Tokyo in One Day: Daiba Station & Shibuya Station — Guide Masa

Title: What Is a Full-Day Private Tokyo Tour Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Ueno, the Imperial Palace, Tokyo Tower, Shinjuku Gyoen, and Shibuya

The guests were visitors from North America. One of them was visiting Japan for the second time, and the other was visiting for the first time. They had a deep interest in Japanese culture, art, and music, and mentioned great admiration for the composer Toru Takemitsu and a connection to a scholarship associated with Seiji Ozawa.

They arrived at Narita Airport the previous night and took a limousine bus to their accommodation. They were staying in Japan for a short period, and the following day they planned to visit Mount Fuji, followed by Kyoto, Osaka, and Hiroshima, before returning to Tokyo and heading home. They expressed a wish to enjoy Japanese culture, art, and music. On the way home, they planned to stop in North America to visit a friend before continuing on to South America.

The tour took place in hot and humid weather. At the guests' request, it was a full itinerary without a lunch break.

At the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno, the guests enthusiastically viewed the exhibits and took photographs. They commented that many of the Buddhist statues were wonderful, and asked questions such as, "How are the Ainu, the Ryukyu people, and the Japanese different?" and "Where did the Japanese people originally come from?"

The East Gardens of the Imperial Palace were very crowded. The guests asked questions such as, "When was it built as a castle?" and "Why did Edo Castle become the Imperial Palace?" They also asked, "Does the Emperor live inside here?", "Does the Emperor have political influence?", and "Who will become the next Emperor?" They commented that the rows of pine trees were wonderful, and mentioned that they always watch "Shogun" on television.

At Tokyo Tower, they commented, "Because of the surrounding buildings, it's hard to see the cityscape clearly. Still, I can tell that Tokyo is a very large city."

At Shinjuku Gyoen, they said, "The Japanese garden is wonderful. I would like to create a garden like this in my own yard at home."

After that, we moved to Shibuya. At the scramble crossing, they commented, "Why are there so many people here?" and "It reminds me of Times Square." We took photographs in front of the Hachiko statue.

They asked and commented on many things, such as, "What is Tokyo's crime rate?", "The city is so clean," "Everyone is so polite," "I don't see anyone using drugs," and "There are no trash cans anywhere in the city, but it's a good thing that everyone takes their trash home." They also said, "I saw small children commuting to school without any adults accompanying them — that's amazing and incredible."

Finally, I saw them off at Shimbashi Station, and we parted ways.

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

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.