Kanagawa, Saitama, Tokyo (Living), Kamakura, Hakone, Yokohama
English
4 hours on average
Today
Hi, I am Toshi.
I love traveling! It gives me a chance to get to know how other people live, their culture, and discovering new places (usually off the beaten track). This is why as a guide, my goal is to give guests a real "local experience"--the kind that I like when I travel.
I've been a licensed tour guide since 2008. I've conducted tours for international guests from the USA, the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Kuwait, Mexico, Singapore, the Philippines, Italia and so on. In fact, I conducted 90 tours (one day tours and a-week long tours) in 2019.
I am a former fire officer. As such, I coordinated educational fire department visits, including those for foreign counterparts. I also speak a little Spanish (un poquito).
In my spare time, I give back to the community as a volunteer: tsunami clean-up activities, entertainment at evacuation camps, guide for foreign visitors in affected areas, and at various cultural events.
Let me show you "My Tokyo"! Enjoy the city like a local and maximize your time in Tokyo!
See you soon!
Multiple-day bookings are encouraged. I might have greater flexibility in opening closed slots in this case. Let's talk about it. Send me a message! :‑)
MORE INFO:
= We use public transportation (train, subway, bus and/or taxi) in my tours as it's the best way to see the city.
= Please book at least SIX HOURS PRIOR to a custom tour.5,000JPY/ hour
= The meet-up time marks the official start of the tour.
= Hotel pick-ups = only in Central Tokyo, Yokohama, and a few hotels in Kawasaki.
= Four-hour tours available = Tokyo, Harajuku & Shibuya, Odaiba, Shinjuku, Ueno, Yokohama, and antique flea market. Please check out the corresponding tour pages.
= HAKONE TOURS = Only available as an ADD-ON to a Tokyo tour (at least 4-hr Tokyo tour on a different day). 5,000JPY/hour
East Tokyo - with Toshi over a day and a half - was both a leap to traditional Shogun and Imperial Japan and a dive into contemporary culture. Hamarikyu Garden, the Imperial Palace Grounds, the National Museum, the shrines at Ueno Park were all wonderful. And just as interesting, albeit on a different level, were the Tsujiki fish market, the Asakusa area (and the waterbus ride there) and other more modern artsy spots throughout the area. Toshi navigated attractions and logistics masterfully and was a veritable source of background, history and fun facts. We loved it. Thank you Toshi!
Arigato, grazie, Dan! I'm delighted to hear you enjoyed our tour as much as I did. Three days were not enough to see Tokyo, though I tried to show you different sides of Japan, traditional, modern, cultural, art, and nature. One thing we didn’t cover was sport. So, next time I hope we can go and see sumo wrestling together. You're going to love it. Hope to see you again! Ciao!
We had a great time with Toshi, who led us on a very informative and fun tour of West Tokyo. We discussed Japanese history, contemporary culture and food. Only a few hours, and yet we feel we came close enough to savor the essence of the place and its people. Looking forward to another tour with Toshi soon! Dan
Grazie, Dan! Glad to hear you enjoyed our tour as much as I did. We had experienced both the traditional and modern sides of Tokyo. Meiji Shrine gave us a peaceful moment. And just a few minutes’ walk, TeamLab showed us state-of-the-art technology. Amazing, wasn’t it? We just saw the west part of Tokyo. There is more to see in Tokyo. Happy new year!
On our first time to Tokyo, we wanted an overview of the city, to hit the highlights and get acclimated to how to “do” Tokyo travel. Toshi delivered on all of that in a wonderful, friendly and fun way. With her excellent English, Toshi navigated us to the highlights of the city. You could tell we were working with a seasoned guide because she knew the tricks to get the best access, the secret views and ways to avoids the crowds, or navigate them smoothly when needed. She knew the best treats along the way and offered helpful insights about what we were seeing. I would absolutely seek to use Toshi as a guide in the future.
Thank you for your kind words, Rick and Clancy! It was great spending the day with you and your family. You're all so warm and friendly, I felt like a part of the family. Our tour was an excellent mix of the traditional and trendy parts of Tokyo. We could get a fantastic view of Tokyo Skytree, Tokyo Bay, and the Imperial Palace. I hope you could feel the lively atmosphere of Shibuya. Enjoy the rest of your stay! Hope you can come back soon. There's so much more to see and experience!
Toshi is the perfect guide for all foreign travellers; she is articulate, kind hearted and very helpful! Prior to our arrival she offered a selection of different itineraries and was very reactive to all of our enquiries. She was extremely knowledgeable and took the time to respond to our many questions about Kamakura, Tokyo, Japanese history, food, culture and beyond. We had an amazing day thanks to her expert guidance and we are so grateful to have met her ! Highly recommend !! Thank you so much Toshi and hope to see you again during our next visit to Japan !
Thank you, Lea! We're quite lucky indeed to have beautiful sunny weather in Kamakura. We soaked in the traditional Japanese atmosphere and caught a glimpse of Mt. Fuji and a Shinto Style wedding. Next time, let me show you Yokohama. It’s another suburb of Tokyo, but with totally different scenery, say classic and modern. Hope to see you again! And, happy new year 2023!