Kanazawa Local Night Out: 1 Izakaya & 1 Local Bar

I agree 100% with what Adam B wrote in August 2026. I thought we would walk around the area and learn about its history but the guide took us immediately to an expensive izakaya and then to another. He was helpful and pleasant but had pretty much zero information to impart. It was a nice evening because the group were interesting and friendly but we didn't need the tour guide

Our guide Yuji was, first of all, Japanese. We’ve been disappointed with some other tours in Japan, which have been led by expats. Second, Yuji was observant and responsive, watching for participant questions and needs. Thirds, the restaurants he included and their food and drinks were nice, and the food was not included in the tour price, which is actually better. The tour is less expensive and you can choose to eat and drink only what and how much you want. The description mentions izakayas, and I don’t think we actually went to an izakaya, but I am certain that if we did, it would have been too loud for our group to hear Yuji explain the dishes and drinks, and perhaps an izakaya’s really dynamic drinking environment would have been uncomfortable for the families participating.

Very nice guidet tour with lots of history. Our guide Momo had a lot of insights about the history of both geisha, samurai and Kanazawa city

Momo was great and really professional

My experience was amazing and I loved the people and the tour as I learnt a lot about the history and culture!

Yuji and Momo were fantastic! Would highly recommend

We had really fun with Aiko and Yuji. It was a fantastic experience to learn more about japanese culture and about traditional districts. I highly recommend this tour!

Aiko and Yuji were super nice and provided a good insight in japanese culture with their different backgrounds.

We had our tour with the lovely Aiko and Yuji and enjoyed it a lot. They gave us a lot of authentic information and led us through the local izakayas. It was an incredible evening with a lot of laughter and great drinks and foods. Highly recommend!

Momo was a very kind and thorough guide and we were able to see a lot of the city at night compared to the day when it is crowded. The geisha distract was especially beautiful at night.

Yuji took us on an amazing tour. So friendly and helped with ordering. And taught some local Japanese lingo as well.

Nice introduction to Kanazawa. Momo was very nice and personable. We walked around the geisha district which was fascinating and stopped at a couple of places that were very interesting. We had a slight miscommunication about the starting point so probably a good idea to get hold of the tour company and double check before you go but it got resolved.

First of all the guide was very nice and patient. The issue was that the activity had nothing to do with that description of the tour in the website. Supposedly we were to wander between Izakyas through the small streets of Kanazawa, get to see hidden pearls of the city and hear stories about it. What happened in reality is that after two minutes walk we ended up in a fancy Izakya and the guide told us to actually have dinner. He was very helpful in selecting the dishes, but no real story about the culture or Kanazawa came out. We tried our best to get information out of him, and in his favor, I can say that he answered all our questions patiently. Nevertheless, it was obvious that he has never read the description that we read of the guided night tour. After we finished dinner, we walked 5 minutes to a second Izakya where we were supposed to drink something. In order to save the tour, we asked to skip that one and to wander through the streets and hear some interesting stories about Kanazawa or see interesting places. To no avail. We rambled aimlessly through the streets. To make the best of it, we kept asking questions about japanese day-to-day life, and I must acknowledge that the guide did his best to answer all our questions with generosity and patience. Bottom line, although the guide was a very nice person, the experience was not what we paid for. We bought a night tour of Kanazawa and we got a “Get to know a local person over dinner”.

Our guide Aiko, was really good and we enjoy a lot our tour, we learn a lot of thing about the history of Japan and about Kanazawa. It was really beautiful and our guide was really funny and interesting

Very good. Very interesting.

Not worth the money considering no food or drink is included. We knew this going in but expected more from the evening. We walked down two streets, went to one place that served yakitori without many other options and then one place for a drink afterwards. It would have been more enjoyable if we wandered on our own. Really not sure what we paid for in this tour. It would be better if there was more than one stop for food, or with more options/things to try.

Nice introduction to Kanazawa. We enjoyed the friendly guide, Momo, and the historical and cultural aspects she gave us.

Yugi was an excellent guide. I was alone on the tour, but he entertained me and answered all my questions with local tips. The food was great and we went to a very cute hidden bar.

I had a really enjoyable evening with Momo guiding us around Kanazawa, finding beautiful secret spots and having delicious food and drink. It was lovely to meet people from all over the world and learn about local culture

Momo was a fabulous and welcoming host who made the experience special and comfortable and fun!

The Aiko was SUGOI!! She was so knowledgeable and friendly and made the entire super fun. We loved listening to her stories of traveling around the world

Great experience with Aiko! Very friendly and welcoming taking us round the geisha area, for food and ending up at a lovely bar.

Great trip Momo was fantastic and helped with ordering, sharing knowledge and experiences.

Aiko was great. She made one of our nights in Kanazawa amazing!

Aiko was amazing. She was very knowledgeable about the area but also knew about other part of the world as well through her travels. Made for very interesting conversations with the other couple on the tour. Very humerous and upbeat. Knew alot of interesting facys about the city. Really made the night memorable. Even after a long day in Shirakawa-go she made the night fun. Would absolutely love to have another tour with her another time if we come back to Kanazawa.

Great evening with great company. Good was wonderful.

A nice evening walk with a local guide, Yuji, to try some yakitori and enjoy drinks. Our guide was very enthusiastic and gave plenty of information on food, history, culture. Would recommend!

I was a solo traveler added to an extended family group of 11. I had a great time getting to know my fellow travelers and our nice guide Yugi. The bar in particular was steeped in history in a beautiful part of town over 300 years old. Its was a great and relaxing retreat. The company was incredibly helpful in helping me fix an early snafu and I am so glad I could make the tour.

Very fun food, good experience. Tour guide (Yuji) was nice, knowledgeable about the area and history of Kanazawa.

Great experience with Aiko and Juyi on Sunday May 24th. Passionate about educating us about the culture and the food. Great time in private bar.

This was a cool experience but your enjoyment is largely dependent on how fun the group is. Also you have to pay for a lot of stuff on top of the tour. I wouldn’t exactly describe it as a tour either you go to one restaurant and one bar. Both of which were nice but I could’ve easily discovered them on my own.

Yuji was a great guide! We went to a great restaurant for food and to one of the coolest bars i have been on my trip! Highly recommend for a nice evening out! Also had a nice chance to take a photo in the geisha district

Phenomenal tour! Aiko took us to a restaurant and bar. She was very informative, engaging and kind! Her passion for Japanese culture and Kanazawa in general was quite evident! I highly recommend the experience! Definitely ask for Aiko

Good tour. Aiko was very friendly and knowledgeable. The food and drinks were delicious. Learned a lot about local culture

Loved the tour, Aiko was great! The tour included two local stops - one restaurant and one bar. Aiko assisted with translations and dining recommendations, all of which were fantastic. Highly recommend!!

Excellent experience. Small group with three + guide. Show places where I never would be going alone

The guide is good however the value for money is not there. He didn't know English well and communicated via AI generated slides, effort was definitely there however for the money when no drinks or food are included, and he only shared some basic facts you can get doing some research and made a single reservation, I wouldn't recommend this. Also doesn't say it online but the guide mentioned the guest need to pay for the guides food and drink. He didn't have any on our tour, but worth highlighting

Good tour walking through Kanazawa, great food and we happened upon geisha festival. Tour guide was engaging and brought us to a wonderful jazz bar to finish the night

The tour guides were likeable and spoke clear English however the “tour” only included being walked to a restaurant for dinner where the tour guides sat at the table and then to a bar where they once again sat with us. There was minimal description of the surrounding area, culture or history. Not at all like the description. Really disappointing.

Yuji and Daniel were great. They had a great knowledge of the area and showed us how the isakaya work and operate. Lovely food and beer and sake

Great tour, guides (Daniel and Yuji) were friendly and knowledgeable!

Good food in the first Izakaya and the second bar was a very special place. Aiko was very fun, friendly and gave us lots of great insights and info aboute the city.

Aiko was a fantastic guide ! Great tour with good and kawaii cocktails

Such a fun tour with Aiko and Yuji. We had some amazing food and lots of great sake. We also visited a beautiful bar in a historic wooden house. Highly recommend!

Good time with Aoki and Yugi. Fun times and good food. Good sake and beautiful views in Kanazawa.

It was a nice night and met some lovely people. If new to Japan a good way of being introduced to some of their culture.

This was a fun night out. It was raining and there were only two of us but our guide Yuji was great. He shared his knowledge about the areas we passed thru, its history, etc. We enjoyed his food recommendations and we ended the night at a jazz bar where we had so many laughs with him and the bartending staff. Highly recommend.

Fun time. Went to some great spots never would have found otherwise. Our guide Yuji was fun friendly and informative.

I had a great time on this tour with Yuji. Yuji met us and took us to this amazing izakaya where we had a nice meal then walked us through the Geisha district to this really cool bar. It was a great experience and I would definitely recommend this tour.