Kyoto Gion Night Walk & Geisha District Guided Tour

This was such an amazing tour. Seeing Kyoto at night was so magical. Alex was our tour guide and he was very knowledgeable, helpful and funny. We recommend this tour for anyone visiting Kyoto.

Akiko was very informative and helpful.

Thankfully this wasnt a very expensive activity because we cut out half way through. We booked this under the guise of the heading, being gion night walk AND geisha district. We did one street which supposedly was where geishas go and thats it. The guide wasnt Japanese and think that he didnt know as much as he should have. Earlier that day we had done a tea ceremony and some things spoken about Japan in there were contradictory to what this US guide said and I was more inclined to believe traditional Japanese people about their own history. It also specified a 3 hour tour, but when first meeting, he said oh we will stop and you can go yourselves for dinner and either meet again or finish up. Very vague. I had been hoping for more of a tour through the old Gion parts of the neighborhood (where our tea ceremony was), but this was not the case, it was random shops pointed out. Hence we left after 1 hour. Glad we didnt spend too much on it.

A wonderful and informative tour that highlighted the geisha experience in wonderful detail. Our guide was excellent, very informative and respectful.

Alex our guide was very informative and gave a good in depth tour of the gion

Walking through the historic Gion district was a wonderful experience. Alex, our guide, took us through some of the most interesting streets, sharing historical insights along the way and entertaining us with some fun wordplay. Over the course of three hours, we had the chance to admire religious landmarks from different faiths, breathtaking viewpoints, and authentic historic areas that capture the spirit of Kyoto's ancient capital. Highly recommended!

The tour was fun and showed us a different side of Kyoto at night, in a good way. We learned a lot about Geisha/Geiko and Meiko and had a glimpse of a couple of Meiko and Geiko in Gion. Taku was funny and informative. We definitely recommend this tour.

Great tour of Gion district in Kyoto! Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. Highly recommend this night tour!

I had a fantastic experience with our tour guide Naoki. The small group setting made the tour feel personal and enjoyable. Naoki was absolutely excellent. He was extremely knowledgeable and a truly wonderful representative of Japan and its culture. He even pointed out great local places to eat near the end of our tour. His thoughtfulness and genuine hospitality really stood out. Highly recommend and will book another tour with Naoki when I return to Kyoto/Osaka.

Alex was wonderful. He was punctual, knowledgeable and personable. I ended up being his only person he had to tour so it was even better!

Alex was a fabulous guide. He was funny, knowledgeable, very eager to help with recommendations and taking pictures near sites. The Gion district is definitely wonderful to see at night time and I’d highly recommend going (although maybe not after a long day of walking already like we did)

Alex did an amazing job with this tour. Yes, it’s a tourist area and is dense with other tours so I was a bit apprehensive about a group tour. However, Alex’s approach to life here in Kyoto was refreshing. He’s a Japanese citizen, but has lived many places and so he answered for me a lot of questions about fitting in here, how people live their daily lives, and relationships. He did this all while pointing out facts about the sites we were seeing and answering historical questions. 5 stars

Went on a night tour of the gion area with Alex. Very informative and interesting. The real highlight of the tour was Alex! He was very full of energy and was very entertaining. He was able to give us perspectives of Japan and Kyoto that we otherwise would not have gotten. He also gave recommendations of activities and places to eat in the area.

Our tour guide Jasmine was very knowledgeable about the local culture. Her explanations were clear and the pace of the tour was good. Unfortunately no geishas were spotted on our tour but we were told it would be rare to see them on a Sunday. Group size was perfect and made it easier to navigate the busy streets. Tour finished in a restaurant alley which was ideal for the 8pm finish.

Kenzo was fabulous ! Really knew his stuff and was very pleasant . Would highly recommend this walk to anyone .

Joseph was a fantastic tour guide - very knowledgeable and informative. We learned about and saw so much of the historic area. We even saw some geishas at the end of the night. Highly recommend this tour!

We had an amazing evening exploring Gion with Alex. He made the district come alive with stories, history, and interest8ng explanations about geiko and maiko culture. He always made sure we were comfortable and had great vantage points for great pics! The group wasnt too big, so it felt like walking the city with a friend. Highly recommended for anyone wanting a deeper, more meaningful look at Kyoto at night.

Akiko was knowledgeable and covered a considerable amount of territory showing us many of the classic sites and photo ops. Her enthusiasm and love of sharing her culture was evident the whole tour. She finished the night with a small gift to remember the tour that was completely unexpected and much appreciated. We had a great time!

Took the tour with Jasmine and she was accommodating and helpful right from the start. We stopped at a variety of places where she contextualized location with it's history, and explained modern cultural usage and significance of the space. I'd recommend this tour if you want to learn a little bit of history but also experience the spaces at night! Jasmine has local food recs as well as what else to to around Kyoto!

Lovely. Mr Alex highly recommended for being ones guide.

Alex was a wonderful Guide that made this tour exceptional

Great night tour of the area. Alex was very good at speaking with all members of the tour, and accommodated multi lingual participants despite the English tour listing. Engaged each tourist individually with other recommendations in Kyoto.

Alex is a good and responsible tour guide. He is knowledgeable and told us a lot of history. He also took good care of everyone.

Akiko was an extremely knowledgeable and very friendly tour guide! She answered any and all questions with a smile! She gave out personalized information and spent one on one time with every group member! We loved Akiko!!

Akiko was very nice friendly and approachable! :) she knew a great deal, and was super kind and thoughtful. We got snacks, drinks and interesting todbits throughout the tour!!!

Pretty fun. Walk around and sightsee for a few hours while the guide explains things. Some of it is stuff you could probably just, but there’s a lot of good stuff you probably wouldn’t think to too. Worth $40.

Amazing, friendly guide, Mayami, with a lots of valuable information!!

What an amazing experience. Our guide Kenzo spoke perfect English, was so friendly and shared a plethorea of stories, history and information on the Gion district, Japanese and Geisha culture. The coffee and dessert break was definately needed and thoroughly enjoyed. It is 3 hours of walking, so be prepared. Would definately recommend.

A nice-paced walk through the historic district with Jasmine, who was enthusiastic about sharing a wealth of information on the area and both present and historic culture It is a fair bit of walking including stairs, but is absolutely worth it for night views of the pagoda and historic neighborhoods

Such a great time, highly recommend. Alex was a great tour guide!

Fantastic walking tour. Our guide Vincent was very knowledgeable and shared lots of interesting information with us. While we were on a schedule, we always had enough time to take pictures. We also had a small rest stop with coffee/tea and a little sweet snack included in the price. At the end, Vincent very kindly recommended some restaurants in the area.

Jasmine was amazing, very sweet and helpful. Great line up of places, pace and descriptions. One of top experiences in Kyoto for me

Gion tour with Raphael was amazing! We covered so many parts of Gion at night and had amazing photo opportunities. Raphael showed interest in all people on the tour and was patient and thoughtful. It was a great night and a good introduction to the Gion area.

Alex, our guide from Argentina, was excellent at explaining the temples, shrines and all the places of interest. He also explained Japanese customs and helped us to understand their lifestyles which are very different from Western European. He was vet happy to answer our too many questions about the Japanese economy, social protocols amongst many things. This altogether gave us a much greater insight into Japan and its people. Highly recommend.

Alex was great ! Informative , friendly , and passionate about Kyoto. Very enjoyable experience

Alex was an excellent tour guide!

Trip advisor called him Em but he introduced himself as Miya. He was fun, funny, and knowledgeable. He was accommodating and friendly as well. His English was fantastic, a very good tour.

Lovely guide. Lovely walk. Enjoyed seeing the temples lit up at night.

Fabulous 5 star experience! Our guide Taku is a local to Kyoto. If you are the type of traveller that loves to know detailed information of Gion, geiko and maiko, and experiencing some local shrines at night time, this tour is for you. I also love the souvenir photo sticker near the end of the tour. Highly recommended!

We booked the Kyoto Gion Night Walk and Geisha District Guided Tour to better orient ourselves with the Gion area. Our guide, Eloise, was highly informed about the history of the area and fluent in English language. She did a splendid job explaining the importance of landmarks and the history behind each area. She gave each person her attention and put aside ample time for everyone to follow at their pace, take pictures, and ask questions. We also made a stop at the Yasaka Pagoda(Hokenji Temple), and the Yasaka Shrine with the bright lanterns in the center of the grounds. We finished our tour 2 and a half hour later at the same spot that we started from; the restaurants by the Kamogawa River.

Naoki was an amazing guide, and it was a wonderful tour! He knows so much about Kyōto, Japan and the japanese culture. It was really interesting, and he made it very fun!

Amazing walking tour , so informative, engaging, memorable! Would recommend this tour to everyone who interested to old town of Japan and Geisha 😊🫰🏻

The tour was amazing and Naoki was the most diligent and thoughtful guide who knew so much that he explained to us at each of the stops. He was very helpful in offering to take photos. It was also a smaller group which really helped. I thoroughly recommend this tour and Naoki.

Alex is soo good! Very knowledgeable, easy going, helpful. Recommend Alex for a tour guide. 10/10! Thanks Alex :)

A lovely walk through the Gion district. No guarantee of seeing Geisha’s but lots of historical and cultural information. As at night not as crowded as during the day. Small group.

Excellent tour with Jasmine! We learn a lot about kyoto and enjoyed every minutes! Thanks for this amazing tour

Jasmine was absolutely amazing! 1000%!! She was very knowledgeable and caring. During the tour she pointed out so many points of interest and fun activities ( crawling through the hole ) I felt like I fully understood the Geisha lifestyle and Japanese culture. Jasmine always made sure that we were ok. Making sure of water breaks and photo opportunities. I would highly recommend this tour and do ask for Jasmine. Side note: she made a great dinner recommendation which I can’t thank you enough. Have a great day and get this tour……..Cheers!!! Jason and Dianne

This tour was worth every penny, Jasmine was absolutely brilliant at giving us information, she was enthusiastic and had a great deal of knowledge about the area, we saw places we didn’t know existed even though it was our second time to the area. We all really enjoyed the tour

We had the tour guide to ourselves! He was amazing. He was so knowledgeable and was clearly very proud of his heritage. I enjoyed the whole experience. Recommend booking this experience. Great value for money. Wear good walking shoes, it’s long🤗