This is a private guided tour report by Japan Guide Agency (JGA Inc.), a network of 1,000+ government-licensed, English-speaking local guides across all 47 prefectures of Japan. Not affiliated with the Japan Guide Association.
Tour Itinerary
- 5:00 Meeting place: The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo
- 5:00 Depart The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo
- (Taxi)
- 5:20 Toyosu Market Seafood Wholesale Building
- Seafood Intermediate Wholesale Building
- 6;30 Shijo-mae Station
- (Yurikamome)
- Toyosu Station
- (Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line)
- Tsukishima Station
- (Toei Subway Oedo Line)
- 7:00 Arrive Tsukiji Shijo Station
- Tsukiji Tsukiji Outer Market
- 8:00 Depart Tsukiji Shijo Station
- (Toei Subway Oedo Line)
- 8:20 Arrive Roppongi Station
- 8:20 Disband: Roppongi Station
Tour Itinerary in Detail
This private tour of Tokyo began at 5:00, when the guide met the guests at Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo, and finished at 8:20. The day ran to 3 hours and 20 minutes from start to finish.
From there the group visited The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo at 5:00, Toyosu Market Seafood Wholesale Building at 5:20, Tsukiji Shijo Station at 7:00 and Roppongi Station at 8:20.
Travel between the sites was by public transport: Shijo-mae Station to Toyosu Station (189JPY); Toyosu Station to Tsukiji Shijo Station by subway (286JPY); Tsukiji Shijo Station to Roppongi Station by subway (220JPY). Across 3 sections the fare came to 695JPY per person.
What Is a Private Tokyo Tour of Toyosu Market and Tsukiji Like? A Licensed Guide's Report
The guests were a group visiting Japan from North America, all visiting Japan for the first time. They had arrived at Narita the previous day and traveled to their hotel via the Narita Express and other transport. On this trip they were staying in Japan for a short time, spending some days in Tokyo before continuing to Kyoto and Osaka, after which they planned to head to Asia from Kansai Airport. The night before, they had enjoyed Japanese food at a local izakaya nearby. They planned to go on a full-day tour of the city the next day. The trip was arranged as a holiday, and they mentioned, "There is no proper fish market where we live, and we really wanted to show the family a fish market and an auction." The tour took place in heavy rain. At the guests' request, we traveled from the hotel to Toyosu by taxi. At the Toyosu seafood wholesale building, they asked questions such as: "Where is the tuna caught, and how is it delivered here?" "How much tuna is put up for auction?" "What is the price per fish?" "What kind of tuna is expensive?" and "Who manages the auction?" They also asked, "Which part of the tuna is the tastiest, or the most expensive?" At the intermediate wholesale building, they asked, "Who comes here to buy?" and "Why aren't we allowed inside?" At the Tsukiji Outer Market, despite the rain, they eagerly walked around looking here and there and browsing various shops. They entered one shop and bought and sampled nigiri sushi with tuna, grilled beef skewers, and grilled king crab. Their comments included, "It's fresh and delicious," and "We intend to eat sushi non-stop while we're in Japan." They also asked, "Why are there so many people here? Is it always like this?" They remarked, "The whole town is clean, with no litter on the ground," and "Even walking around town at night, we don't feel it's dangerous or scary." Since they said, "We're tired and would like to go back to the hotel to rest," I saw them off at Roppongi Station and we parted ways.
Click here for more details: Toyosu Tuna Auction & Tsukiji Local Food Tour, Licensed Guide
Transportation cost per person
| No. | Transportation | Route | Fare |
| Section 1 | Other | Shijo-mae Station～Toyosu Station | 189JPY |
| Section 2 | Subway | Toyosu Station～Tsukiji Shijo Station | 286JPY |
| Section 3 | Subway | Tsukiji Shijo Station～Roppongi Station | 220JPY |
| Total | 695JPY | ||
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does this Tokyo tour start and finish?
The guide met the guests at Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo at 5:00, and the tour finished at : Roppongi Station at 8:20.
How long does the tour last?
About 3 hours and 20 minutes in total, from 5:00 to 8:20.
Which places does this itinerary cover?
This tour visited The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo, Toyosu Market Seafood Wholesale Building, Tsukiji Shijo Station and Roppongi Station.
How much did transport cost on this tour?
Public transport came to 695JPY per person across 3 sections. Transport fares are paid by the guests and are not included in the guiding fee.
Is the guide licensed, and what language is the tour in?
Masa is a government-licensed national guide-interpreter of Japan and guided this tour in English. Japan Guide Agency (JGA Inc.) works with more than 1,000 licensed guides across all 47 prefectures. Not affiliated with the Japan Guide Association.
Can the itinerary be changed for my own trip?
Yes. This report describes one private tour as it actually ran. Every Tokyo itinerary is built around the guests, so the places, the pace and the starting point can all be changed before the tour.
Guiding career:
Guide work started in July 2022. A guide focused on FIT compliance.
FY2022 results: 17 cases, FY2023 results: 97
Destinations: Various places in Tokyo, Hakone, Kamakura and Nikko
As a recent group travel record, in October 2023, we have a track record of guiding a group of 33 people from Singapore to Narita Airport transfer plus sightseeing in Tokyo.
Self-introduction:
In the past, I was stationed in Canada, the United States, and Mexico as an expatriate of a Japanese bank for over 11 years.
Since I have been mainly involved in the financing business in the United States for a long time, I think I am able to provide interpretation and translation services related to business and finance.
I am a certified CPA in the United States.
In addition, for three years from April 2016, I will be engaged in Japanese-English translation work (part-time), and I can also handle translation work.
Although I don’t have a qualification in Spanish, but I think I can handle day to day conversation in Spanish without any problems.
My hobby is trekking and from time to time, take a walk around mountains near Tokyo like Mt. Takao, Tanzawa, etc. I think it is possible to provide tourist information here as well.
Since April 2015, I have been working as a Tokyo Metropolitan Tourism Volunteer and Tokyo Metropolitan Disaster Prevention Volunteer.
One more, I have a separate house near Asuka Village, Nara prefecture, and I stay there for a total of about 30 days every year and have been enjoying sightseeing personally in the vicinity. Therefore, I think in the Kansai region, especially in Nara, Asuka, Yoshino, Koyasan, Kumano Kodo, etc., where I think I will be able to tour guide with confidence.
Jul 21, 2026
Christelle_G
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Excellent tour guide
Masa san is extremely knowledgeable and…
Jul 21, 2026
Christelle_G
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Excellent tour guide
Masa san is extremely knowledgeable and lovely company. My 13-yr-old daughter and I had a great day walking around the sites we had picked with him. He tooks his time to explain all the history and then kindly walked us to the spot of our next booking as it was quite confusing. I would very highly recommend him. Of all the tours we did in Tokyo Masa Sam was my favourite tour guide.
Jul 1, 2026
97TexAg
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 8hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Amazing day in Tokyo
Masa was our tour guide. Masa was an…
Jul 1, 2026
97TexAg
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 8hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Amazing day in Tokyo
Masa was our tour guide. Masa was an amazing tour guide that communicated extremely well ahead of time about the sites we would like to see in Tokyo, picked us up and dropped us off at our hotel, was very friendly and well prepared and finally but most importantly made our day in Tokyo very memorable.
We went to the Buddhist temple in Asakusa, Meiji Shinto Temple, imperial Palace, Shinjuku Gyoen National Gatden, and Shibuya Crossing. All were great and amazing suggestions by Masa.
Would highly recommend this tour as it was a private tour guide for a full day and provided discretion on which 5-6 sites you want to see. Also highly recommend our tour guide Masa who was a wealth of knowledge and very friendly and charming.
15/10 would do again.
Jun 2, 2026
Tagare S
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great tour and guide!
This is a great tour, and our…
Jun 2, 2026
Tagare S
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great tour and guide!
This is a great tour, and our guide, Masa was really great. Although it was raining, he had no
hesitations in completing his tour and showing us great places around Tokyo. If you are still
on the fence about this, please don’t, you won’t regret it. Thank you, Masa!
Jun 1, 2026
Lisa_A
Viator review: Private Tokyo Tour with Licensed Guide & Vehicle (Max 15 persons)
Adler Family Tour
Our tour with Masa was…
Jun 1, 2026
Lisa_A
Viator review: Private Tokyo Tour with Licensed Guide & Vehicle (Max 15 persons)
Adler Family Tour
Our tour with Masa was incredible and filled with interesting facts and history, he gave us incredible insight on each location. We loved that we were able to choose 3-4 sites from a large selection and really spend enough time at each spot. Masa was kind and knowledgable and even helped us with a restaurant reservation for later in the evening when were unable to find one.