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
- 11:00 Meeting place: Hotel
- 11:10 Depart Higashi-shinjuku Station
- (Toei Subway Oedo Line)
- Tochomae Station
- 11:30 Arrive Roppongi Station
- Hotel
- 11:45 Depart Roppongi Station
- (Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
- 12:00 Arrive Tsukiji Market Station
- Tsukiji Tsukiji Outer Market
- 13:00 Depart Tsukiji Station
- Hibiya Station
- 13:45 Arrive Omotesando
- Harajuku Meiji Shrine
- Takeshita Street
- 14:45 Depart Harajuku Station
- (JR Yamanote Line)
- 15:00 Arrive Shibuya Station
- Shibuya Lunch: Tsukiji Sushisei Shibuya Branch
- Scramble Crossing
- Hachiko Statue
- 15:30 Depart Shibuya Station
- (JR Yamanote Line)
- Ebisu Station
- (Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
- 15:45 Arrive Roppongi Station
- 15:45 Dismissal: Roppongi Station
What Is a Private One-Day Tokyo Tour Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Tsukiji, Meiji Shrine, and Shibuya
The guests were visitors from North America. One of the guests had visited Japan many times for travel, while it was the first visit for another.
The guests had arrived at Haneda earlier and stayed in Nagoya until the previous day, and the rest of the group arrived at Narita Airport the previous night, taking the Narita Express from Narita Airport to Shinjuku. This time they would stay only a short while, planning to head to Hakone and Mount Fuji from the next day, and to return home after coming back to Tokyo. They said, "We would like to try various kinds of Japanese food." It was a tour under warm, almost hot weather.
Since the guests were changing their accommodation to a hotel that day, we packed up their luggage and checked out of the current hotel, then first headed to Roppongi. After leaving their luggage at the hotel, we set off again, first to Tsukiji. The Tsukiji Outer Market was extremely crowded. The guests really wanted to try grilled king crab, scallops, and oysters, so they purchased and sampled them.
At Meiji Shrine, the guests asked questions such as "What kind of religion is Shinto? How is Buddhism different from Shinto?" and "What does the torii gate signify?" Within the grounds we came across a wedding procession and took photos. The guests commented, "It is wonderful that such a place exists in the heart of the city." We strolled along Takeshita Street, stopping at several shops, as the guests said, "We had heard about it."
After that, we moved to Shibuya and had lunch at a sushi restaurant in Shibuya. The guests said, "As expected, sushi eaten in Japan is fresh and delicious." At the scramble crossing, the guests commented, "Why are there so many people here?" We took commemorative photos in front of the Hachiko statue. The guests offered comments such as "The city is orderly and clean," "There is no litter on the ground," and "On the trains, everyone is quiet. No one talks loudly." I saw them off at Roppongi Station, and we parted ways.
Click here for more details: Tokyo Customized Half-Day Tour with Licensed Local Guide
Transportation cost per person
| No. | Transportation | Route | Fare |
| Section 1 | Subway | Higashi-shinjuku Station～Roppongi Station | 220JPY |
| Section 2 | Train | Roppongi Station～Tsukiji Station | 220JPY |
| Section 3 | Train | Tsukiji Station～Meiji-jingumae Station | 178JPY |
| Section 4 | Train | Harajuku Station～Shibuya Station | 146JPY |
| Section 5 | Train | Shibuya Station～Ebisu Station | 146JPY |
| Section 6 | Train | Ebisu Station～Roppongi Station | 178JPY |
| Total | 1,088JPY | ||
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.