You will be SENT a bowl, a tea spoon, a tea whisk and Macha Tea for each person booked.
On the tour day, you log on to ZOOM, the Guide will provide a 15-min intro
The camera will be set as the Tea Master prepares the Tea, and you will follow along, watch the ceremony and use your items
The high-quality Tea you will be using is the same Tea as you would have gotten at the actual ceremony
You will then participate in drinking your Tea the proper way
Check out what we are going to do.
Feel free to personalize this offer.
Asia/Tokyo (UTC +9hs)
You will be SENT a bowl, a tea spoon, a tea whisk and Macha Tea for each person booked and that will arrive at your home days before the ceremony begins. These items will be packed nicely in a furoshiki, (large Japanese bandana). These items are for you to keep, as keepsakes of your experience. We want the bowl to match you as close as we can get, so we will ask a few questions about you and each guest that will participate. Each persons’ bowl may or may not be similar.
Once the day has come, and you have logged on, the Guide will introduce himself and provide a 15-minute spiel of what you can expect during the Tea Ceremony.
We will then have the camera set up for you to watch as the Tea Master prepares the Tea, and you will follow along, watch the ceremony and use your items that you received from Japan during the ceremony.
Though there are things you cannot do the same as the Tea Master, like making the hot water the same, as for the other aspects of the ceremony, you will be able to follow along and ‘feel’ the atmosphere of the ceremony. The Tea you will be using is the same Tea as you would have gotten at the actual ceremony. It will be a high-quality blend.
After making your own Tea as instructed, you will then participate in drinking your Tea the proper way and conclude the ceremony. This should take around thirty (30) minutes after the ceremony starts.
As you will be sent the items from Japan for the ceremony, you can set up your items and be comfortable in your home during the ceremony. As we recommend a quiet room as the Tea Ceremony will be quiet outside of the Guide explaining to you what to do.
There will be a layout guide for you to set up the site items in your own home. Any kitchen or coffee table will do. Please be comfortable.
As you will not be able to create the hot water the same as the Tea Master, we recommend you ensure hot water is ready to go before you log on.
The Guide will give you no more than a 15-minute explanation about what to expect before the ceremony begins and will introduce you to your Tea Master.
You will then watch the Master prepare the Tea on this end in Japan, experiencing the sounds and movements of the Tea Master during the Tea preparation time.
As you will have the exact same Tea that will be prepared in the ceremony, the Guide will explain how much to use and how to, 'whisk', the Tea to gain the proper froth and taste.
You will also have time to ask the Master any questions.
One (01) Japanese Tea Bowl (Chawan) per person (to keep)
One (01) Japanese Tea Spoon (Chashaku) per person (to keep)
One (01) Japanese Tea Whisk (Chasen) per person (to keep)
Mail costs to send these items to your home or office address
45-minute Guide/Translator Costs
30-minute Tea Master Costs
n/a
Quiet room is important with no-one to disturb you for about 45 minutes to an hour
One of the best guides that I have ever worked with! Great with people, great with service and most eager to provide information to his client! Thank you once again for working together! :)
Thank you Steven. You are kind and very easy to work with. I hope everyone enjoyed their tea and gained a little bit of knowledge about the Samurai Tea Ceremony. If there's anything I can do for you in the future, please let me know. Kind regards, Richard
Since pandemic, our team is unable to travel for our yearly company retreat. Hence my management decided to plan for online zoom team activities instead. I was recommended to search on 'Go With Guide' for a LIVE virtual tour that our team can still 'travel'. It really sounds a great idea and interesting to me. I searched a few on Japan but Richard really caught my attention for his tour service in Kyoto. Firstly, he is from the States hence there is no language barrier with us. He has spent many years in Japan and he can speak fluent Japanese as we are hoping he can interact with the locals during the live zoom. He was on time and got the zoom connection ready before the stipulated time. He was wearing a kimono under such hot weather and we really admire his dedication to his job. He first brought us to 'walk' around Fushimi Inari Shrine and later to Kiyomizudera Temple. During the journey from Fushimi Inari to Kiyomizudera, he explained to us about some history. It was a pleasant car ride together with his family. We ended the 2 hours trip at Kiyomizudera Temple. We really enjoyed the whole virtual tour by RIchard and will definitely recommend his virtual tour service to our networks. My CEO is so pleased with the tour that he tipped double for his service! Well done Richard! Hope to see you soon for other Kyoto trip!
Wow! Just wow! Thank you so much! I am so happy that you guys had fun with me in the two hours we were together. Loved your questions during the tour, also, everyone seemed excited and hopefully, we can do it again. I do apologize for so many places being closed because of the Emergency Declaration.... but as you see, I find a way to ensure us to have fun. Yes, yes, thank you for the over-the-top tip!!! Totally unexpected and my wife and daughter have already used a portion since they were my driver and chauffeur..... lol. I take care of Nara and Osaka also and in the future can set up Tea Ceremonies and other interactions for you and your team. Please be safe and let me know how I can help you guys in the future. No need for such HUGE tip in the future since I know you love me now...... LOL!!!!! Kind regards, Richard
Richard was a fantastic guide. He gave the perfect blend of history, culture, past, modern, food, and drink. Richard is very knowledgeable about the local history and culture. He knows everybody everywhere we went and made sure we were well taken care of. We saw everything from castles to museums to temples and had lots of local food and drinks. Richard was much more than I could have hoped for. When I’m back in town I will definitely use his services again. I can’t recommend him high enough!
Marcos. I want to thank both you and Larry for coming on the tour even though we were in the middle of this Covid stuff. I hope you always remember shooting the air guns and feeling like a kid again ha ha ha ha I'm glad you got to meet some local folks and made some great memories. I will be waiting for you guys in the future. Kind regards Richard
For our recent corporate team activity we did Richards virtual traditional Japanese tea ceremony experience. Our team is split across Australia, Japan and Singapore.. Richard did a phenomenal job of making our virtual experience unique that for the 1 hour we were with him it felt like we were all together in the heart of Osaka in this beautiful tea shop! Richard went the extra mile and had all the tea ceremony items shipped to us in advance and we were able to learn how to pour our own tea the traditional Japanese way and all from the comfort of our homes. 100% would recommend, Richard is a great communicator and a pleasure to work with.
Melissa, I cannot express how happy that makes me feel. In the times that we are in right now, to be able to take any aspect of Japanese culture and be able to communicate it and share it like we did, and make it not only enjoyable, but memorable, it's something that I strive for. Thank you for all of your questions and interests in Japanese culture and if there is anything I can do for you, please do not hesitate to put me to the test. Kind regards, Richard