Olivia Luang

Our trip to Japan was very enjoyable and we learned a lot. We found our local specialist to be very responsive and helpful. All the transfers worked really well. Some drivers were particularly memorable such as the one who took us to the falls and Mount Fuji. Our most impressive driver/guide was in Takayama and Shirakawa-go . She was outstanding as a guide and was an excellent driver. The guides were generally quite knowledgeable for the most part. One improvement would be more complete descriptions of what to expect on the guided tours. For example, a gentle hike to see the 10,000 Toriis was anything but.

Accommodations varied. For the most they were fine. Our biggest challenges were the size of the rooms sometimes and features of a room that were difficult to navigate for older travelers such as the one in Kanazawa, Soki, due to the configuration of the beds and extremely small room,

The attractions and the historical sites were memorable and educational. The notable ones were the tea ceremony, the Buddhist Zen experience, and the visit to Shirakawa-go, and in general just exploring the different cities. We found traveling via mass transit from the local subways to the Shinkansen to be easy to navigate.

Overall, a good experience with no significant regrets. Happy we went.

I booked this trip with my travel agent, Cruises-for-Africa in South Africa who uses kimkim in Japan.

Generally speaking, it was a good trip with very few things to complain about.

If I were forced to complain, then my big complaint would relate to the size of the hotel room in the first hotel we stayed in when we arrived at Tokyo. You couldn't swing a cat in it. It's a pity that they chose to compromise in that way on cost. I would happily have paid more to get a room of similar size to the rest of the hotels on our itinerary. The room in the Mount Fuji Hotel was enormous. The only problem was that there were no normal beds. There were just futons on the ground, but it was interesting, nevertheless.

As for the rest of the hotels, they were excellent, and all hotels, including the first one, had very good breakfast buffets.

Your correspondents, KimKim were quite responsive, albeit at times a little slow. All in all, they did their job well.

The vehicles that were used to transport us privately from place to place were of very good quality, with really nice features.

Our guides were generally good, save for the last one in Osaka whose English was way below par.

From a personal point of view, I found the itinerary to be too busy, and I ran out of steam, forcing me to shorten the day by eliminating things that I wasn't particularly excited about seeing. These related primarily to temples and shrines. When you've seen a few, they all become the same. If I had it over again, I would exclude many of the temple/shrine visits and do something else.

Selecting food to eat was quite intimidating as there is very little description as to what each Japanese dish comprises. Towards the end of our trip, we became a little more adventurous and I must say we had some very nice meals.

If asked whether I intend to return to Japan, my answer would tend to be no. I found that there was very little unique about Japanese cities beyond the shrines and temples. Tokyo itself wasn't particularly pretty. It seems that every square meter of space has been populated by skyscrapers of the size that I have seldom, if ever, seen. They might have been interesting if the architects had shown a little creativity, but sadly, there was nothing pretty about them, just monoliths all standing in a row with remarkably little space between each building. Could never tolerate living there.

The highlight for me was the Japanese people themselves. Disciplined, extremely respectful and very kind people. If the world was populated by such people, it would be a much better world than the one we live in.

Therefore, all in all, a good trip, but not for me to be repeated.

Thank you very much for your help and support throughout the process. You were, as normal, excellent.

Another great trip planned by Olivia and the team at KimKim; it was a true winter adventure. The prefecture of Hokkaido is not to be missed in winter. The Sapporo snow festival and visit to Otaru were my cultural highlights of this trip and would have been missed without Olivia’s guidance! Thank you ensuring we experienced those.
And of course was the snowboarding! The japow! Unforgettable experience again with true ski in/ski out facilities.
Thanks again and can’t wait for the next one!

Hotel Reviews

Hilton Niseko Village

True ski in/ski out!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Mitsui Garden Hotel Sapporo West

Sapporo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Shiba Park Hotel

Tokyo

Activity Reviews

2026 Sapporo Snow Festival

Sapporo

Otaru Winter Stroll: Canals, Lights, and Love

Japan

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tokyo Bar Hopping Night Tour in Shinjuku

Tokyo

Our guide was great - knowledgeable and great energy!

Great trip to Japan! (Kyoto, Nara, Tokyo). Olivia was a fantastic planner and her recommendations did not disappoint. She helped make our trip (with children) as painless as possible and even helped us postpone and rebook when an unexpected family emergency popped up. If you want to get the most out of your time, I can highly recommend KimKim.

Hotel Reviews

Gion Ryokan Karaku

kyoto

This was a fun way to spend an authentic Japanese night in Kyoto. As expected we slept on mats on the floor, the room had a traditional Japanese table & chairs (very low on the floor.) . The complimentary breakfast was traditional Japanese style also with rice and miso soup and fish. If you have mobility issues or you want a typical North American breakfast this is probably not the experience for you but if you're looking for adventure, our Canadian family with young kids loved it! The location was very conveniently located at the end of the shopping district. Subway was about a 10 minute walk, or you can take a cab for 15 mins to get to Kyoto station.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

RIHGA Royal Hotel Kyoto

Kyoto

The complimentary breakfast was amazing, showcasing many traditional Japanese breakfast elements, with plenty of European / North American options for the less adventurous. Their auto-coffee / hot chocolate / matcha machine was incredible. A wide selection of alcoholic beverages (complimentary) at both breakfast and the evening appetizer event each night. There were traditional activities each afternoon. The subway station was a 8 minute walk and takes you straight to Kyoto station and the rest of the network for Kyoto / Osaka / Nara. Room was comfortable and the hotel was quiet and private with a 10 minute walk to massive shopping district from narrow street bizarre type feel to high end luxury goods. This is a great location to stay in Kyoto.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Ninja Training in Kyoto: Ninja Experience - 2 HOURS / SWORD INCLUDED

Kyoto

This was a fun activity. We dressed up as ninjas and got to shoot blow darts and throw ninja stars at targets. We also got to fight each other with foam-covered swords. This was most fun for our kids (8 & 10) but we got some nice photos out of it. The first portion was an hour, then the second portion: we walked about 1km to the ninja museum and got a 30 minute tour through the 3 storey facility on the history of Samurai & Ninja culture. Great displays and a very well done tour / history lesson. This was more fun for the adults. I'm not sure what the "SWORD INCLUDED" refers to. We did get a plastic throwing-star as a "prize" for the person closest to the target, but no swords.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Geisha and Maiko Makeover Experience in Kyoto

Kyoto

Wow, what an amazing transformation! My daughters (8 & 10) loved it, and my wife who isn't much for dressing up or putting on make up, enjoyed the experience too. The professional photos that were included are really fantastic. Definitely the highlight of the trip for one of my daughters.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Kyoto: Authentic Sushi-Making Cooking Class

Kyoto

We did the bento-making class with kids and had a great time! We learned a lot (feel comfortable to try on our own at home) and the food was delicious. A great way to learn about this history of the food, and the ingredients and have a great (large) meal too.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Asakusa Sumo Club: Sumo Show Admission with Chankonabe in Tokyo

Tokyo

Wow. What an amazing experience! I didn't know what to expect but this was really well done, catering to visitors who want to learn more about sumo culture. Explanations of the history, rules and lifestyle of sumo wrestlers plus an authentic match between 2 former professional wrestlers and the opportunity to wrestle one yourself. The sumo-meal that is included was fantastic too.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Tokyo Highlights Day Tour with Tsukiji Outer Fish Market

Tokyo

What a great way to experience a nice cross-section of Tokyo in a single day. We walked about 20,000 steps but mainly used the subway to jet all over town. It was a brilliant introduction to what otherwise could be a very intimidating city.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Kumiko was fantastic!

Transport

It was a great introduction to the Tokyo subway system at various levels of congestion during the day.