Tour Itinerary
- 10:00 Meeting point: Mandarin Oriental Tokyo
- 10:10 Depart Mitsukoshimae Station
- (Tokyo Metro Ginza Line)
- 10:40 Arrive Asakusa Station
- Asakusa Senso-ji Temple
- Asakusa Shrine
- Nakamise-dori Shopping Street
- 11:20 Depart Asakusa Station
- (Tokyo Metro Ginza Line)
- Nihombashi Station
- (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line)
- 11:40 Arrive Otemachi Station
- Tokyo Imperial Palace East Gardens
- 12:30 Depart Otemachi Station
- (Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line)
- 12:40 Arrive Hibiya Station
- Hibiya Lunch: Hibiya Chanter
- 13:30 Depart Hibiya Station
- (Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line)
- 13:45 Arrive Meiji-jingumae Station
- Harajuku Meiji Shrine
- Takeshita Street
- 15:00 Depart Meiji-jingumae Station
- (Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line)
- Omotesando Station
- (Tokyo Metro Ginza Line)
- 15:20 Arrive Shibuya Station
- Shibuya Scramble Crossing
- Hachiko Statue
- 15:40 Depart Shibuya Station
- (Tokyo Metro Ginza Line)
- 16:00 Arrive Mitsukoshimae Station
- 16:00 Dismissal: Mitsukoshimae Station
Title: What Can You See on a One-Day Private Tour of Tokyo Before a Cruise? A Licensed Guide's Report The guests were visitors from North America, both visiting Japan for the first time. The main purpose of this trip was a 14-day cruise departing from Tokyo that circled Japan (including Jeju Island in Korea), with a flight home planned after returning to port. They were staying in Tokyo for just this one day, with departure scheduled for the following afternoon. They said, "We are looking forward to seeing various parts of Japan, and we would very much like to fully enjoy the cherry blossoms." One of the guests mentioned that photography was a hobby. It was a tour under clear skies, in weather warm enough to be pleasant. Since they said, "We leave the choice of destinations up to you," the tour proceeded as follows. First, we went to Asakusa. The grounds of Sensoji Temple were crowded with tourists and school groups, partly because it was a Sunday. I explained about "Sensoji Temple and the history from Edo to Tokyo," "what Buddhism is," and "the difference between Buddhism and Shinto." We took commemorative photos at Kaminarimon, in front of the five-story pagoda, and at various spots. We strolled slowly through the Nakamise shopping street. There were questions such as, "What are the major religions in Japan?" "How many Christians are there in Japan?" and "Besides Buddhism, what other religions do people believe in?" We moved to the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace. I explained about "the history of Japan from Edo to Meiji," "the Meiji Restoration," "why Edo Castle became the Imperial Palace," "the history of the Imperial family," "World War II and the air raids on Tokyo," and "how the stone walls were built." There were questions and comments such as, "What happened to the shoguns and samurai after the Meiji Restoration?" "Does the current Emperor of Japan hold any political power?" "Who is the next Emperor?" "Can a woman become Emperor?" and "How many members are there in the Imperial family in total?" After this, since they said, "We really want to have lunch. The breakfast at the hotel was extremely small in portion," we went to Hibiya Chanter. Everywhere was crowded, but we managed to find seats at a Chinese restaurant for lunch. One of the guests could not eat raw fish, and another had allergies. We moved to Harajuku, which was quite crowded, being a Sunday. At Meiji Shrine, I explained about "Shinto," "the torii gate," "Emperor Meiji," "why the sake barrels are displayed," and "why the wine barrels are displayed." There were questions such as, "What kind of religion is Shinto?" and "How do Buddhism and Shinto differ?" We came across a wedding procession, which they photographed enthusiastically. We also strolled along Takeshita Street. We moved to Shibuya. We actually crossed the Scramble Crossing. There were questions such as, "How many people gather here at the busiest times?" and "Why did it become so famous?" We also took photos in front of the Hachiko statue. There were comments and questions such as, "The city is so clean, with no litter on the ground," "The public restrooms are clean, and it's rare that they're free," and "There are no trash cans on the streets—why is that?" I saw them off at Mitsukoshimae Station, ending the tour.
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 | Train | 三越前～浅草 | 180JPY |
| Section 2 | Train | 浅草～大手町(東京都) | 180JPY |
| Section 3 | Train | 大手町(東京都)～日比谷 | 180JPY |
| Section 4 | Train | 日比谷～明治神宮前 | 180JPY |
| Section 5 | Train | 明治神宮前～渋谷 | 180JPY |
| Section 6 | Train | 渋谷～三越前 | 210JPY |
| Total | 1,110JPY | ||
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.
