Review

The locations and sites featured were interesting and allowed me to learn about the Japanese history, culture, and religion(s).

I am fully satisfied with all of the lodging, from the Buddhist monastery to the Shinagawa Prince hotel. The variety worked for me. I was especially delighted with the lodging that included onsen baths. I LOVED the baths, beginning in Hakone. Wonderful experience!

All of the food was great. I liked trying regional specialties as well as familiar dishes like sushi. In particular I give high marks to the two lunch places Ken selected in Kyoto. Both were fabulous! Among my favorite meals. The final dinner was not great, although the company was.

Most of the guides were fantastic: Kay (in Koya-San); Tammy; JJ; the guide in Hiroshima (can\'t recall her name); Ken in Kyoto were all amazing!! Hiro, the guide to the fish market, was not very good. Part of the problem is that the fish market does not allow tour groups to stop for commentary inside the market, so he didn\'t do much guiding other than getting us from point to point. I don\'t think I learned much that morning. Toshi, also in Tokyo, was good, not great. It was the beginning of the trip, and he was very anxious about our schedule and the timeliness of the group. He relaxed a bit in Hakone, and he did a great job of finding alternative things for us to do in Hakone when the weather washed out all of the planned activities. So my \"4\" rather than \"5\" is because of the mix of good and great guides.

The pre-tour itinerary was great. I referred to it regularly. Thank you! The Handbook, on the other hand, was seriously out of date. It really needs a rewrite. For example, every place has wifi, so no need to rent wifi transmitters. Just about everywhere we went takes credit cards, so the need for cash is reduced. I would also be more specific about what you recommend for the size of the \"overnight bag.\" I was SO grateful that I decided to use a backpack, and I felt sorry for some of our tour members who were heaving larger bags around just for overnight. That said, I took to heart your recommendations for packing and packing light. I was very happy with the amount of clothing I brought, and the availability of laundry facilities at some of the hotels along the way was very welcome.

I liked the itinerary, and everything went smoothly except the optional day in Naoshima, when we were in Kurashiki. The advance information about that add-on tour day implied that we would all be on our own, with your directions, figuring out how to get to and from the island, so I figured I\'d do it on my own. I had no idea (and you didn\'t tell us ahead of time) that one needs to reserve timed tickets at the museums in advance. You also didn\'t tell us that we would have a guide with us, which made a difference. Finally, the advance fee was $50, but then there was the added cost of 6,000 yen for the transportation, tickets, etc. All very confusing. Logistics aside, Naoshima was great! I think it should be a regular stop on the itinerary, rather than an option, and maybe you choose to stay at the town where the ferry leaves for the island? Or if you want to keep Naoshima optional, make the cost of the day trip all inclusive and explain what is included. NOTHING was clear on this one, and Naoshima was one of the places I really wanted to go. Because of limited tickets, I only got to go to one of two museums, which was disappointing, although I was able to go to the amazing Art Lab installation. All in all, I LOVED Naoshima. Rethink how to offer it to encourage others to go! I also think that Nara should be included rather than an option. That Buddhist temple is spectacular, and it\'s not that far from Kyoto, so people can do to Nara and still have a half day in Kyoto, if they want more time in Kyoto. I don\'t think the fish market day was worth it. The lunch was delicious, but all we did was walk through the market. I learned nothing about the market or why it\'s a tourist site. I heard that in the past tours there were more dynamic, but over-tourism has affected access. Maybe instead of the fish market, make the morning tour a trip to the Meiji Shrine?? I saw this with the guide we hired, Charlie, ahead of time, and it\'s a pretty amazing place. I think you could do it in a half day and still make the train to Hakone.

I very much enjoyed traveling on Japanese public transportation. It was a great way to be immersed in the culture, and it\'s environmentally responsible. That said, I\'m grateful that we had guides directing us to the various subways, trains, funiculars, and buses. The train system is complex!