Splendours of Japan

First off I want to say our tour guide was very good, but I expected a cultural experience, instead we spent more time being dropped off in tourist areas to shop for souvenirs. We drove by museums, but never went in. Same with temples. The itinerary for Tokyo includes the Senso Ji Buddhist temple, we were only dropped off outside the temple to shop? We could have gone inside for an extra fee. It would have been nice to see the Bamboo Forest in Kyoto instead we spent two hours at a food market. I enjoyed the meals, Hiroshima Memorial Museum, the 100 step gardens. I advise potential tourists not to go in Summer months, it was extremely hot, and most of the tour is outdoors.

The Splendors of Japan tour offers a beautiful and widely scoped experience starting from the busy, metropolis that is Tokyo, right down to the wonderful introspective serenity that can be found in smaller spaces like Japan's Kotohira area. This is contrasted further by somber and sobering moments in places like Hiroshima, while time spent in Mt. Fuji helps us reflect on the brightest things in life. Japan and this tour is truly a unique introductory experience to the country that ensures we'll return there one day to enjoy even more that this unique place offers its visitors.

The itinerary was thoughtful and well curated for a first time visitor to Japan. However, it was disappointing that the road trips were often through different busses and drivers, and therefore familiarity and consistency was lost; in fact we never has the same bus/driver for more than three days at the outside and often two!

Mike the tour guide was Excelent! Always prepared, had lots of maps so we won’t get lost, good knowledge of Japan’s history and what to see on our itinerary. Many of our fellow visitors had issues and was very accommodating. Only one hotel was substandard. On Sept 11 we stayed at the Aqua Hiroshima Center. The bathroom had mold, the carpet needed cleaning.

Very busy itinerary but the only way to see it all. Fabulous tour guide .

Everything was good. The tour director he was excellent. is one leader of the give us as much information that we need. The only thing that I am disappointed that in Hiroshima We didn’t spent enough time in the historic site so I can get better information I know that you said, and emotional visited the museum. for the future tours, I recommend the whole day to spend in the historic site. and also visit technological sites.

Need more time for souvenir shopping. Our tour guide was against giving us time to shop for souvenirs. Some meals that were included., did not include a drink. For the outrageous price we paid, a drink should have been included.

*Excellent tour director-personable, knowledgeable and helpful *Great itinerary-Liked the hands-on activities and the places we visited

I ithink the itinerary is very good. Mostly it is excellent but sometimes you dont have enough time to explore the place. In tokyo you dont explore really much but thats okay. You can arrive like us 4 days Prior to the tour and visit on your own. Problem was in kanazawa when we were in the geisha district with the golden leaf ice cream. We went to the golden leaf experience and then to the shop. When you finish its already time to go to the bus so you cant look properly around the district and get some ice cream with golden leaf. In the afternoon there was some freetime so we went there but it is like 25 minutes by walk and thats too much. We did it but we have good physical condition. I can imagine that if someone is tired or cant walk Longer distances it can be problem. Like you dont need to go to the golden leaf experience but thats part of the whole experience. I think it would be great if there was around 30 minutes more time so after the experience and the shop you have enough time to walk around and get some ice cream. Overall great tour with great guide. I can fully recommend

This is an active tour with a lot of walking. We counted 10000 to 14000 steps per day. There was however free time in the afternoons to explore each city. The trains are comfortable and efficient and the tour allows you to see the best Japan has to offer.

Far too many shrines and temples. Accomodations were just okay. Tour guide was nice and we saw a lot of amazing sites.

Itinerary was comprehensive , well planned and very interesting. The pace was good with little time for boredom to set in. My suggestion going forward is to include a show (Geisha) or an evening wearing traditional kimono's and watching a live show. It would have added to the authenticity of the Japanese experience. The overnight stay at a traditional Japanese ryokan, wearing a Yukatai and experiencing the Onsen was great and an exclusively Japanese experience. Travellers want to imbibe the culture, cuisine and the character of the country they are visiting.

Went to many places, saw many things, had great times with fellow travelers, a great time, but a bit rushed.

Great trip, hotels Wish we can stay at Osaka one more day

Packed days excellent tour guide very knowledgeable. Great experiences.,

Looking back… it had been a month since our return…. the trip had been the best trip we had thus far…. Japan as a country is beyond what words can describe…. People are extremely polite, generous and honest! (It confuses all Americans for sure…. And hard to get used to it…) Places we visited were accommodating, comfortable and exciting! The kids and us had a ton of fun and excitement…. Lots of history, shrines and Tori Gates… Hotels were nice…. The tour guide, AKO! Was fantastic… Energetic, entertaining and caring… she made all the difference…. We had other tour guides in the past… this one is hard to forget… for sure. My kids still remember some of her common phrases…. She used on the trip… and repeat them with smiles on their faces… (O’.. So Well…!) The schedule was great! It’s hard to make a schedule that fits everyone’s taste… as sometimes we wished for slower days… and faster days on others… Walking was decent… specially the weather was on our side! Kids had no trouble… and for us, we didn’t ache… All in All… Extremely Happy!

The itinerary was just right. The sights the food and the uotels were perfect. our guide was amazing. I would definitely tell a friend.

Great trip to 5 cities. I had never been across the Pacific before. I enjoyed experiencing the culture and friendliness of the Japanese people. I could have spent more time at the Peace Memorial in Hiroshima. I had this same feeling on another Trafalgar trip at the Viking Museum in Oslo. The food was good too, especially the Japanese pizza on the final night. We were a congenial group of 21 travelers, 19 Americans and a couple from Australia. I myself met a friend who lives just outside Niigata, who took a 2 hour bullet train to stay at our first hotel, the New Otani in Tokyo., with a beautiful Japanese garden with a waterfall and a great view of Skytree from my 23rd floor room. going up Skytree was a great experience. I'm glad I made the trip.

More time in Hiroshima Advance notice that our luggage would not be at every hotel. Tour director was very knowledgeable and helpful. Should have organized email addresses of this on the tour

The trip was fantastic!!!

A great itinerary as there were lots of interactive activities such as paper making, sushi making and tea ceremony. There was also a lot of site seeing and we covered a good part of the country. The food was excellent, the included dinners were good and not too rushed. Most accommodation was good but some hotel rooms were quite small. Out tour director, was exceptional with great knowledge and humour.

It is a busy itinerary that keeps you on your toes. There are two long bus days. The hotels were of a high standard, some better than others. Included meals were good, with the exception of the "special" lunch in Kyoto which was almost universally poorly received by the group. The meal consisted of small portions of gourmet fish dishes, but it lacked popular appeal. The meet and transfer at Haneda was handled wonderfully.