Amazing trip to Japan with Kimkim
Japan | Jun 18 - Jun 28, 2026

Laura
Laura H.
Newark, NJ | Reviewed on Jul 03, 2026

We had an amazing trip to Japan, and I want to extend a heartfelt thank‑you to the Japan travel experts who helped plan and support our journey. Mina, Nicole, and Carinta were all incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, and responsive. Their guidance before and during the trip made everything seamless. We loved the suggested itinerary, and every hotel we stayed in was wonderful—each with its own charm and perfectly located for exploring the cities and towns on our route.

The small details arranged in advance, such as providing a pocket Wi‑Fi and pre‑purchasing most of our train tickets, made a huge difference in keeping our travels smooth and stress‑free.

We visited Tokyo, Kyoto, Kanazawa, and the Nagano region, and had a local guide in each location: David in Tokyo, Marcelo in Kyoto, Iris in Kanazawa, and Motoo in Nagano. All of them were fantastic—personable, insightful, and skilled at showing us incredible places we never would have found on our own. We also appreciated having time to explore independently with suggested itineraries, which gave us the perfect balance of guided and private experiences.

Some of the highlights of our trip included the Meiji palace (Tokyo), Tenryu-Ji and Kinkaku-ji (Kyoto), Kanazawa castle and Kenroku-en gardens (Kanazawa), and the Mausoleum of Fuku Obuse and Hokusai museum (Nagano).

Thanks to everyone on the team for making our trip such a wonderful and rewarding experience. This is the second trip we’ve planned through Kimkim, and both have been exceptional.

Hotel Reviews
The Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa
Kanazawa

Loved this place and the breakfast was amazing!

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Asakusa View Hotel Annex Rokku
Tokyo

Great location and a good place to start our trip to Japan. Wonderful breakfast at both locations!

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Local Private Guide Half Day Kyoto (4h)
Local Private Guide Half Day Kyoto (4h)
Kyoto

We really enjoyed spending the day with Marcelo.

Quality of Experience
Local Private Guide Full Day Tokyo (9h-17h)
Tokyo

We loved spending the day with David. He was a wonderful guide, very knowledgeable and friendly, and did a great job of showing us around Tokyo~

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
He guided us on how to get around on the Tokyo subway.
Pocket wifi 1 day to 1 month
Pocket wifi 1 day to 1 month
Japan

Having the pocket wifi was invaluable.

Local Private Guide Full Day Nagano (9h-17h)
Nagano

We had such a wonderful day with Motoo exploring Nagano. He had some great ideas of places to go and having a car to explore the area with him was invaluable. Although the snow monkeys did not appear, we loved the hike, and the shrine and Hokusai museum were exquisite. He also had a great suggestion for a lunch place in Obuse that we enjoyed. Spending the day with Motoo was the perfect way to end our trip. Motoo went out of the way to help me find a yukata to take home to my father too. I was so appreciative of his caring about this.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local specialist: Mina Helland