Japan Travel Agents

Malissa did a wonderful job working with us to put together a fantastic itinerary for our ten-day trip through Japan (Tokyo > Hakone > Kyoto > Osaka). During the planning phase, she provided numerous options based on interests and budget and was quick to respond to questions. The itinerary documentation was detailed and allowed us to focus on enjoying our experiences. We had friendly and knowledgeable guides: Jared was welcoming when we arrived rather jet lagged and helped get us situated,... read more

Malissa did a wonderful job working with us to put together a fantastic itinerary for our ten-day trip through Japan (Tokyo > Hakone > Kyoto > Osaka). During the planning phase, she provided numerous options based on interests and budget and was quick to respond to questions. The itinerary documentation was detailed and allowed us to focus on enjoying our experiences. We had friendly and knowledgeable guides: Jared was welcoming when we arrived rather jet lagged and helped get us situated, Harold took us on unique activities and Seiho gave us lots of ideas for our free time. We loved soaking in the onsen baths at Hakone Kowakien Ten-y and making sushi at Cooking Sun Osaka.

Activity Reviews

Tour of Hakone

Hakone

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tea Ceremony in Kyoto

Kyoto

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sushi-making Experience

Osaka

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Guided Tour of Kyoto

Kyoto

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rickshaw Ride in Arashiyama

Kyoto

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Odynovo Tours did a wonderful job planning and executing our trip to Japan. From the beginning, working with John to agree on a 2-week trip plan that was best for us, to Kalinda's travel coordination including obtaining transportation and tour tickets, it was all done very efficiently and with good and prompt communication.

Our individual tour guides as booked by Kalinda were all excellent and we learned a lot about the sites we visited with them. These guides were all very flexible and... read more

Odynovo Tours did a wonderful job planning and executing our trip to Japan. From the beginning, working with John to agree on a 2-week trip plan that was best for us, to Kalinda's travel coordination including obtaining transportation and tour tickets, it was all done very efficiently and with good and prompt communication.

Our individual tour guides as booked by Kalinda were all excellent and we learned a lot about the sites we visited with them. These guides were all very flexible and adjusted the tour visits to match our wishes and tastes. The group tours in Kyoto covered a lot of ground and were well explained.

The train stations were at times somewhat challenging to find our way around, but there was always someone to help us out very politely.

We would definitely book a trip through Odynovo again in the future.

Our specialist travel advisor Christine, started planning our trip from a blank slate…. we really didn't know what we wanted to do or see. We had limited days between other pre booked legs of our round the world trip, so a custom itinerary made more sense. We also wanted to travel independently rather than in a group. Christine made this all possible. She made several suggestions which together, we fine tuned, and within a couple of days of emails back and forth we had a firm plan.

The... read more

Our specialist travel advisor Christine, started planning our trip from a blank slate…. we really didn't know what we wanted to do or see. We had limited days between other pre booked legs of our round the world trip, so a custom itinerary made more sense. We also wanted to travel independently rather than in a group. Christine made this all possible. She made several suggestions which together, we fine tuned, and within a couple of days of emails back and forth we had a firm plan.

The plan included Tokyo, Kyoto and Harkone.

The plan included Japan Rail Pass for our major travel requirements, all hotel bookings, a greeter on arrival at the airport who set us up with pocket wifi, which was invaluable for finding our way in a new country, Our greeter further helped us on our way through the crush of the start of a major public holiday.

Christine made suggestions for what to see in each city and to finish off a wonderfull adventure, a driver to whisk us back to the airport on the day of our departure.

The Hotels Christine booked for us were each of high quality and close to our arrival point in each city, in most cases right at the train station which made traveling by train with luggage so easy.

In summary Kim Kim and Christine made our dream come true.

This trip was organized by my daughter with KimKim. I enjoyed the trip thoroughly and I sense the joy and opening up from my family members as well. The trip brought us to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo to experience the different aspects of Japan. The Osaka city life and food, the religious and cultural aspects, the hotspring and nature (flowers, parks, mountains), the complex efficient transport network, unforgettable crammed hotel rooms, the demeanor of Japanese, the theme parks and Japan... read more

This trip was organized by my daughter with KimKim. I enjoyed the trip thoroughly and I sense the joy and opening up from my family members as well. The trip brought us to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo to experience the different aspects of Japan. The Osaka city life and food, the religious and cultural aspects, the hotspring and nature (flowers, parks, mountains), the complex efficient transport network, unforgettable crammed hotel rooms, the demeanor of Japanese, the theme parks and Japan commercial products. There is also the interesting spring weather to experience in different locations from cold street weathers, gale in the mountain top, icy cold in Mount Fuji, beautiful sunset in a cherry blossom village Oshino Hakkai. The personal local guide and local transport driver add a touch of freedom and enjoy and experience Japan in a deeper manner. It seems to be costlier compared to the Japan trips made by others but the ability to experience so much in a 10 day trip make this a wonderful trip for me.

Not everything was perfect. Example, the driver came 30mins earlier than expected; the local guide detail was provided a little late than what we would be comfortable; an easier way to understand the complex Japan transport system which to be frank I doubt is very very hard. I like to think the imperfectness is what spices up also the trip in a different manner.

This is the second time I used KimKim for my family holiday. Kudos to them, I am glad to say that they have again done a nice trip for me and my family.

Our family of three generations (grandmother, 74, daughter & husband, and grandchildren, 18 & 14) all absolutely loved our first ever visit to Japan. Our first overall impressions were of the politeness and respect, the cleanliness (of streets/stations/trains/shops/hotels) and the efficiency and punctuality of the trains. Our guide, Suzuki san, on our first day in Tokyo, was so informative, interesting and friendly. He realised that on our first day a quiet walk along the river with... read more

Our family of three generations (grandmother, 74, daughter & husband, and grandchildren, 18 & 14) all absolutely loved our first ever visit to Japan. Our first overall impressions were of the politeness and respect, the cleanliness (of streets/stations/trains/shops/hotels) and the efficiency and punctuality of the trains. Our guide, Suzuki san, on our first day in Tokyo, was so informative, interesting and friendly. He realised that on our first day a quiet walk along the river with beautiful cherry blossoms was a good introduction - then we ventured to the shops, which the grandchildren especially loved. We all thought the Meiji Shrine was wonderful, and the Togo Shrine, where they were celebrating an anniversary, so there were monks chanting, and stalls outside. The next day another guide, Yoshiko, took us to Sensoji temple, which although impressive, with all the stalls, was extremely crowded. Earlier we visited the fish market at Tsukiji, which was fascinating. Moving on to Kyoto, which we loved, and June, our guide was really good and explained everything so clearly. The Golden Temple was one of the highlights, and we loved the Nishiki street market. We had a tea ceremony, which was impressive, and went through the bamboo forest in Arashiyama, which we all liked very much. We changed our planned itinerary the next day, as it involved many hours travelling to see cherry blossoms in Yoshino, and we all thought that would be too tiring, and we saw many, many beautiful cherry blossoms in and around Kyoto. We gave June the day off, and looked after ourselves in Kyoto.
On our way to Osaka we had a tour of the Suntory Whisky Distillery, which the adults enjoyed, particularly my son-in-law - the children weren't allowed on it, so had to wait outside. On to Osaka with June, who showed us the beautiful Castle Gardens. Thence to Hiroshima, and the wonderful Japanese garden, followed by the memorable and thought-provoking Peace Memorial Park. Our guide, Fumiko, was very interesting and sympathetic. Finally, our fabulous Onsen hotel in Hakone. It was wonderful to be in the countryside, out of the cities, and we all enjoyed our Onsen baths immensely. The six course Japanese dinner was delicious, and beautifully served. Then back to busy Tokyo! Our hotel was by the Shibuya Scramble - so we were in the thick of it! We found a karaoke bar, which for me was a novel experience and fun.

Hotel Review

The Gate Hotel Kyoto Takasegawa by Hulic

Kawaramachi-dori, Takoyakushi-ku, Kyoto-shi,

The hotel is so comfortable, and very well located. The staff are friendly, and polite. The breakfasts were so good! We really loved the lounge/bar/restaurant up on the top floor, with stunning views.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Arrival to Japan

Japan

We had very long queues, due to Covid checks and immigration, which was quite tiring, after a long flight, even though we had done all the QR codes on the Visit Japan Web. Our greeter met us successfully, but didn't seem to know about our driver, who was also waiting for us. Eventually, we rang him and met up. Our greeter sorted our our Suica cards. Our driver gave us a comfortable journey to our Pullman hotel.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Modern Tokyo Tour and cherry blossoms

Tokyo

I've already reviewed this earlier

Quality of Experience

Toyosu Fish/Tsukiji Market Food Tour

Tokyo

I've already reviewed this earlier

Quality of Experience

Explore Asakusa

Tokyo

Impressive, but very crowded

Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji) and Ryoanji

Kyoto

A beautiful, peaceful place

Nishiki Market

Kyoto

Really fun and interesting, with all the different foods on display, and eating/tasting available

Visit Kyoto's most famous temple- Fushimi Inari - Taisha

Kyoto

Very impressive, and a special place

One-day trip to Arashiyama, a true cherry blossom paradise!

Kyoto

A beautiful place, with lovely traditional houses, shops and restaurants

Traditional Tea Ceremony

Kyoto

We all enjoyed this very much, learning about the traditional rituals, and tasting the matcha tea.

Suntory Yamazaki Whiskey Distillery

Japan

A very interesting tour, and even if one didn't like whisky, the tasting was worth doing!

Sightseeing & Food Tour of Osaka

Osaka

The Castle Garden was beautiful, but very crowded. We didn't do the food tour.

Hiroshima & Miyajima Day!

Japan

The Shukkeien Garden was beautiful and peaceful and not too crowded, despite the cherry blossom season. We then visited the Castle briefly, which was quite a warrior-like building, reminiscent of the samurai. Then we went to the Peace Memorial Park, which was very special and thought-provoking. We didn't go to Miyajima as it was so crowded, with long queues, and it would have been very tiring. We were very happy with what we did see. Our guide, Fumiko, recommended a very good Okonomi-yaki restaurant for our supper.

Discover Hakone

Hakone

This was heavenly, being right in the countryside, in the hills, and experiencing the wonderful, relaxing Onsen baths. The hotel was amazing - the rooms were large. Our 6 course Japanese dinner was truly memorable. We didn't want to explore Hakone the next morning - as it was our last proper day, so it was relaxing to enjoy the hotel and garden, and then make our way back to Odawara to catch the train to Tokyo in our own time. It would have been tiring to check out/go to Odawara/do the tours/come back to the hotel to pick up our bags, then back to Odawara station, then to Tokyo.