Nara in One Day: Daibutsuden by bus & Osaka Station by JR — Guide Nori

What Is a Private 6-Hour Nara Tour from JR Nara Station Like? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were visitors from North America who were traveling and sightseeing in Japan. For the pre-tour arrangements, such as deciding on the places to visit, I communicated with one of the guests.

The original plan was for the guests to leave Kinosaki early in the morning, meet at Osaka Station, and take an 8-hour tour of Nara by private vehicle departing from and returning to Osaka. However, during our correspondence, the guests felt that "a private vehicle tour between Osaka and Nara wastes time on the round trip and is costly," so in the end we settled on an itinerary of "meet at JR Nara Station at 1:00 p.m. ⇒ sightseeing in Nara ⇒ JR Osaka Station." For this reason, the original tour was canceled, and a "6-hour Nara tour" was newly registered instead.

On the day, as mentioned above, the guests arrived at JR Nara Station 30 minutes earlier than planned, so the tour started 30 minutes early. We traveled to Todai-ji Temple by bus, and after enjoying the deer along the approach, we arrived at the Great Buddha Hall. The guests exclaimed in amazement at the enormous main hall and the Great Buddha, and they listened intently to my explanation covering the history since the introduction of Buddhism, asking many questions as well. After the Great Buddha Hall, we walked slowly toward Nigatsu-do and Sangatsu-do (Sangatsu-do was under renovation), and I had them enjoy the stage of the "Omizutori" water-drawing ritual for warding off misfortune. Continuing on, we took a leisurely rest at the foot of Mount Kasuga before walking on to Kasuga Taisha Shrine. This course, surrounded by lush greenery and structures and featuring gentle undulations, is a very pleasant one to walk. At the final stop, Kasuga Taisha Shrine, the vivid vermilion and the main hall were surrounded by trees, including cedars over 1,000 years old, creating a mystical atmosphere. Throughout the tour, both guests shared their impressions, saying, "It was a truly wonderful experience, and we are grateful for the attentive guiding," and they seemed very satisfied with the Nara tour.

If I were to raise one point of reflection as a guide, it would be that although the finalized itinerary was a "Nara round-trip, 6-hour" course, it ultimately became "meet in Nara, end in Osaka" without obtaining the approval of [Japan Guide Agency (JGA Inc.)](https://www.j-g-a.org/). Early on the day, the guests departed from Kinosaki Onsen, got off at Osaka Station, stored their large suitcases in a coin locker at Osaka Station, and then arrived in Nara by JR. The reason was that, since they would return to North America the next day via Haneda from Osaka Airport, they planned to stay at a hotel near Osaka Airport after sightseeing in Nara. My thinking was that, since there was ample time for the Nara sightseeing, I would see them off all the way to Osaka Station, help them find their suitcases, and take them to the taxi stand to see them off. In cases like this, must the starting point and ending point always be the same? I would appreciate any advice.

Click here for more details: Nara Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide

Tour Report by Nori

Hi, everyone! I’m Norifumi Kamon, a government registered guide interpreter. Please call me “Nori”, or “Kamon-san”.
Let me introdece myself. I was born on April 17th in 1952 in Miyazaki prefecture in Kyushu island. I used to be an English teacher of Osaka Prefectural high school. When I retired from a teacher ten years ago, I decided to get a professional guide license. I wanted to play a role of the bridge between Japanese people and the people from all over the world as a second life of mine. After two years efforts, I finally got the guide license. Since then, I have guided several handreds of foreign people mainly in Kyoto and Nara for about five years except Corona Pandemic period. Almost all the tourists were deeply impressed by the beauty of nature, traditoin, culture, and art of Japan. I can surely help you enjoy and be satisfied with the sightseeing in Japan. And I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.