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Joined 2017
Kuniaki S.
Available Areas
Yamagata (Living)
Languages
English
Response Time
2 hours on average
Availability Updated
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About Tour Guide Kuniaki S.
I've been involved in English education at public junior high school and prefectural board of education for more than 40 years as a teacher, teachers' consultant and a principal.Now retired, I’m very interested in introducing many places of historical interest and scenic beauty in my hometown to international visitors to Japan.My motto in life is ”once-in-a-lifetime encounter”. I'm more than happy to help make your trip the most impressive one.
Why don't you get off the beaten track and visit Shinjo and Mogami regions? Shinjo City is now world-famous for its Shinjo Festival, registered by UNESCO as an Intangible World Cultural Heritage, December in 2016. I’m sure that you can definitely enjoy both the festival and the subtle harmony between man and nature in this area.
Important
I'm available from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday through Saturday.
Transportation fee and lunch of you and a guide will be paid by the customer.
If you book me before making inquiries, please note that you may be requested to pay extra guide fee for hotel pickup (about 5,000 yen) depending on the location. So, please ask me first.
Tours
All tours can be customized for you. Send me a message with your requests!
Categories
Hands-on Exciting and Exploring Tour in Sakata (6.5 Hours)
This tour can give you chances to enjoy both Japanese traditional cultures and modern ones. We can visit a sembei rice cracker firm, rice storehouses, rice museum, Zen-sect Buddhist temple and a maiko teahouse. What makes this tour so special is that you can dive deep into ricce-related Sakata cultures, one of Japan's biggest rice production sites from long ago. You can't miss this amazing and unforgettable tour!
Hands-on Exciting and Exploring Tour in Sakata (6.5 Hours)
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Unforgettable Deep-Dive Sakata Tour (6.5 Hours)
On this tour we can dive deep into not only wonderful nature of Sakata, but its rich traditions and cultures as well. First we visit 16 Buddha statues carved into the cliff along the Sea of Japan. Second destination is the Former Aoyama Residence built by Aoyama Tomekichii about 100 yrs ago, who made a tremendous fortune as a fisherman. Third Somaro Teahouse, where we can enjoy maiko dance. Lastly 1,200-year-old Kaikoji Temple, which holds two awe-inspiring self-mummified priests from long ago.
Unforgettable Deep-Dive Sakata Tour (6.5 Hours)
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Exciting Experience Tour in Shinjo (EETS)
You can experience three exciting things in this tour. First, you can see Shinjo Festival float ( Intangible World Cultural Heritage), and play the "hayashi" music at the museum, wearing a "happy" coat. Second, you can enjoy a thrilling boatride down the Mogami River, like Matsuo Basho, a haiku poem master from about 400 years ago. Third, you can hike in "Genso-no-mori", Fantasy Forest.
Exciting Experience Tour in Shinjo (EETS)
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Hands-on "Snow Experience " Tour
This tour is focused on the three wintery activities in the snowbound area of Yamagata. First you can enjoy shoveling the 3-meter-deep snow and digging the stored vegetables (turnips) out of the snow. Second you'd like to cook them with the help of a local cuisine specialist and appreciate the traditional food on the spot. Third we take a breathtaking boatride down the Mogami River.
Hands-on "Snow Experience " Tour
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Spiritual Trekking Tour to Religious Mt Haguro ( 7 Hours )
This tour can give you chances to enjoy spiritual aspetcts of the Shonai region. What's so special about this is we trek to the top of Mt. Haguro (414 m), and appreciate a Buddhist cuisine there. We also visit a 700-year-old Zen temple, with a beautiful flower garden in it, where we can relish matcha. Lastly, we learn all about how Japanese delicious sake is brewed at one of the oldest sake breweries in Yamagata. You can get some as a souvenir. Be cafeful not to drink too much, though!
Spiritual Trekking Tour to Religious Mt Haguro ( 7 Hours )
Reviews
Julieta V.
“Wonderful Tour of Sakata”
Our guide Pure Water gave us an excellent experience around Sakata, taking us to multiple interesting sites including the Oranda Senbei Factory, Sankyo Rice Storehouses, Kaikouji Temple, and Somaro. He gave lots of interesting historical and cultural context while inviting us to interact and participate, treated us to a delicious lunch featuring iconic foods of the Shonai region, and secured front row seats for us to watch an incredible maiko dance and performance.
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Kuniaki S.
Thank you so much for writing a review for me while you are still enjoying a journey on the Diamond Princess. I'm genuinely glad that you all had the time of your life taking a full-day tour in Sakata area with me. Your family members are always amiable and considerate of each other throughout our trip, which did make a deep impression on me! I simly can't say thank you enough for choosing me as your private tour guide this time. When our paths cross again in the future, why don't we delve more deeply into the Shonai region and make another round of fantastic tour with me? I'm eagerly looking forward to seeing you all again. Have a lot of fun reading my translated folk tales. Safe travels back to the States! Kuniaki (AKA: Pure Water)
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Robert O.
“Great tour with Kuniaki S.”
We had a wonderful Sakata day visit with Kuniaki. After meeting at the port, we reviewed the itinerary and started our tour. The timetable was very well managed. We had sufficient time at each itinerary stop. Kuniaki shared interesting information at each location. He selected a terrific restaurant for lunch and we enjoyed exchanging personal background and travel experiences.
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Kuniaki S.
A huge thank you for writing a review for me. I'm genuinely happy that you both had the time of your life through our customized tour. From our conversation I learned that we are just about the same age and that we have a lot in common. I simply can't say thank you enough for choosing me as your private tour guide. While you have time, why don't you enjoy reading "Once Upon a Time in Shinjo", which my fellow English teachers including me translated. I'm sure you will have a fun time. Please treasure the rest of your fabulous tour. I do hope that our paths will cross again in the very near future. Safe travels! Kuniaki ( AKA: Pure Water)
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Daniele L.
“Fantastic Sakata tour”
Very punctual, he waited for us on the square where the ship docked. Mr. Kuniaki and his wife were very kind from the start, giving us a small souvenir that we really appreciated, then Mr. Kuniaki began the tour without his wife. We managed to do everything that was planned, the taxi drivers he booked for the transfers were part of the visit and were very funny. He also showed us non-tourist places that we really appreciated. Very competent in explaining the history of the places visited, excellent and local lunch he booked for us. In the little time we had he made sure that the visit to Sakata was special. If we would return to Sakata he told us he will be our guide again. Thanks Pure Water!!!
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Kuniaki S.
Hi, Daniele and Elena. Thank you so much for the amazing review, which I didn't expect this much. I highly appreciate your wonderful feedback on our tour. I'm more than happy indeed to have been able to show you around all the destinations you both take a special interest in. What made this one-day tour so special was a visit to the Sixteen Buddha Statues along the Sea of Japan! In the little rain, which added another extraordinary value to all the surrounding landscape, we savored every single moment of our stay there. I will never forget your smiling faces that by all means made both the Sakata locals and tourists very cheerful and comfortable! From now on I could embrace all the good memories shared with you anytime anywhere looking at the photos you kindly emailed me right after our journey. You should come back to Yamagata once again to simply delve into another unbeaten track of Mysterious Dreamland, Japan. I do hope that our paths will surely cross again in the VERY near future! Kuniaki / Pure Water
Other Popular Tour Guides in Yamagata
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Hiromi O.
I'm a National Licensed Guide Interpreter with over five years of experience, having guided more than 1,000 guests from around the world. Based in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, I offer tours that connect travelers with the rich nature, culture, and history of the region. Before becoming a guide, I worked at global investment banks in Tokyo, where I communicated daily in English with colleagues around the world. I later returned to my hometown to embrace a slower pace of life and reconnect with the natural beauty of this area. Yamagata is a wonderful destination for those who appreciate nature and rural charm. Tsuruoka and its surrounding area, nestled between the Sea of Japan and scenic mountain ranges, offer cultural experiences you won't find anywhere else. Highlights include visiting temples of Sokushinbutsu (self-mummified monks), climbing 2,446 stone steps to the summit of a sacred mountain, encountering the mystical world of jellyfish, enjoying a rich culinary heritage, exploring local crafts, and much more. I truly love my hometown and am passionate about helping visitors create unforgettable memories here. I look forward to meeting you and sharing the beauty and culture of Tsuruoka! <How to get Tsuruoka from Tokyo> By JR - Take the Joetsu Shinkansen from Tokyo to Niigata, then transfer to the Limited Express Inaho bound for Tsuruoka. The total journey takes about 4 hours from JR Tokyo Station. By bus - Overnight buses depart around 10 PM from Shinjuku and Shibuya in Tokyo, arriving in Tsuruoka around 6 AM. Please check the bus company’s website for details. By air - ANA operates direct flights between Haneda Airport and Shonai Airport approximately five times a day.
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Kenichi K.
I would be very glad to guide overseas tourists based on my various working experiences over 30 years in a general trading house, including overseas clients' guide in Japanese local cities, being aware of their interests and viewpoints learned through my engagement with various clients during my overseas assignments (10 years in total) and business trips to some 40 countries. During the past 10 years living in Akita City (northern Japan), I could greatly expand my outdoor activities such as trekking (not only green season but also winter snowshoe hiking), skiing, and experiencing various local traditional festivals, fireworks festival, hot spring lodges stay with local cuisines/Sake etc. I would very much like to share such joy with our valued overseas tourists!
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Mai H.
Hello. I'm Mai, a national licensed tour guide in Sendai. I can guide in Tohoku region around Sendai. Please check my tours and you can also ask me personalized tours if you want to go places like -Shiogama, Hiraizumi, Okama, Nikka whiskey factory, Jogisan. (I don’t cover Ginzan onsen, Zao snow monster and fox village, i recommend to hire a taxi to go those places) I think of myself as friendly, open minded and considerate. I love talking so I’m happy to discuss any topics about japan or this region. I want to help travelers discover attractiveness of this region and make their trip memorable! I love traveling so I have visited many countries and I lived in India. learning ideas and cultures of people from various countries have helped me to understand Japan deeply. And I'm happy to share my knowledge and personal experiences with my guest. I look forward to meeting you and hope we have enjoyable time together!!
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