Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day — Guide Lance
November, 2025
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.
Tour Itinerary
- 9.00 Hotel ANA Continental→9.20 Tsukiji→11.00 Asakusa, lunch→13.10 Shinjuku Gyoen→14.30 Meiji Shrine→15.40 Omotesando
What Can You See on a Culture Day Private Tour of Tokyo? A Licensed Guide's Report
The guests were a group from Europe who have run a construction business for many decades. They mentioned they had once worked on a building at a university. They had arrived two days earlier by plane, but due to lost baggage, they had no clothes other than what they were wearing, which was a concern given that today the first cold wintry wind of the season was forecast. The group now has children and grandchildren.
Because it was Culture Day, we were able to enjoy a variety of seasonal cultural events. At Sensoji Temple we saw the White Heron Dance, at Shinjuku Gyoen we saw a chrysanthemum exhibition, and at Meiji Shrine we saw a lion dance and biwa lute performance as part of the autumn grand festival. A family funeral was being held at Tsukiji Hongwanji Temple.
At Shinjuku Gyoen, when I explained that the Italian Garden had never come to be because of the Russo-Japanese War, one of the guests asked, "What was the cause of the Russo-Japanese War?" and I answered that it was a dispute over interests on the continent. Then I was asked about the Pacific War, and I explained that it was because Japan sought to colonize Asia. Since the group planned to visit the Nezu Museum after the tour, I took them to Omotesando and we parted ways there. They said they would visit the Tokyo National Museum the next day, then travel by ship to Kobe on Wednesday to sightsee in Osaka, stop at Hiroshima, and head to Korea. I recommended that they visit Kyoto next time.
Click here for more details: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Transportation cost per person
| No. | Transportation | Route | Fare |
| Section 1 | Subway | Tameike-Sanno Station / Minato-ku, Tokyo～Tsukiji | 180JPY |
| Section 2 | Subway | Tsukiji～Asakusa | 290JPY |
| Section 3 | Subway | Asakusa～Asakusabashi | 180JPY |
| Section 4 | Train | Asakusabashi～Sendagaya | 180JPY |
| Section 5 | Subway | Shinjuku-sanchome～Meiji-jingumae | 180JPY |
| Section 6 | Subway | Meiji-jingumae～Omotesando | 180JPY |
| Total | 1,190JPY | ||
I have been working as a tour guide once a week since 2024.
I grew up in Osaka and studied in Kyoto,
I have been working for the lvestock division of the national organization of agricultural cooperatives.
Japan depends on imports for most of its livestock feed ingredients.
I visited 10 countries on business and stayed in New Orleans working for a subsidiary company for 3 years.
I visited 10 other countries with my wife for sightseeing.
I also started writing Haiku, Japanese traditional poem, after retiring.
One of my favorite is ” Bundled up, you are like a Matryoshka.”
Looking forward to see you!
Sep 24, 2026
benoitlJ9021HN
Perfect guide tour in Tokyo
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was very nice…
Sep 24, 2026
benoitlJ9021HN
Perfect guide tour in Tokyo
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was very nice and helped us . to learn so much. His English is really good and he is extremely well prepared.
Sep 19, 2026
H1282JBkarinas
Great tour with Lance from Japan Guide Agency!
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Full-Day Private Tour with Licensed Guide
Lance our tour…
Sep 19, 2026
H1282JBkarinas
Great tour with Lance from Japan Guide Agency!
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Full-Day Private Tour with Licensed Guide
Lance our tour guide was fantastic. From the time we paired, we messaged on WhatsApp as he built our customizable tour day! He gave great suggestions and asked great questions to build a wonderful day.
The day itself was perfect. He met us at the hotel, and guided us fantastically. He had detailed history and facts to share and was well prepared to ensure that we had everything we needed.
Sep 10, 2026
Silver_F
amazing 8-hour walking tour with Lance!
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was our…
Sep 10, 2026
Silver_F
amazing 8-hour walking tour with Lance!
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was our amazing and thorough tour guide and already prepared an itinerary for us based on his recommendations and our preferences well before arrived in Japan.
On the day of the guided tour – there was a brief introduction on Japanese history – and became the common thread as he brought us through each site and guided us on the subways and introduced us to amazing small mom and pop & artisan shops we would have otherwise never found!
Lots of walking so make sure to wear super comfy shoes but 10/10 would do it again!
Learned so much in a short time and was able to spend the rest of days in Tokyo shopping and going to other places.
Thank you, Lance, for sharing with us your beautiful country! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Jul 4, 2026
317roxaneh
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great time in Tokyo!
We had a great day with Lance! He…
Jul 4, 2026
317roxaneh
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great time in Tokyo!
We had a great day with Lance! He had a good sense of humor and was so kind to meet us at our Air BnB, which was a bit out of the way. He gave us a great crash course on Japanese history before heading out on our adventure around Tokyo, visiting shrines, markets, a museum and garden. It was so helpful to have him with us navigating the train system, and he took us to an amazing sushi place for a lovely lunch. All in all, it was really fun and we were able to better appreciate the places we visited with him providing information and history along the way. Would definitely recommend!…