Amazing Experience
Japan
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Oct 18 - Oct 29, 2023
Working with Sandy was amazing. She was attentive to all of the details and available throughout our time in Japan. She was incredibly diligent with her follow up. We wanted to experience a Katana making workshop and our top choice was booked. Sandy continued to follow up and there was a cancellation and she was able to get us in. We had a similar experience with a hotel we really wanted that was booked for the date we wanted. Mid trip Sandy was in touch to tell us the desired hotel had a cancellation and we were able to book it.
There were certain days we only had a driver (no tour guide). The drivers were supposed to speak English but none of them really did. It was inconvenient but we managed with Google translate. Not sure if this was a KimKim issue and the transportation companies they use or finding English speaking drivers is just difficult in Japan. Our tour guides spoke English fairly well.
Hotel Reviews
The experience was wonderful. Their English was good enough. However the Monk who led services was difficult to understand. The food was good considering it is vegan . The meal is the same for breakfast and dinner so bring snacks. Property was well kept and the rooms very nice. The one downside was due to the timing of the prayer services at this particular temple you could not book the cemetery tour which we were told was an excellent activity.
This is a 4 star hotel however it is very new and beautiful. Rooms large and well appointed. Breakfast was nice although the buffet was limited. Beautiful bar. Really well located
Loved this experience. This Ryokan, traditional Japanese style hotel was wonderful. It was really well located and the accommodations were very comfortable. Food was delicious although the menu was very similar for dinner and breakfast. There was a very clean Onsen. We had a view of the torii gate which was beautiful
Activity Reviews
![Full Day Tokyo City Tour](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/f45c5873b1fbfc57c13bd31feb7c8da03e9e7cea/medium-79b955ac6727902099ecc43ad4a038eb.jpg)
Tokyo is huge but Yumi our tour guide was amazing. We covered all the highlights
![Full Day Mt. Fuji and Lake Kawaguchi Tour with Whisky Tasting](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/4f9560432f96b4644634cd4f19699212d48de88e/medium-7cbc42c1421db4f87d65cf58540162c2.jpg)
Loved this day. We ate an authentic lunch at a local restaurant. Had great views of Mt Fuji. Enjoyed the Whiskey museum
![Half Day TeamLab Planets and Miraikan Museum Tour](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/31b2629e0e3bd7ba93fe07745e4402ea024ab81c/medium-bec11e76409c5d10292a66a5f8d49411.jpg)
Loved TeamLab Planets - definitely a must see. Miraikan Museum is well laid out but just not something that was of great interest to us
![A Fun-Filled Cooking Class in Tokyo - Wagyu Beef and More](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/c222551512a629a3afa04202eed029773e1ffff1/original-b336962887b8e38d9a1352007bb9f697.jpg)
This was amazing and I highly recommend it
![Mt. Koya and Temple Stay Experience](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/495b93374053b1f92570e5da6c15b5cc8a1ef06c/medium-6c0769934610ad22dc56c37b458c6ad8.jpg)
This was a great experience. Unfortunately we were delayed getting there due to our train running 2 hours late so we had very little time to explore
![Half Day Samurai Ninja Museum and Kimono Tea Ceremony at Kyoto Maikoya](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/61e569769347ee8f474d633d8e897fd962948680/medium-9ab9da5e919038af3c9d069adcf342e3.jpg)
Loved learning the history of the Samurais - it is a great museum The tea ceremony is a must as this is such a big tradition in Japan. We loved putting on a kimono and learning about the tea ceremony
![Full Day Kyoto City Tour with Fushimi Inari-Taisha](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/302eba085551f5c252373c838c4123023a220461/medium-ce8db1b7ffb155db340baec7efc17366.jpg)
There are a lot of shrines and Temples in Japan. Not sure we needed to see all 4 sights. Nishiki market was great and our guide picked a wonderful place for lunch,
![Half Day Katana Maker Experience in Kameoka](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/045b73e0dd4df635524ee34adaa518c396ab9d9d/original-0d34bd86132f405c9f90871c87365516.jpg)
This was one of our favorite activities. I highly recommend it
![Half Day Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum and Kobe Harborland Tour](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/588f39872c22cc0c0c335c4d6a3f87d5bad430e3/medium-a92bc87f6c3192d04e6f4a24b11b73c0.jpg)
The saki museum was a lot of fun and easy to experience. We did not really get a tour of Kobe Harborland - our tour guide knew nothing about it
![A Sensational Gourmet Experience: Kobe Beef](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/7b3f8c43f0880bd0d86660bae5d3f7f859aea625/original-8efd62bdaba2b0f4ceb4fba4b59658a3.jpg)
Excellent restaurant - Royal Mouriya.
![Half Day Miyajima Island Tour](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/4d98b027e94a044f729a55f7ff04ae1ac4ec64ac/medium-9736d5143dfc346a5603dc56d820538a.jpg)
Our tour guide Masako was incredibly knowledgable about Miyajima. We learned so much
![Museum and site tours of Hiroshima](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/images/0daa7a5d4e47d724a8010b375f95e2f49c225b92/medium-df8138f4da2fc5a480b1cd60f13eef10.jpg)
Yoko our tour guide was great. We really enjoyed her. Hiroshima is a must see. The museum tells the story so well. And dont miss the Japenese gardens we loved the experience
![Sandy](https://cdn.kimkim.com/files/a/users/profile_photos/cd0421454ea8964227149bca3a4337e560686409/original-9239dbd510bd7f1c84ccea5d61e68628.jpg)
Greetings from Sandy.
Thank you so much for sharing your amazing experience in Japan with us. We had a wonderful time working and planning with you. You are so patient and understandable.
We are so grateful for your review , which will help us a lot to identify the aspects of the trip where we can improve our service to our travelers. Hope you will come back to Japan soon!
Thanks a lot for your detailed comments on the activities and the hotels which will help us to know ... Read more