place we visited, and she always knew the most efficient ways to navigate the city. Rie is also a fantastic photographer! She knew exactly how to pose us to capture the perfect shot every time (a huge bonus we hadn’t expected!). What we really appreciated was how she was able to adapt our itinerary on the fly. Whether we wanted to spend more time somewhere or make a spontaneous change, Rie was always flexible and made it all feel seamless.

Rie and the Backstreet Guides made our Tokyo experience truly unforgettable!

  Highly recommend this tour with Rie! - Rie was an excellent guide. Besides her knowledge about the sites visited, we learned a lot about Tokyo’s history. Highly recommend!

  The Backstreet Guides worked with me to create a one day tour for my husband, 8 year old son and myself. We covered a lot of ground starting at 9am.... read more Our guide was Mayu. She was friendly, spoke excellent English, and was able to engage my son throughout the day. It helps that our guide has boys of her own- so she understands kids! In addition to walking, we used the subway system (which my son enjoys). She helped explain certain customs and culturally signifcant parts. It was a very enjoyable day!

She recommended a great Udon noodles place for dinner and also helped me brainstorm some ideas on where to take my son the following day.