Hakone Full-Day Customized Private Tour — Guide Kenji
October, 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. Not affiliated with the Japan Guide Association.
Tour Itinerary
- 10:00 Hakone-Yumoto Station ー 11:00 Gora Station ー 11:50 Sounzan Station ー 12:30 Owakudani ー
- 13:30 Togendai Port ー 14:00 Hakonemachi Port ー 15:00 Hakone Checkpoint ー
- 16:30 The Hakone Open-Air Museum (Entrance) ー 17:30 Gora Station ー
- 18:00 Hotel Indigo Hakone (Guest Stay)
What Is a Private Day Tour of Hakone Like? A Licensed Guide's Report
The guests were a group visiting from Oceania. The weather was better than the previous days, mild and with blue skies, but thick clouds hung in the direction of Mount Fuji, so Mount Fuji could not be seen, which left the guests a little disappointed. Even so, they were satisfied with the overall beauty of Hakone's nature and scenery. However, there were a great many inbound tourists, and every form of transportation — the cable car, the ropeway, and the pirate ship — had long lines, requiring considerable waiting time each time, which became a burden for one of the guests. Because there was so much waiting time, and the sunset came earlier as well, we had to give up on entering the Hakone Open-Air Museum as planned.
We used a Hakone Free Pass (Web version), but it required showing a smartphone at each boarding and alighting (which was time-consuming), and this proved difficult for older travelers. In addition, some souvenir shops and restaurants accepted cash only, which surprised both the guests and me. Overall, the guests were able to enjoy the sightseeing.
Click here for more details: Hakone Full-Day Customized Private Tour with Licensed Guide
I am Mr. Hotta Kenji from Yokohama. I am pleased to introduce myself as a Government Licensed Guide registered in Kanagawa Prefecture, having an ample exeperience as a English speaking guide in Tokyo, Yokohama, Kamakura, and Hakone areas for last 4 years. I would be happy to introduce Japanese culture, social activities and history, etc. I have had a rich business experience for over 40 years visiting more than 40 countries in Asia, Middle East, USA, Europe and others in the field of business development, international taxation, invester relations, corporate management, etc. I enjoy playing Japanese classical musical instrument (Shakuhachi or bamboo flute) and performing martial art (Aikido) .
I will be happy to share happy moments with our important guests in Japan.
Mar 27, 2026
TinaS196
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Best way to see Tokyo- Kenji
Our tour with Kenji exceeded our…
Mar 27, 2026
TinaS196
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Best way to see Tokyo- Kenji
Our tour with Kenji exceeded our expectations, and we are very thankful that we chose him as our tour guide for our first trip to Japan. His communication and insights were excellent. He took the time to give us in-depth explanations on everything we saw. We experienced and navigated many destinations that we would not have been able to achieve by ourselves, and we obtained a much deeper perspective of Tokyo and the Japanese culture. He was very efficient with our limited time, and efficiently planned our excursions that allowed us to experience a lot.