Nara 8hr Private Tour - Kyoto DEP. with Licensed Guide

Experience a full-day private tour of Nara with a government-licensed guide from Osaka/Kyoto. Explore the ancient city’s traditional and modern sides in this customizable tour!

Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Todai-ji Temple - Todaiji (東大寺, Tōdaiji, “Great Eastern Temple”) is one of Japan’s most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The temple was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in 784 in order to lower the temple’s influence on government affairs.

Until recently, Todaiji’s main hall, the Daibutsuden (Big Buddha Hall), held the record as the world’s largest wooden building, despite the fact that the present reconstruction of 1692 is only two thirds of the original temple hall’s size. The massive building houses one of Japan’s largest bronze statues of Buddha (Daibutsu). The 15 meters tall, seated Buddha represents Vairocana and is flanked by two Bodhisattvas.

What's Included
  • Meet up with guide on foot within designated area of Kyoto
  • Licensed Local English Speaking Guide
  • Customizable Tour of your choice of 3-4 sites from ‘What to expect’ list
What's Not Included
  • Transportation fees, Entrance fees, Lunch, and Other personal expenses
  • Private Vehicle
  • You cannot combine multiple tour groups.
  • Guide Entry fees are only covered for sights listed under What to Expect.
Additional Information

Explore the charm of Nara with a certified multilingual guide who is well-experienced and government-approved. They will effectively guide you through a day-long walking tour of Nara, acquainting you with the modern and traditional aspects of this vibrant, historic Japanese city.

Nara sits near Kyoto and Osaka, and its rich heritage makes it an ideal place for a day trip from either city. The personalized assistance of your private guide will make your day-long exploration of this ancient city even more rewarding.

Begin your day at your hotel in Osaka or Kyoto. Tell us what you hope to see and do, and we’ll tailor the best Nara day tour for you!

Note1: Please choose your must-visit locations from the list provided in the tour information to create your own itinerary.
Note
2: The National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter qualification is granted by the Japanese government and necessitates a firm understanding and knowledge of Japanese culture and history.

  • This is a walking tour. Pick up is on foot.
Location
Todai-ji Temple
406-1 Zoushi-cho,
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(82 Ratings)
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Michaelmz6048ba
Aug 27, 2024
Ichi-ban! - What a wonderful tour! Junichi-san was friendly, extremely knowledgeable and an excellent guide. The deer were everywhere and so much fun. The temple grounds are vast, so a very good guide was perfect for my daughter and me. Take this your! You will not forget or regret doing so.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Thomaspj7333bi
Jul 7, 2024
Dream trip to Japan with Junichi-san - Me, my wife and our niece met Junichi-san at Kyoto station for our train ride to Nara and that is where the fun began. Junichi-san is very knowledgeable and answered all our questions that we asked throughout the day. We learned the difference between Shinto and Buddhism and how they came to be used politically by tyrants throughout Japanese history. We learned a lot about the origins of the Japanese people, language, customs and religions, very informative and we enjoyed it the whole time. Junichi-san is an active guide, so you better have your walking shoes on because there is a lot to see and he is more than ready to show it to you. The highlight for me was seeing a specific statue that I learned about 40 years ago in a Japanese art history class. It was a magnificent feeling of coming full circle to see in real life what was a much talked about slide projected on the wall all those years ago. A real treat! A dream come true. Thanks Junichi-san!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mereteb356
Jul 2, 2024
Kyoto 6 hour Private Tour - Kazuo: First time in Japan. Kazuo did a wonderful job and we learned a lot on the tour. He speaks fluent English and he is very polite.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
482belj
Jun 30, 2024
Visited Nara with Junichi San - Thank you Junichi san for giving my family of 3 a tour of Nara. It was nice to be on a tour with someone who is from Nara and really knows the history. We enjoyed his explanation and enthusiasm. He took us to areas where it was not crowded...and there were areas which were very crowed! We were literally shoulder to shoulder with other tourists. He took us to local stops to taste delicious treats. Also, make sure you wear comfortable sneakers because you will do A LOT of walking. Easily 10+ miles. We asked a lot of questions about the culture and he was happy we were totally engaged. We found out Junichi san used to run in marathons. He is truly an active dude! You got to keep up. He does not want you to miss out on anything. The next time we go to Japan, we're looking him up. What an awesome day to tour with Junichi. 純一さん、本当にありがとう
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sandragg5456pc
Jun 26, 2024
Excellent Tour - Kazuo Sumi was a perfect guide. He was incredibly knowledgable and friendly. We got to choose what we wanted to see. He gave us lots of historical and cultural information and was more than happy to answer questions. He gave us a fantastic day traveling around Kyoto.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
263zeniac
Jun 20, 2024
Sumo wrestling - We had an amazing experience learning about Sumo culture. Kazuo was extremely knowledgeable and made the tour fun by telling many interesting and entertaining stories about the sumo culture and wrestlers.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Cynthia_c
Jun 11, 2024
Appreciate Yuka... - Appreciate Yuka personalized the trip to accomodate our desire to see Yakushiji Temple, even though it was in a less popular area of Nara. The East Pagoda was first built over 1,300 years ago, and is one of the several National Treasures in Japan. Yuka was very knowledgeable, explained the history and showed us the details of the architecture. We also enjoyed Horyuji Temple, Nara Park and Todaiji Temple. Todaiji Temple was overcrowd with a lot of the Japanese school children's school excursions. So less time to spend rto eally admire the Vairocana Buddha. But it was interesting to see all the children lining up and trying to crawl through the hole in the huge pillar to ensure academic success.
Review provided by Viator
Jeany_b
Jun 3, 2024
Trip to Nara - Seeing all the deer & enormous Buddha was fascinating. Our guide was very pleasant and informative! I would definitely recommend this day trip!
Review provided by Viator
Michael_p
May 30, 2024
Very organized, informative guide. - Mr. Ken Yokozuka was quite incredible the way he prepared everything for our one day visit to Nara. He organized the day to fit in the places we were interested in visiting and another most interesting places. At every stop, he explained all the historical background and related information. It was on a very tight schedule and without his help we could not have managed it. The morning at the Horyuji temple was the highlight of our five day trip in Japan. Clear blue sky, clean air, the oldest wooden building and the art works there. Thank you!
Review provided by Viator
Lovetravel1996
Jun 20, 2024
Great day at Nara - A full day with amazing temples, shrines and deer! Kazuo met with us at the train station and guided us to Nara. He kept a very thorough schedule that included the major highlights, with great knowledge of all the history. He always made sure we were hydrated and allowed us time to go shopping. The restaurant he chose for lunch was very reasonable and with good variety.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 10 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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