Family of 5 in Japan for 12 nights
Japan
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Dec 22 - Jan 3, 2026
The trip was great. We planned our trip to Japan during a very busy season of life when we didn't have time to do the research we'd normally like to do. Sandy connected us with all the important sites and was accommodating to our requests. She booked all our train reservations and knew what needed to be booked ahead of time in terms of trains and museums. Her suggestions about what to do in our free time were very helpful. Highlights were the Ghibli museum and Food tour in Tokyo and the bike tour in Kyoto. Our tour guides in every city were knowledgeable and kind. The hotels she chose for us were very nice, and all throughout the trip she shared updates of what was coming up next and info on using the transportation in that city. The only thing that was disappointing was finding out the Peace Museum was closed while we were there for the new year holiday. We would have scheduled our itinerary differently had we known that ahead of time and put Hiroshima earlier in the trip. So double check those types of details if you are traveling during the new year, or other major holiday. For a family of 5 it's also much easier to eat if you have a reservation, so plan ahead for that. Overall it was a fantastic trip and the experience with KimKim both before the trip, and while we were there, was very good.
Hotel Reviews
This hotel is clean and had rooms with 3 beds if you are traveling with kids/a group. The breakfast was good with a good coffee option in the morning. Location is near the Senso-Ji temple and markets around there. Nice friendly staff.
Fun to have bathtubs on balcony to have hot springs baths not in the onsen. Buffet was huge but got old after 2 days. Shuttle available to take you to the Open Air museum, but it doesn't pick you back up so need to acquaint yourself with public transportation. Staff was nice, had great massage at their spa.
Loved having the bar area on the 14th floor to hang out with views of the city. Great proximity to the bus that takes you to the train station! Breakfast was decent.
Great location, nice lobby, good breakfast.
Activity Reviews
Good overview of the city. Our tour guide was flexible and accommodating to what we wanted to see. nice to have a driver to take us around on our first day in the country, helped us get our bearings!
This was campy fun. Glad we did it but felt very touristy! Food was pretty good.
One of our family's favorite things we did! Jun was our guide and he was fantastic and had great energy.
Had a great guide who shared a lot of history as we drove. We ended up with a freezing cold day which made it a little less comfortable than it would normally be!
Our family of 5 (2 teens + a 20 year old, plus parents) loved this. Our guide Philippe took us to off-the-beaten-path locations in east Kyoto which was great after having seen all the crowded main sites. Our kids ranked this high on the list. We had electric bikes so it was easy!
Our guide Mayumi was excellent, telling us a lot of history about Hiroshima and the impact of the bomb there. She took us somewhere yummy for lunch, then onto Miyajima. It was a great day.
Tour guide was great but this just wasn't our favorite part of the trip. The hike we did on our own, Mt. Kintoki, was wonderful. A little steep so a bit of a challenge but we were rewarded with amazing views of Mt. Fuji!
