Japan and South Korea Tours and Trips

The Simply Japan tour is excellent for introducing visitors to the geography, history, and culture of Japan. I highly recommend it. I rated the itinerary good, rather than excellent, as this trip felt like a "full on" trip to me rather than moderate, as advertised. There are many, many stairs involved in public transportation and in visiting shrines and temples. Also, luggage forwarding is an additional complexity. And there are crowds of people to maneuver through. We were fortunate to have a terrific tour leader, Henrik Roslef. I cannot imagine a better tour leader for this type of trip which relies heavily on public transportation. Henrik is well-organized, has great command of both English and Japanese, gives clear instructions, and goes above and beyond to ensure all visitors have a memorable holiday. If you've never been to Japan before and are still on the fence about going, just go! You'll love it, especially if Henrik is your tour leader.

We had a wonderful time on this tour. The hotels, including the Monsteray and Roykan, were excellent. Some of the breakfast dining rooms felt a little crowded, but it was still manageable. We also enjoyed travelling on around five bullet trains—such a great experience. The IC card provided, pre-loaded with 5,000 yen for train travel, was very useful. Our trip highlights included the snow monkeys, Kyoto, the Hida No Sato thatched-roof village, Hiroshima, and Miyajima—where the floating Torii gate was absolutely stunning. In Kyoto, we especially loved the bamboo forest and the beautiful zen garden that followed it and a river boat trip We also enjoyed as the impressive 10,000 Torii gates at Fushimi Inari. The itinerary was excellent. Yes, there were a few free days, but with a little planning they were fantastic. For example, during our free days in Tokyo we booked Shibuya Sky, Tokyo Skytree, and TeamLab, which made those days memorable. However, we did encounter some issues with the guide. Our first guide, Marika, was new and often seemed irritable. She dressed entirely in black and did not use a flag or marker, which made it difficult to keep track of her in busy stations. She was soft-spoken, and when asked to repeat information she sometimes appeared annoyed. She rarely waited for the whole group to gather before speaking, and when those who arrived moments later asked her to repeat instructions, she looked frustrated. On several occasions, she even raised her voice. This was particularly upsetting when directed toward an older couple in the group (aged 80 and 70). She seemed to lack patience if they couldn’t hear her, walked more slowly, or needed clearer explanations. At our introduction meeting she advised us that we shouldn't tip staff in restaurants etc but she continued to say that would be happy to accept a tip from us at end of our trip..... When Marika fell ill, she was replaced by Parisa, who was also new and not Japanese. Unfortunately, she too treated the older couple poorly and showed a lack of professionalism. Both guides seemed to forget that many of us are well-travelled and experienced. Instead of trusting us and engaging confidently, they tended to speak down to the group or act with unnecessary caution. We do feel grieved by our guides - initially we were meant to have someone called Antony/Antio. Given that we paid £5,500 each (including flights), we were very disappointed to end up with two inexperienced guides. After reading previous reviews praising “exceptional” guides, my husband and I felt let down and didn’t feel we received the value for money we expected. The tour is operated by 80 days Japan

Good tour in general. However, it is important to know that even if you book an English tour, it will likely be conducted in Spanish and English. We had two guides explaining the same thing in both languages. The English spoken but a couple of the guides was not very good. The hotels are excellent. The food included was also very good. The buses are good but I would like them to have a little bit more leg space. The total days of actual tour is less because the first and the last day there are no activities. In addition, the day before the end there is only one activity and a short bus ride to Osaka. We got to the hotel at 10:30 AM and that was it. Therefore the last two days you are basically on your own.

Europamundo Europamundo delivered an outstanding travel experience from start to finish. Their services were well-organized, reliable, and exceeded expectations. The staff were well-educated, knowledgeable, and consistently professional. What stood out most was their flexibility — they adjusted to our needs with ease and always made sure we were comfortable and informed. Overall, Europamundo provided exceptional quality and made our trip truly memorable. --- Feedback for the Trip Guides David David was truly exceptional. His kindness, the valuable information he shared, and his genuinely funny and uplifting spirit made the experience unforgettable. He created a comfortable atmosphere and added a special touch to every moment of the trip. Jesus Jesus went above and beyond. His support continued all the way until the end of my trip — even on his day off. This level of dedication and care shows how committed he is to ensuring guests feel supported at every step. I am genuinely grateful for his help. Martin Martin showed a remarkable act of kindness when he gave me and my wife his umbrella on a cold winter day. This simple gesture meant a lot to us and reflects his thoughtful character. We truly appreciated his care and consideration.

The entire Trip was much more than I had expected. The hotels were great and pj's?? in every room? Some with Onsens! The activities planned were really special. The sites we visited was like a tour book/calendar that came to life. I am so sorry I came home as I wanted to see more. Our tour manager was fantastic. He was a wealth of knowledge and very engaging. I would highly recommend this tour! and so far Collette has no disappointed me, this was my 6th trip with them.

Our recent tour of Japan was well organised and the itinerary gave my husband and I an excellent overview of Japanese history and its fascinating culture. As mentioned in the description of the trip, you do need to be reasonably fit, as there is a lot of walking and travelling by train between different accommodation carrying day bags involved (main suitcases are forwarded on for you). There were plenty of highlights included and we were also given some free time to explore independently, when Geoffrey, our Tour Leader, often offered the option of additional walking tours. Geoffrey is fluent in Japanese, which was very helpful, and he proved to be extremely knowledgeable and passionate about Japanese history and traditions. Thank you Geoffrey and also to our happy band of fellow travellers! We hope to return to experience more! Carol and Chris