Visiting Japan, a country none of us had ever...
Japan
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Jun 24 - Jul 2, 2025
Visiting Japan, a country none of us had ever visited before, was a little daunting. Angel made excellent suggestions that enabled us to fulfill specific requests while also having memorable experiences. We were very happy with the expertise of our guides, which was first noticed as we navigated public transportation (trains, subways, buses, etc.). The guides answered all of our questions about local landmarks and provided good suggestions for modifying or augmenting our tours. We walked a lot of steps and endured a lot of heat, which is to be expected in June. The rain wasn't too bad, and in truth, we appreciated the guides popping into air-conditioned shops/stores as we moved about the cities.
Tokyo was a large area, and we crisscrossed the city via subway, seeing multiple shrines and temples, but also museums and eating locations. There was a lot more green in each city than we expected, and walking through gardens and greenbelts was helpful to counteract the heat. We had a good experience riding the bullet train (shinkansen) and had oversized luggage seats (which we probably didn't need since we only had a carry-on and backpack each). There were many last-minute questions that we asked of our local specialist (Angel), and she answered them all very quickly. I was happy to feel like we had some flexibility to alter our itinerary (during our tour days) on the recommendation of our guides, with the intent to avoid crowds or remain cool during the hot part of the day. Overall, each of our guides had excellent English and demonstrated very good local knowledge. We were able to answer most of the questions about Japan's history and some of its significant cultural aspects due to a thorough explanation from the guides prior. We remained in awe of the order and control of the society/country as a whole and remarked that we would return, as there were many areas that we didn't see. We were very happy with the KimKim experience and would use them again to build our itinerary on a future vacation.
Activity Reviews
Learning about Sumo and watching the family participate was amazing. The sumo wrestlers were excellent - gracious and humble. We enjoyed their personalities and the lunch was very good. Finding and arriving on time was a little stressful as this was our first experience in Japan, but we persevered and had a great time. Having someone in the family to cheer for was an important part of the event. Photos were priceless.
Learning about Ninja/Samurai history and getting a chance to feel and touch the weapons (take pictures with) was fun. The tea ceremony with kimono was amazing - so much history and culture wrapped up in that event. My family very much enjoyed the matcha tea, and we found we loved the mochi (especially the cinnamon flavor). The host was very good at explaining the ritual but also at ensuring the customs were understood (and practiced).
Walking around at night gave us a different view of Kyoto and we appreciated the local food and drink. Our guide (Nami) was very accommodating and friendly. We were supposed to have another couple join us, but they cancelled so this became a defacto private tour. The food difference between Tokyo and Kyoto were noticeable - our guide explained why. Great experience on our last day in Japan.