I am Toru, an English-speaking guide for international tourists visiting Japan. Since 2017, the Japan Tourism Agency has certified me as a national guide (English-speaking, Certification EN-02296). Currently, I guide tourists primarily on weekends in the Tokyo area, including Yokohama, Kamakura, and Hakone in Kanagawa Prefecture. I have actively organized private tours for visitors from abroad and introduced them to our culture and traditions since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since you have visited my blog, you must be interested in a trip to Japan. Likewise, I am also a frequent traveler, having visited more than 20 countries and many domestic tourist destinations. So far, I have lived in nine Japanese cities, including Tokyo, Yokohama, Sapporo, Kokura, Sendai, Osaka, and Imabari (my hometown), as well as two overseas cities, Singapore (Southeast Asia) and Bristol (UK). Throughout my life in various places with diverse local heritages, I have come to enjoy immersing myself in aspects native to the local cultures and traditions, especially loving to eat local foods. I also always rejoice in talking with people from around the world, which inspires me to learn more about the diversity of cultures, traditions, and customs.
I am a history buff who enjoys reading samurai stories and visiting historical and monumental places where I can imagine how people lived and acted back then. Nobody can stop me from discussing the construction of Edo City, formerly known as Tokyo, because I worked as a cement and concrete engineer for over twenty years. Edo was a well-designed city, and samurai lords, along with their bureaucrats, contributed many innovative ideas and tremendous efforts. Oh, I can’t wait to talk about samurai with you!
As I told you, I am a local food enthusiast. So, I would be delighted to take you to Tsukiji Market and Food Street or Ameyoko Arcade, where you can taste delicious typical Japanese street foods. I can take you to excellent bars serving fruitful Japanese sake (white-wine-looking liquor brewed from rice) or local pubs called Izakaya, which serve unique Japanese alcoholic beverages you might have never tried.
Please read my blog posts about sightseeing spots, foods, beverages, and experiences and choose some sites to visit. I will organize your private tour itinerary.
Let’s enjoy Tokyo with me and make your stay here unforgettable!
For your consideration, here are two example plans for the visitors to Japan for the first time and one extra plan for the expert visitors.
1. Saturday Plan: A six-hour tour in Tokyo by public transportation (mainly subway lines)
1) Tsukiji Food Street: Enjoy breakfast with seafood and other Japanese food on the street.
2) Asakusa: Instagram-oriented site, taking photos of Tokyo Skytree, Kaminarimon (a symbolic temple gate), a five-story pagoda, and so on.
3) The Imperial Palace East Garden: Walk in the beautiful traditional garden.
4) Meiji Jugu Shrine: Immerse yourself in the calm and sacred vibes in the shrine.
2. Sunday Plan: A six-hour tour in Tokyo by public transportation (mainly subway lines)
1) Tokyo Skytree: (You need to book tickets online in advance.) The 634-meter tower’s observation deck offers a view of Tokyo.
2) Asakusa: A photogenic site where you can go shopping along the busy and bustled main street as well as enjoy street food and sweets.
3) Ameyoko Shopping Arcade: One of the famous busy shopping streets in Tokyo. Enjoy various street food at the small shops along the streets.
4) Meiji Jugu Shrine: Once you step into the shrine, you can relax and release fatigue from a busy city exploration. You will feel calm vibes and a fresh breeze from the lush forest.
If you come to Tokyo for the second or more time, you would like to visit places different from popular sites or experience something unique. Here is a list of my recommendations.
3. Extra Plan for the expert visitors
1) Fukagawa Fudo Do temple: It allows international tourists to attend the Buddhist ceremony, where they can listen to Buddhist chants, drumming, and bell rings and watch holy fire roaring on the ceremony table.
2) Ryogoku Edo Noren: This traditional sumo-wrestling-themed shopping and food mall is next to Ryogoku station on the JR Sobu Line. You can see the real Dohyo, the sumo wrestling ring, enjoy shopping for sumo-related items, and taste Tokyo’s local food, such as Chanko Nabe, a sumo wrestler’s meal.
3) Japanese Sword Museum: Here, you can view many real samurai swords on display and watch a video about how they are crafted.
4) Kyu Furukawa Garden: This is a unique Japanese garden that combines traditional Japanese tastes with Western-style features. My friend in the US said it would be fascinating to learn how Japanese gardeners interpreted the Western style.
For your reference, here are some reviews and feedback my guests posted on the TripAdvisor site.
Review (1) Fantastic personal tour in Tokyo
Review of Tokyo 4hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
We , family of four, had a wonderful time with our guide Toru. He exceeded our expectations. Toru displayed great knowledge about Japans history and the sites we visited. We also connected over Netflix series.
We enjoyed matcha tea and ice cream, saw cherry blossom, enjoyed a fantastic view of Tokyo,and experienced the marked where we (the adults) drank a glass of hoppy.
We finished our tour at the Meiji shrine and the bustle of Harajuku. All in all extremely happy with our tour and our tour guide Toru. Highly recommended! (https://x.gd/X5uv6)
Review (2) Amazing 6-Hour Tour with Guide Toru Higaki
Review of Tokyo Tsukiji Food & Culture 4hr Private Tour with Licensed Guide
We traveled to Japan with four adults, and four children (ages 10, 9, 8 and 7). We have traveled a lot and are not a family that typically uses tour guides, but in this instance had heard it was worth it for the Fish Market. We had a great guide in Toru Higaki. He was very patient and accommodating of the various food needs and desires of our children, while ensuring us adults had a good time as well. 🙂 Highly recommend the experience. We ended up adding on 2 additional hours with Toru, and were really appreciative of all we learned about Japan in the process. P.S. And this was all in spite of torrential rain at times. (https://x.gd/751yn)
Review (3) Fab day with Toru
Review of Hakone 6hr Private Tour.
We spent a great day with our guide Toru Higaki. Unfortunately, the weather was not on our side so we didn’t get to see Mt Fuji! Nonetheless, Toru made our day enjoyable and at lunchtime, introduced us to eel which was delicious. Thank you Toru! (https://x.gd/HB2HS)
Review (4) A fantastic experience with Toru
Review of Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
This tour was wonderful and the greatest part was having Toru with us! He prepared our itinerary with passion and he took care of us and our needs. We visited a lot with him. Famous places and hidden gems. He knows a lot about Japan and Tokyo, their culture and history. I really reccomend this tour with him! (https://x.gd/GEALM)
I can arrange your tour plan based on your preference.
Please send your requests to me via the “Contact me” below.
Please click the links to get updated via my X (former Twitter) and Instagram.
X (former Twitter): https://x.com/ToruGuide
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toruhigaki/
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