Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day — Guide Lance
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.
Tour Itinerary
- (1)10.00 Meet at the lobby of Via Inn Nihombashi Ningyocho
- (2)10.20-11.40 Imperial Palace
- (3)12.00-1350 Tsukiji Outer Market
- (4)13.50-14.30 lunch
- (5)14.50-15.40 Koishikawa Korakuen 300Yen(150Yen)
- From the west exit heading south then east to Iidabashi Sobu Line Yoyogi Harajuku
- JR railway & subway from Iidabashi to Harajyuku (@178Yen)
- (5)16.00-16.30 Takeshita Street
Title: What Is a 6-Hour Private Walking Tour of Tokyo's Imperial Palace and Koishikawa Korakuen Like? A Licensed Guide's Report
The guests were visiting from Europe. They had booked tickets for the Grand Sumo tournament's overseas performance back in March and attended the opening day. They mentioned that once a week they volunteer, collecting expired food and providing it to low-income households.
Since this was a 6-hour tour involving around 20,000 steps, I asked in advance whether they would be comfortable with the amount of walking, just to be safe. They replied that they were both extremely fit and strong walkers. Even so, on the day, one of the guests began to feel unwell on the stairs heading toward Koishikawa Korakuen, which gave me a scare.
Beforehand, one of the guests had contacted me saying they wanted to go to "kaisendo" in Tsukiji. I could not find a restaurant by that name online, so I replied asking whether they meant a "seafood rice bowl," and it turned out they were referring to "kaisendon." I took them to a place that is reasonable, clean, and excellent in taste. When I asked a young man from Europe seated next to us how he had learned about the restaurant, he said, "I asked an AI." I was amazed.
At the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace, I explained that a wooden facility had been built here for the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito, where the Daijosai ceremony was held. One of the guests asked how many days the facility had stood. I looked it up while we were traveling by subway and answered that it had been open to the public for 20 days after the Daijosai ended. One of the guests also asked how the mosaic mural on the wall of the Tokagakudo concert hall had been colored, and I answered that the mural is made of ceramic panels colored with glaze, and that the design was conceived by the wife of Emperor Showa. At Koishikawa Korakuen, I explained that Tokugawa Mitsukuni, who completed this garden, became the protagonist of a television drama, and I sang the chorus of the theme song of "Mito Komon," translating it into English for them.
One of the guests asked whether Japan was short of rice, and I answered that this year supply was likely to exceed demand. They mentioned that their own family had once been farmers, and that in their home country too there are few people to carry on farming.
Click here for more details: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Transportation cost per person
| No. | Transportation | Route | Fare |
| Section 1 | Subway | Ningyocho～Otemachi (Tokyo) | 180JPY |
| Section 2 | Subway | Takebashi～Tsukiji | 180JPY |
| Section 3 | Subway | Tsukiji～Korakuen | 180JPY |
| Section 4 | Train | Suidobashi～Harajuku | 180JPY |
| Total | 720JPY | ||
I have been working as a tour guide once a week since 2024.
I grew up in Osaka and studied in Kyoto,
I have been working for the lvestock division of the national organization of agricultural cooperatives.
Japan depends on imports for most of its livestock feed ingredients.
I visited 10 countries on business and stayed in New Orleans working for a subsidiary company for 3 years.
I visited 10 other countries with my wife for sightseeing.
I also started writing Haiku, Japanese traditional poem, after retiring.
One of my favorite is ” Bundled up, you are like a Matryoshka.”
Looking forward to see you!
Sep 24, 2026
benoitlJ9021HN
Perfect guide tour in Tokyo
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was very nice…
Sep 24, 2026
benoitlJ9021HN
Perfect guide tour in Tokyo
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was very nice and helped us . to learn so much. His English is really good and he is extremely well prepared.
Sep 19, 2026
H1282JBkarinas
Great tour with Lance from Japan Guide Agency!
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Full-Day Private Tour with Licensed Guide
Lance our tour…
Sep 19, 2026
H1282JBkarinas
Great tour with Lance from Japan Guide Agency!
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo Customized Full-Day Private Tour with Licensed Guide
Lance our tour guide was fantastic. From the time we paired, we messaged on WhatsApp as he built our customizable tour day! He gave great suggestions and asked great questions to build a wonderful day.
The day itself was perfect. He met us at the hotel, and guided us fantastically. He had detailed history and facts to share and was well prepared to ensure that we had everything we needed.
Sep 10, 2026
Silver_F
amazing 8-hour walking tour with Lance!
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was our…
Sep 10, 2026
Silver_F
amazing 8-hour walking tour with Lance!
Viator review: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide
Lance was our amazing and thorough tour guide and already prepared an itinerary for us based on his recommendations and our preferences well before arrived in Japan.
On the day of the guided tour – there was a brief introduction on Japanese history – and became the common thread as he brought us through each site and guided us on the subways and introduced us to amazing small mom and pop & artisan shops we would have otherwise never found!
Lots of walking so make sure to wear super comfy shoes but 10/10 would do it again!
Learned so much in a short time and was able to spend the rest of days in Tokyo shopping and going to other places.
Thank you, Lance, for sharing with us your beautiful country! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Jul 4, 2026
317roxaneh
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great time in Tokyo!
We had a great day with Lance! He…
Jul 4, 2026
317roxaneh
Tripadvisor review: Tokyo 6hr Private Tour with Government-Licensed Guide
Great time in Tokyo!
We had a great day with Lance! He had a good sense of humor and was so kind to meet us at our Air BnB, which was a bit out of the way. He gave us a great crash course on Japanese history before heading out on our adventure around Tokyo, visiting shrines, markets, a museum and garden. It was so helpful to have him with us navigating the train system, and he took us to an amazing sushi place for a lovely lunch. All in all, it was really fun and we were able to better appreciate the places we visited with him providing information and history along the way. Would definitely recommend!…