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

What's a Full-Day Private Tour of Tokyo Like for First-Time Visitors? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were a group visiting Japan for the first time from North America. One of the guests had ancestral roots traced back to a grandparent who had emigrated from Wakayama. This was a two-week trip through Japan, with three days in Tokyo, followed by Hakone, Kyoto, Nara, and Osaka before returning home.

The night before, the guests arrived at Haneda Airport via a connecting flight and took a pre-booked private car to their hotel. However, due to heavy rain, the trip reportedly took three hours. In the evening, they had a light dinner at the hotel.

Their request was: "We want to learn how to use the trains and subways, so as far as time allows, we'd like to visit the main spots around the city." The tour took place under cloudy skies, with occasional light rain.

We met at the hotel. First, they asked for help with "reserving Shinkansen tickets" and "purchasing Suica cards," so we went to the travel concierge at Ueno Station. After completing the procedures, we headed first to Asakusa.

As always, it was crowded with many tourists. I explained "the history of Asakusa and Sensoji Temple." From there, we started at the front of Kaminarimon Gate. I explained "what the five-story pagoda is for," "what Buddhism is," and "the differences between Buddhism and Shinto." We took commemorative photos in front of Kaminarimon and the five-story pagoda.

We strolled slowly through the Nakamise shopping street. There were questions such as "How many Buddhists are there in Japan?" "What other religions do people believe in besides Buddhism?" and "Are there Christians in Japan?"

We moved on to Akihabara and explored the electronics district. They purchased a figurine as a souvenir for a friend.

We then moved to the Imperial Palace. Since the East Gardens were closed, we only viewed the Nijubashi Bridge. I explained "the history from the Edo period to the Meiji era," "the Meiji Restoration," and "why Edo Castle became the Imperial Palace." There were questions such as "What happened to the shoguns and samurai after the Meiji Restoration?" "Does the current Emperor of Japan hold political power?" and "Who is the next Emperor?"

We moved to Harajuku, starting with Meiji Shrine. I explained "about Shinto," "about torii gates," "about Emperor Meiji," "why sake barrels are displayed," and "why wine barrels are displayed." There were questions such as "How do Buddhism and Shinto differ?" and "When did Shinto originate?" We took a rest for a while at the cafe terrace at Meiji Shrine.

After that, we strolled along Takeshita Street and then went to Shibuya. First, we took photos looking down at Scramble Square from the platform of the Keio Inokashira Line, then actually crossed the intersection. There were questions such as "Why do so many people gather here?" and "Are there more locals or more tourists?" We also took photos in front of the Hachiko statue. One of the guests mentioned, "We keep an Akita dog at home."

There were comments and questions such as "Japanese people are all quiet and polite," "We don't see any homeless people," and "Why are there no trash cans on the streets?"

They said, "We're getting tired, so we'd like to be taken to Shinagawa Station," so I escorted them to Shinagawa Station, and we parted ways there.

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.