Tokyo: Ikebukuro Station & Shibuya Station — Guide Masa

Title: What Can You See on a Full-Day Private Tokyo Tour? A Licensed Guide's Report on Asakusa, Yanaka, Tsukiji, Harajuku, and Shibuya

The guests were a group of four visiting from Oceania, all on their first trip to Japan. The purpose of this visit was an approximately two-week trip around Japan. They were staying in Tokyo for several days, after which they planned to travel around Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, and Hiroshima, before returning to Tokyo and then heading home. One of the guests, however, planned to remain in Japan alone afterward and travel around the Tohoku and Hokkaido regions for about two more weeks. They had arrived at Haneda Airport the previous evening and taken a taxi to their hotel. That night, they strolled around the area near their hotel. They said, "Today we'd like to visit the main spots in the city, and tomorrow we'd like to relax at the hotel all day." Although it was cloudy, the tour was completed without any rain.

From Ikebukuro Station, we first headed to Asakusa. We started in front of the Kaminarimon Gate. I explained "Senso-ji Temple and the history from Edo to Tokyo," "what the five-story pagoda is for," "what Buddhism is," and "the differences between Buddhism and Shinto." We took commemorative photos at the Kaminarimon and various other spots, and slowly strolled through the crowded Nakamise shopping street. There were questions such as "What are Japan's major religions?", "How many Buddhists are there in Japan?", and "Besides Buddhism, what other religions do people follow?" There was also a question: "We see people wearing kimono within the temple grounds — why is that?"

From here, we moved to the Yanaka-Nezu-Sendagi area. Regarding Yanaka Ginza, the comment was, "It's quiet and calm — this is the kind of place we wanted to come to." At a bakery, they purchased and sampled sandwiches. They also enjoyed some beer at a standing bar. At Nezu Shrine, they passed through the torii gate and paid their respects. They said, "Unlike Asakusa, it's quiet, and this is better."

We went to Tsukiji. As always, it was extremely crowded. I explained "the history of the fish market since the Edo period" and "the difference between Toyosu Market and the Tsukiji Outer Market." There were questions and comments such as "Do all Tokyoites come here to buy fish?" and "It's crowded, but it seems there are a lot of tourists." They said, "We'd like to sample something." In the end, they purchased and tasted "tuna nigiri."

We moved to Harajuku. Meiji Shrine was full of tourists. I explained "about Shinto," "about torii gates," "about Emperor Meiji," "why sake barrels are displayed," and "why wine barrels are displayed." There were questions such as "What kind of religion is Shinto?" and "How do Buddhism and Shinto differ?"

We moved to Shibuya. We actually crossed the Scramble Crossing. There were questions such as "About how many people cross here?" and "Why did it become famous?" We also took photos in front of the Hachiko statue. There were comments and questions such as "The streets are clean and there's no litter," "There are no trash cans on the streets — why?", "Everyone is quiet on the trains," and "There are vending machines everywhere."

Finally, I saw them off at Ikebukuro Station, where we parted ways.

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Tour Report by Masa

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.