Kyoto Highlights Private Tour With Local Driver

We had a great day exploring Kyoto with Victor, our tour guide, and Steven, our driver. Nothing was too much trouble for them. Together we were able to work out a plan that was do-able in a day and yet still enabled us to see most of what we wanted to see. When distances between sights were an issue, Victor was great at suggesting suitable alternatives. We especially enjoyed visiting a great little tea house in the Gion area of the city where we were able to try out 5 different types of tea. There is a lot to see in Kyoto and to be honest a day isn’t long enough, but Victor & Steven helped us make the most of the time we had. Highly recommend.

Me and my family had a great time in Kyoto. The company listened to my requests and arrange the tour in such a way that we see everything we want to see. Our driver is amazing! Thank you Matsu as he is very friendly and easy to talk to. We enjoyed every bits of the trip

Ursula was a great tour guide and so accommodating to our day! She had great suggestions and we had great conversation all day. She was a delight to bear the Kyoto sun with. Having the van driver taking us around also saved us so many steps and allowed us to see more sights than if we were to go on our own.

This was a wonderful tour. We saw so much and our driver and guide were awesome. They accommodated our limited cruise schedule and helped us see all our top sites. Our guide, Victor, had wonderful information and made sure my 80 year old mother with limited mobility could see everything. I highly recommend this tour.

Our guide and driver were very personable and accommodating. Our guide told us fascinating history as we strolled the iconic shrines and temples. His knowledge of Shinto and Buddhist religions made the day so interesting. His cultural knowledge was extensive too and he was peppered with many questions. They will do anything you want to do and if if you have no idea they make a great itinerary for you.

A very relaxed and friendly tour around the best sights of Kyoto. Driver is excellent, flexible to our needs and courteous. Thoroughly recommend.

Great experience. Thank you to our driver Kaku for getting us around to all the places we wanted to see, and sharing all his knowledge of Kyoto! Well worth the money to have a driver.

We had a wonderful experience in Kyoto! Our guide was absolutely great—Victor, was knowledgeable, friendly, professional, and made the entire day so enjoyable. They did an excellent job showing us the highlights of Kyoto while sharing interesting history and local insights along the way.

We had a wonderful private tour in Kyoto with our driver Steven. He was friendly, helpful, quick, and truly knowledgeable about the city. Steven kept everything running smoothly, and made the whole experience enjoyable and stress-free. Highly recommend booking with him!

Steven was very accommodating to our group of 4. Had a little challenge connecting at the train station, but once in the vehicle, we were able to communicate and he made some great recommendations.

Our family of 4 (two daughters, ages 10 and 13) took a guided tour with both a guide (Fuji) and driver (Kaku). Our driver was kind, efficient, and obviously knew his way around town. We had a couple of last-minutes changes to itinerary and Kaku dealt with everything with aplomb. Kaku had cold water waiting in his van for us - a lifesaver on a hot July day. Fuji was an extremely knowledgeable and entertaining guide. He conveyed his passion for Japanese history when explaining the significance of the landmarks we visited, providing background and context. He was able to engage our daughters and make it fun for them as well! In planning our day, he gave us a suggested itinerary, but was happy to adjust it according to some sites we wanted to add. There is really too much to see in Kyoto, and when you only have a few days, I cannot more highly recommend booking this tour to make your travel more meaningful yet comfortable at the same time. You won’t regret it!

Kaku was great. Very organized and accommodated our requests for additional stops. He even helped us make restaurant reservations. Very timely and organized.

Victor (Yamazaki) is very knowledgeable, friendly and enthusiastic. He’s really focused on giving you the best day possible, and he’s great with both adults and children. Having your own guide and driver allows for a lot of flexibility - you can spend as much, or as little time at each location as you like. This is especially handy if the weather changes (like it did for us) or you simply need more time.

Our family had a wonderful time visiting Kyoto and seeing the top attractions. Victor was entertaining and very good about accommodating and adjusting the itinerary to our needs.

Driver Matsu was extremely helpful. He speaks English very well. Throughout the activity he explained everything. Best experience with Viator Thank you Viator and Matsu.

Kaku was an excellent guide and driver. We saw all of the highlights that Kyoto had to offer and stopped for an excellent sushi lunch. Would definitely recommend this tour.

Our guide Fuji was fantastic. He took us to the places we requested and also took us to a nice family restaurant frequented by the locals which we enjoyed. He was considerate of mobility issues. He was friendly and knowledgeable. We like history and he provided a lot of background about each of our stops and also general Japanese history and culture. Our driver also did a great job. It was our first time having a driver and guide and it was awesome.

We had a wonderful day! Kaku is a skilled and knowledgeable driver. He was very accommodating and flexible with our schedule. I would highly recommend him!

It was a convenient way to travel and see sights in Kyoto. The driver was very accommodating and helpful.

Victor was extremely knowledgeable and tailored our trip to our interests. Would definitely go back. Excellent choice of driver. Had a great time .

We had a great experience in Kyoto with our driver, Matsu. Matsu took us to Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Kinkakuji, and the bamboo grove. Our time at each site was independent, and we could tailor each visit to as much or little time as we needed. There is a short walk from the main streets to Kiyomizu-dera Temple with numerous shops for food and souvenirs. The temples/shrines were all quite busy but certainly worth visiting.

Victor was an outstanding tour guide and made it a great day. He knew so much about the areas we visited but also made it fun for us. Would definitely do a tour with him again.

We had a wonderful day with Victor. He took us to Arashyama and recommended we take a rickshaw ride. It was a great idea==we moved through the crowds with ease and the drivers took fabulous pictures all along the way.

Yamazaki was a wonderful guide with so much knowledge. Incredibly friendly and engaging as well as a great comedian. Took us to all the spots efficiently. Found us a great lunch spot too.

Fantastic trip. Our driver was amazing, we really enjoyed the sites. The tour was organised in a way we really enjoyed and it was very flexible to our needs so we could spend longer in one place and less time in another. The driver always recommended times and places to meet up.

Victor was absolutely amazing—truly the highlight of our trip. He reached out the day before to go over the itinerary and made thoughtful suggestions that helped us make the most of our time. Traveling with elderly parents in wheelchairs and a toddler in a stroller can be challenging, but Victor handled everything seamlessly. He was incredibly patient, accommodating, and made sure everyone in our group felt comfortable and included. He truly went above and beyond. During our visit to the monkey mountain, we struggled with the hike, and without hesitation, he stepped in and helped carry my baby to the top. That level of care and kindness meant so much to us. Victor was knowledgeable, kind, and genuinely fun to spend the day with. Our driver was also fantastic—very friendly and professional—which made the whole experience even better. I would highly recommend Victor to anyone looking for a stress-free, memorable experience

We had a fantastic day with Sasaki san and our driver, both are so polite and respectdul, Sasaki is funny and you can tell he enjoys what he does, so knowledgeable and was able ro mix up the tour on the spot with our daughter wanting to go to a paetcular shrine, even with a day of rain we still managed to really enjoy thos tour and had such a great time. Thank you again Sasaki

Our driver Kaku spoke good English. He was so accommodating, polite and friendly. He made great recommendations and nothing was too much trouble. He was an awesome driver. Thankyou so much Kaku.

Steven was super friendly, helpful, and understanding with our small kids. He gave us great recommendations on where to go and the best times to visit the places we had in mind. This is definitely a great way to travel if you have small kids and need flexibility while making the most of a limited schedule.

My guest, Mr Rohan had an amazing day exploring Kyoto. The itinerary covered must-see temples, cultural spots, and hidden gems. Our driver was really nice and made the day both smooth and enjoyable. Highly recommended!

Very convenient. We were picked up at the hotel and met our tour guide in Kyoto. We did a quick overview of the city in the short time we had for a day trip. So much to see in Kyoto but it was full of highlights thanks to Yamazaki-san. Best was the rickshaw tour!

We had an absolutely wonderful time touring Kyoto with our group of 8 family members! We got to see all the main sites—Kiyomizu-dera, Fushimi Inari, Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, and Kinkaku-ji. We also had time to visit Otagi Nenbutsugi near Arashiyama. Sasaki was a great driver, and he took good care of our group. We had one person who had some mobility issues, and he was very thoughtful and helpful. The tour went from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM, and it was well worth the price. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to spend a magical day around Kyoto!

Victor was an amazing tour guide !! Very helpful and knowledgeable about the history and was able to organize our group of 9 very well even they all wanted to see /do different things. He frequently checked in with us.

This was an incredible experience which was only made better by our driver, Fuji. He is THE BEST!!! If I had it to do over again, I would have opted for the guide option. Fuji went above and beyond. My daughter and I cannot say enough how wonderful and knowledgeable he is. We both thoroughly enjoyed this and would do it again, given the opportunity. If you book this - and you should - you should ask for Fuji!

Thank you for the best day in Kyoto. Such a nice and warm service also with professional information. We really enjoyed the tour. Highly recommended.

Kaku our driver and guide speaks good english. Van was clean and service was excellent. For those who are travelling in a big group or family better to book a package like this. More Private and flexible itenerary.

The driver was extremely accommodating, and took us to a Geisha dress rental and waited while my wife changed into her gown.

Great guide. Learned a lot. Great way to see several highlights of Kyoto in one day. Very comfortable car. Went to some less well known spots. Enjoyed the lunch place Fuji took us to.

The tour featured the most popular sites and the driver catered to our needs. He was reliable and a good communicator. Professional and friendly. He suggested ways to avoid crowded areas. Safe driver. We highly recommend his service.

Great time! Zack was a great driver and was very knowledgeable. Extremely friendly and took us everywhere we wanted to go and had a lot of great recommendations as well!

We toured Kyoto with Mr. Fuji and it was our favorite tour of our entire trip to Japan. He was incredibly knowledgeable, funny and kind. He worked with our group ages 17 to 83 and was patient and understanding. We toured all over Kyoto but also learned about the history of Japan, religion, and life in Japan today.

Victor was amazing. If you can afford it a private tour is definitely the way to go. He customized the sights to see and was very knowledgeable. He was very kind and funny to my family

Guide and separate driver were great. Yamazaki did the tour and he was very funny and knowledgeable. We toured Fushimi Inari, the golden temple, the 1000 warriors, the Ryoanji temple and Nijo castle. We had already toured the other scheduled sites on our own so he planned different things for us. He took us to a great sushi lunch and had back up plans for us as well. The driver was Gozen who spoke amazing English and the van was very luxurious for the four of us and two guides. Would definitely recommend for a smooth day. A++

Superior driver. New the streets well. English was great. Was able to provide details on how to get the best experience.

We had an incredible experience with the your guide. Victor took me and my elderly parents around so well and showed us all the important places in Kyoto as well as their significance. The ride was comfortable, safe and well organized.

We did a private tour with Fuji as our guide and Stephen as our driver. Everything throughout the day was excellent. Stephen picked us up at the exact time and location we requested which was a little off the beaten path in Osaka. We selected several sites we wanted to see and Fuji accommodated our requests and our time restrictions. He kept our group interested all day with his detailed explanations at each site we visited. The delicious ramen lunch was tasty and inexpensive. We enjoy riding the trains, but having a driver for the day made things easy and more efficient. It allowed us to spend more time exploring the sites we visited rather than worrying about we were going to get to and from each one. Having Fuji as our guide ensured that we learned far more at each site than we would have on our own. I highly recommend the Kinkakuji Temple. It was beautiful.

My family and I had a great time in Kyoto with Victor (Yamazaki). He is very friendly and took care of us during our private tour. He is very knowledgeable and wanted to ensure we were always looked after. We enjoyed his company and very blessed to have him as our guide!

Just a great day. Well planned by our guide to get the most out of our day trip from Tokyo. Good lunch and the sights are amazing.

This Tour, of Kyoto was one of the best guided tours of our travels. We are seasoned travelers who have had guides in multiple locations outside the United States. Our guide, Fuji was extremely knowledgeable, friendly and had an excellent command of the English language. Fuji is local to the Nara, Osaka, and Kyoto area and brings that knowledge to bear in his detailed historical explanations of various sites. While delivering historical details, he also made the trip fun and exciting. Bonus, he took us for lunch to a local husband and wife restaurant for Ramen and soup, which was one of the best meals we had at an extremely reasonable price. I would recommend this tour which brought us to monkey Park, and several very popular shrines. This was truly a five star experience.