“A really fun and educational day with a great guide”

We had a really great day with Kanae in Kyoto! We made an early start and when we reached Fushimi Inari shrine with its famous torii gates it was relatively quiet (relatively!). We were able to explore a few less-known corners and paths with Kanae’s guidance. Then we went to the beautiful Tenryu-jo Temple, which is close to the bamboo forest. Don’t overlook the temple in a rush to see the forest! The temple and the grounds around it are stunning. Afterwards we went to Kinakuji Temple with the Golden Pavilion. Breathtaking! I loved the pavilion, but the gardens surrounding it are the real jewel. Kanae was great; a great guide but also patient and adaptable, and very good with my teenage daughter, who really enjoyed the whole experience. I would highly recommend her. On our second day with Kanae, we had a lovely time going to much quieter, less visited temples. Honen-in, is a serene temple at the foot of Mt. Zen. Early in the morning there was almost no-one there. From there we went to Renge-ji, near Mt. Hiei; beautiful gardens and serene verandas from which to view them, it would be nice to spend hours just sitting there. After Renge-ji we went to Ohara village and the Sanzen-in temple. The gardens are very extensive and there was rich autumn foliage everywhere. We had mochi from a stall on the way up and it was so good we had more on the way down! Delicious matcha tea served on the veranda was also delightful. After lunch we walked around the village to get a feel for the farm, houses and fields. It was a really nice day and Kanae was able to tell us lots about Japanese life, as well as being incredibly kind and attentive.

Kanae O.

(65 reviews)

Dear Ralph, thank you so much for your thoughtful and generous review. I was truly impressed by what a gentleman you were. You were always kind and considerate, not only to your daughter but also to me. I was also amazed by how much you already knew about Japanese culture, language, and history, which made our time together even more enjoyable. It was a real pleasure guiding you and your daughter, and I’m grateful to have shared those wonderful days with both of you! I hope I can guide you sometime again.

“History and wonder ”

We had an absolute amazing day exploring the sights of Kyoto with Kanae. Kanae was very flexible in that we were able to change the pick up time to later in the morning to accommodate our arrival from Nara, and we were able to change a couple of our shrines to one’s that were quieter to reduce the stress on our 2 autistic teens. Kanae was interesting, knowledgeable and friendly and we all enjoyed our day with her.

Kanae O.

(65 reviews)

Rose, thank you so much for your kind review! I truly enjoyed spending the day with your family in Kyoto. I’m so glad the flexible schedule and quieter spots worked well for everyone. Your family’s warm and positive energy made the day very special. I hope you brought back many nice memories of Kyoto!

“Hidden Gems ”

We had a wonderful tour day with Kanae: she brought us to some less visited temples and truly enchanted gardens. She is very knowledgeable and friendly - she knows Kyoto very well and enthusiastically shared that knowledge with us. She even gave us some great advice on various sites of interest to explore on the following days. She is a very good guide and we enjoyed our tour with her a lot! Dmitry,Lisa

Kanae O.

(65 reviews)

Thank you so much, Dmitry and Lisa! I’m delighted to hear you enjoyed the tour and the gardens and temples we visited. I was also really impressed by both of your deep insight into Japanese culture and history, as well as your great fitness. It was an absolute pleasure guiding you both!