Irish S.

We very much enjoyed our 2 week Japan vacation, thanks to the careful planning of Irish. Irish was a great problem solver when issues came up, she was a thoughtful communicator, responding quickly to questions and she was thorough and organized so everything was arranged on time and without issue.

Our guides were wonderful for the most part. We thought that Shu was exceptionally good in his knowledge, organization and consideration. Miyuki was also terrific, even though she pushed us to our limits of walking. Mike helped us get part of way from Hakone to Naoshima and he was delightful and efficient. Stephanie showed us around Tokyo one morning on a fun and informative food tour which was a lot of fun.

Together, they made our trip smooth and easy!

Hotel Reviews

Zentis Osaka

Osaka

Beautiful hotel, comfortable rooms, excellent service.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Century Southern Tower

Tokyo

Average corporate hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hakone Airu

Hakone

Beautiful hotel! The photos don’t do it justice. The staff was exceptional. We worked definitely return.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Naoshima Ryokan ROKA

Naoshima

We loved this hotel. A peaceful refuge in a beauty setting. The service is excellent, as is the food. We would definitely return!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

THE KNOT HIROSHIMA

Hiroshima

Great hotel, comfortable rooms, excellent location. The hotel restaurant is excellent!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

14-Day Ordinary JR Pass

Japan

We enjoyed having our JR pass. I wish that I would have ordered it myself online so that I could have made seating reservations online. That’s the only drawback.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arrive in Tokyo

Tokyo

Our greeter was very kind and helpful and helped us secure our JR pass and pocket Wi-Fi. Our driver was a little disappointing. We arrived in heavy rain due to the typhoon. He drove quite aggressively in the rain, and then dropped us in the pouring rain when we were not sure which was our AirBNB. Just put our luggage out on the street and drove off. It would have been really helpful if he could have helped us read the Japanese numbers and signage.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Edo-Tokyo Open Air Museum

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Yayoi Kusama Museum

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Akihabara- Tokyo's Electric town

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

TeamLab Planets Tokyo

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Red Tokyo Tower

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to Uji and Nara

Kyoto

We loved it but the 2.5 hour walk to Todai-Ji was too much, especially in the rain. Would have preferred a more direct route.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Exploring Arashiyama

Kyoto

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tokyo Departure

Japan

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit Buildings by the architect Shin Takamatsu

Tokyo

The visit to Shin Takamatsu's buildings was interesting and we enjoyed seeing his work.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Mt. Fuji and Hakone Tour

Hakone

The Mt. Fuji and Hakone Tour was enjoyable, although we only saw the top of Mt. Fuji due to cloud cover.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Nakameguro Food Tour

Tokyo

The food tour in Nakameguro was great. We enjoyed trying different types of food and our guide, Stephanie, was super helpful despite a minor miscommunication about timing.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Morning Sumo Training Visit

Tokyo

The Sumo Training Visit was a unique experience and it was nice to learn about the culture.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chiku Chiku CAFE- A hedgehog home and cafe in Shibuya

Tokyo

The visit to Chiku Chiku Cafe was fun, but the hedgehogs could have been more alert.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Traditional Tea Ceremony

Kyoto

The Traditional Tea Ceremony was one of the highlights of the trip. We really enjoyed learning about the culture and the matcha was delicious.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Irish planned a wonderful family trip to Japan! She covered every detail needed, from our airport transfers, JR pass, and info needed for Universal Studios as well as the Shimanami Kaido, to selecting very conveniently located hotels which made moving from place to place very easy and comfortable. She encompassed all the experiences we were seeking - the excitement of Tokyo and Osaka to the very different experience of a peaceful mountain onsen in Hakone to the very sad yet well done peace memorial of Hiroshima.

Hotel Reviews

The Tokyo Station Hotel

Tokyo

Lovely upscale hotel with excellent service and conveniently located in Tokyo station. Every attention to detail is met.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hakone Kowakien hotel

Hakone

Beautiful onsen in an amazing and peaceful mountain location.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Beacon Onomichi

Onomichi

Modern hotel conveniently located directly in the onomichi train station. I would book their loft rooms as the other rooms are a bit smallish, but very comfortable.

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Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Granvia Hiroshima

Nice hotel with a grand lobby conveniently located adjacent to the Hiroshima train station.

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Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Zentis Osaka

Osaka

Stylish and chic hotel in a great location, 5 minute walk from the main train station.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nohga Hotel Kiyomizu Kyoto

Kyoto

Stylish and chic hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

NOHGA HOTEL UENO TOKYO

Tokyo

Stylish and chic hotel, located very close to the ueno train station.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Traditional Tea Ceremony

Kyoto

The tea ceremony was a lovely experience in a nice old Japanese neighborhood. We got to make and taste matcha tea, and my son even bought some matcha powder to take home. The ceremony was very enjoyable and I would highly recommend it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

14-Day Ordinary JR Pass

Japan

The 14-Day JR Pass was very fast and efficient. Though it took me a while to get the hang of using the NaviTime app, which was crucial for navigating the trains and subway system. My kids and husband loved the bullet train experience, but it wasn't my favorite due to the high speed and being on rails. It’s an excellent and efficient way to travel. But I think it is important to note that they do travel at a very high rate of speed - 200+ miles/hour. I got used to it. The JR Pass did not cover all trains, so it's important to be aware of which trains are allowed.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our recent trip in last two weeks of March 2023 entailed travels to Tokyo, Kanazawa, Takayama, Kyoto, and Osaka. The arrangement of the trip by our Guides Claudia, Xavier and Irish was superb in the form of being responsive to all our questions., queries and concerns. The selection of Hotels and their locations was great, well thought out, convenient and excellent. The itinerary was great. We did get to see a lot of Japan in variety of settings and it’s rich history and religious diversity and tolerance. The guides and people that we interacted were very helpful in all possible ways.

My only concern with the trip was that compared to travels around the world, travel in Japan entailed a lot of time was spent getting from point one to the next and I think about more than Thirty percent of stay involved in walking, finding the right train stations and connections. These train train stations are large and getting to the correct. Entrance point and exiting the correct exit was confusing at times and tiring to say the least. This cut down a lot of time that we could have spent on seeing things we were suppose to visit. The trains, train schedules, train stations and and exits were not just confusing for us but at times was also too much for the Local Guides who were accompanying us.

There is to be better way of getting around Japan than what we had encountered.

My last concern was getting back to Airport there was never any instructions about making reservations on Narita Express . Our assumption that we could get on the direct Narita Express from Tokyo made us almost miss our Flight. Trying to get to the JR Rail offices and getting reservation is almost exhausting and all the great fun and excitement of the trip kind of evaporated in the last hours.

This is not Kim Kim.s fault but I conclusion was that Japan after being shut off for three years is not ready for the onslaught of Tourists that seem to have converged during our visit. The staff at Japan Rail was significantly lacking in their knowledge to respond to the questions from Tourists not just us but people in front of us at all their offices or at Information centers was very obvious and added to the long queues.

Overall Thank you for making this great trip possible.

Kirti and Ila Patel

Our trip was well planned and executed.
Irish was very responsive.

Thanks to Irish and Kristy our first family vacation to Japan was a success! They found us great hotels in Tokyo (Karaska Hotel Premier Tokyo Ginza) and Hakuba (Hakuba Highlands Hotel) and helped us navigate the JR Rail Pass process to get us around Tokyo and to/from Nagano. They also arranged for a driver to pick us up and drop us off at the airport - which was a bonus with the luggage.

We had a wonderful time. Irish was fabulous planning everything and Shegao was just wonderful. I would recommend them to anyone visiting Japan!

Hotel Review

Peninsula Hotel Tokyo

Tokyo

luxury hotel with fabulous breakfast and service

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Tokyo Full Day Tour

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arrive in Tokyo, Free Day!

Tokyo

Sanrio Puroland

Tokyo

Free Day in Tokyo

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Explore Asakusa

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tokyo Departure

Japan

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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1. Use Kimkim only if you have no idea about the country, like I did with Japan. Irish was very helpful and suggested Hakone, which was a lovely place.
2. Be prepared to pay almost double for your trip, compared to doing it yourself. I saw the price and there was a sticker shock, but I decided to still let Irish have her pay since she did a lot of work already.
3. Give them a lot of time! For example time difference between Japan and US is 13 hrs. So it takes 1/2 a day for the email to be answered.
4. Be careful in choosing your "price range". Select "mid-range" only if $300 a night hotels are ok with you.
Overall I appreciate the help in initial planning. Irish was very meticulous and tried hard to meet all our special requests. The support "on the ground" was spotty though. The "limo taxi" that was supposed to meet us at the airport never connected with us and it took Kimkim an hour to answer our call. By that time we were already in the taxi that we hired ourselves. It took them 1/2 hour to an hour to answer our calls each time. So this is not an emergency service. They may have the same problem as everybody else - not enough people willing to work?
Local knowledge was still worth it. Irish suggested JR pass (a weekly bullet train ticket) which was very convenient to have. The Suica card for local trains, subway etc. was also a great suggestion.
Our local guide in Hakone, Mr. Shigeo Ishibashi (a retired engineer) is a great person and we enjoyed talking to somebody local and asking all the "cultural difference" questions!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Sunroute Ginza

Tokyo

Don't choose the smallest room unless you're traveling alone! Or unless you're newlyweds and don't mind VERY close quarters! :)

Location

It's in Ginza about 15 min walk from Tokyo station.

Staff

Very helpful. The breakfast "hostess" helped us with directions and answered all questions despite of being VERY buisy!

Cleanliness & Comfort

VERY clean!

Ajisai Onsen Ryokan

Hakone

Great property in a tiny "park" of it's own! Next to an antique "museum".

Authenticity & Character

A real traditional Japanese ryokan with onsen. Real Japanese food for breakfast, if you want it.

Location

Beautiful if small property on a quiet street.

Staff

Very helpful and nice!

Cleanliness & Comfort

In our traditional Japanese room there were extra futons that I used to be more comfortable sleeping on the floor. Very clean.

SAKURA TERRACE THE GALLERY

Kyoto

3 minute walk from Kyoto Station! Great open air modern "lobby". Welcome drinks.

Authenticity & Character

Ver nice modern design.

Location

3 minute walk from Kyoto Station!

Staff

Helpful in all respects.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean and comfortable

Activity Reviews

Hakone Museum of Art

Hakone

The art museum itself is ok for a small town, but hard to compare to big city museums. But the park around it is wonderful. Japanese come there in November to admire the beautiful colors of autumn. Many dress in kimonos which they rent for the occasion. They even dress up their kids, very cute!

Quality of Experience

Beautiful traditional Japanese garden.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mr. Shigeo Ishibashi san was great pleasure to talk to.

Hiking at Fushimi Inari Shrine

Kyoto

The "tunnels" made up of thousands of tori gates are amazing. So are the shrines and the gardens!

The Sumida Hokusai Museum

Tokyo

A must see for any Hokusai art lover. The exposition itself may not have all the originals, but it's so well organized! His life's timeline, different periods in his art. They even animated some of his "dancing" cartoons. There's "find the Fuji" activity for kids (great fun for adults too)!