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
- 13:00 ONSEN RYOKAN Yuen Shinjuku
- 13:30 Takeshita Street ~ Meiji Shrine
- 14:30 Imperial Palace Outer Gardens
- 15:15 Nezu Shrine
- 16:00 Yanaka
- 17:00 Shibuya (Shibuya Crossing / Hachiko) Dismissal
What's a 4-Hour Private Walking Tour of Tokyo Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Meiji Shrine, the Imperial Palace, and Yanaka
The guests were visiting from North America. On the morning of the tour, I received their requested destinations and quickly prepared two itinerary plans. We started with a glimpse of Takeshita Street and a currency exchange, then headed to Meiji Shrine, where they wrote a prayer plaque and drew omikuji fortunes. At the Imperial Palace Outer Garden, some cherry blossoms still remained, and since they had given up on seeing cherry blossoms, they were delighted. As we were running short on time, we skipped the Imperial Palace East Gardens. They seemed to enjoy the azaleas at Nezu Shrine, the vintage clothing market on the shrine grounds, sampling prepared foods at Yanaka Ginza, and the sunset at the Yuyake Dandan steps in Yanaka. Since they had a reservation for go-karting in Shibuya, I accompanied them to Shibuya. When incorporating Meiji Shrine and the Imperial Palace and visiting three locations, even a 4-hour course ends up covering about 5 km of walking, with roughly 1 hour spent walking, 1 hour spent traveling by subway and other transport, and about 2 hours of actual sightseeing each time.
Click here for more details: Tokyo Customized Half-Day Tour with Licensed Local Guide
Transportation cost per person
| No. | Transportation | Route | Fare |
| Section 1 | Subway | Shinjuku-sanchome～Meiji-jingumae | 180JPY |
| Section 2 | Subway | Meiji-jingumae～Nijubashimae | 210JPY |
| Section 3 | Subway | Nijubashimae～Nezu | 180JPY |
| Section 4 | Subway | Sendagi～Shibuya | 260JPY |
| Total | 830JPY | ||
Hi I am Hiroaki. I am pleased if I could help you to have a good and memorable experience here in Japan.
I started as a guide in 2017 after retiring. My expertise is outdoor/town walking tour as well as universal tourism.
If you like, I might show you a lively ordinal local life during the tour.
I love tourism. I visited all 47 domestic prefectures in Japan and all 50 states in US. I like long journey like walking/biking historical/pilgrimage routes, and love sports especially rugby, triathlon.
I would like to make your tour as much as customized according to your preference. So the information about spots you want to visit, things you want to do is very helpful for me to prepare plan some options of the day.
Do not hesitate contact me via email.
Mar 22, 2025
Tracy_L
Special Day in Tokyo with Hiroaki!
Viator review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Wonderful day with Hiroaki! He tailored…
Mar 22, 2025
Tracy_L
Special Day in Tokyo with Hiroaki!
Viator review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Wonderful day with Hiroaki! He tailored the day to see exactly what I wanted to look at in Tokyo and added a few options that made the day extra special. I feel like I never could have seen as much as I did without his expertise and guidance. He told me a lot about the history of the sites we visited and the importance of each in Japan. We also saw some of the fun and modern spots that are well known that I also wanted to see. Hiroaki was the perfect guide for me. I highly recommend Hiroaki as a guide for your exploring Tokyo. Thank you for a great day!