Kyoto Private Night Tour With A Local – Bars, Bites & Culture

Shuun was a great and knowledgeable guide. We had a lot of fun with her . 5 stars

Shuun showed my wife an amazing time and the 2 hours flew by. She is so knowledgeable about not only the nighlife in Tokyo but also the culture. We would highly recommend this tour but even more so if Shuun is your guide. 5 stars all around! Thank you Shuun for showing us a great time!

Very informative and organized Our guide, Amy, customized a plan and was very friendly throughout the tour !

We had a truly awesome tour with our guide, Mia. She was incredibly knowledgeable and was able to shape the tour to our requirements. Absolutely excellent. Our only criticism that we didn’t receive the promised two drinks which we had forgotten were included.

Amazing experience seeing the Gion area in the evening, would highly recommend doing this one on one experience

Our tour with MIKI was AMAZING. She is a true local with a deep knowledge and love for Kyoto. Her communication leading up to our tour was great and so thoughtful - she really wanted to know our wish list and checked in via WhatsApp, as well as during our actual tour on what she recommended next and always asked "does it sound good?" She planned the most stunning tour for us, she knew all of the secret spots - every single moment was breathtaking. Look at the photos! She also knew a secret for bypassing what had to be an hour long line of a special Sakura show - we could not believe our luck and of course, all credit to Miki! Miki is so friendly with a wonderful energy that she made the mostly walking tour SO fun for us! She helped us make memories for our family forever. We are recommending Miki to all of our friends who are now planning their trip for Sakura Season 2025. Plan now, because she will book up fast!

One of our favorite activities! Oulan was extremely knowledgeable, and we enjoyed exploring the Gion district with him. He was eager to answer all of our questions, and is an excellent photographer to boot. Highly recommend spending your time with Oulan!

This was a highlight! And Goku was the best tour guide. We got to take a train, experience off the beaten path areas, had a local meal, and saw a different part of Kyoto. So much fun and Goku answered all our questions. Very patient with our big party

Andy was a wonderful guide. He had already laid out the best places to see for our night tour of Gion. The night tour gave us a different look of Kyoto, and was interesting to see. While the day is full of crowds, at night you are able to quietly move through small streets and alleyways and see things you might never during the day. We got lucky and saw Maiko and Geiko on our journey, and never would have otherwise. Andy not only showed us great spots but also had a wealth of knowledge to answer all of my questions about what makes this part of Japan so unique, and the history of how it came to be.

We had a wonderful evening with Austen on our Kyoto night tour. He was extremely knowledgeable and stuck to the planned itinerary of combining iconic and contemporary Kyoto. I would highly recommend him.

Our tour with MIKI was AMAZING. She is a true local with a deep knowledge and love for Kyoto. Her communication leading up to our tour was great and so thoughtful - she really wanted to know our wish list and checked in via WhatsApp, as well as during our actual tour on what she recommended next and always asked "does it sound good?" She planned the most stunning tour for us, she knew all of the secret spots - every single moment was breathtaking. Look at the photos! She also knew a secret for bypassing what had to be an hour long line of a special Sakura show - we could not believe our luck and of course, all credit to Miki! This was 1 of 4 tours during our time in Kyoto and Tokyo and our two teenage sons shared how much they really enjoyed Miki and her tour. She is so friendly with a wonderful energy that she made the mostly walking tour SO fun for them and us! She helped us make memories for our family forever. We are recommending Miki to all of our friends who are now planning their trip for Sakura Season 2025. Plan now, because she will book up fast!

Guid Nehal very helpful and agreed to modify the trip to suit elderly people. Thoughtful and considerate guide. No one should miss this trip when in Kyoto. The food and drink venue unique - good fun.

We had a fantastic time and Michael was brilliant. He was very knowledgeable and showed us parts of Kyoto that we would not have seen. He was extremely friendly and chatty, which made us feel so at ease. Loved the whole experience and could not fault anything. We would definitely recommend Michael as a guide. Thank you

Nehal was an amazing guide for this tour. Our family loved it. He was very knowledgeable about Gion and great company! Thank you!!

Amazing night walk with stunning Vanessa, highly recommend 🙏 visiting Kyoto after 5pm gives a different feeling of this magnificent town

Wonderful tour with Brenda. She has a deep knowledge of the area, and pointed out and took me to places I never would have found or noticed on my own. We had a wonderful drink and snack at a LOCAL izakawa, that didn't offer any English translations ... absolutely delicious. Highly recommend.

We are really grateful for the opportunity to have Hanako as a tour guide! We saw historic streets and enjoyed drinks by the river like the locals do! Hanako shared with us many fascinating stories and insights about Japan ranging from hundreds of years ago to modern times. She was also very kind to those of other faiths like myself as a Christian when opting not to pray at a shrine, and she was good at explaining the biggest religions of Japan. She gave us great recommendations for restaurants and stores to shop, letting us know that Kyoto is home to Nintendo’s main office (we later walked past it after the tour and knew the building’s significance)! Hanako was super fun to meet, and it was special being able to share time together. I was quite sad to see her go at the end, but she had recommended to us a super yummy place for dinner after the tour so it was time. Thank you so much for the hard work and friendliness! Hanako, we so appreciate you!

The guide assigned to us changed the timing of the tour 2 times in 2 days leading up to the tour. The first change was the day before the tour and the 2nd change was a few hours before the tour. We only have 4 days in Kyoto and have set all our activities prior to coming here so that we could cover as many attractions as possible. Changing the timing of the tour just mess our plans up.

Our tour guide, Toga, was great. He responded promptly to our discussions prior to our tour. He was knowledgeable about the city. I asked to go to speakeasy bars and even had my own specific request which he incorporated and even took us to a very cool bar. I would recommend Toga and this tour.

Sam was a fantastic tour guide and we had a lot of fun! We were able to see a lot and visit several shops and try a lot of new foods. We also went to Yanaka shrine and it was beautiful to see at night. Would highly recommend Sam, he was great and made a very memorable experience!

Absolutely excellent. Super interesting. Relaxed vibe. Quality locations. Guide was a real professional and very knowledgeable. Thanks 🙏

Kenya did a great job of hosting our evening tour of Gion given some of the challenges presented by our group. Monday evening proved to be as quiet as many of the guide books say, however, the first part of the evening was a helpful orientation on our first night in Kyoto. Unfortunately, the mobility of one of our group was less than we had anticipated when booking and this proved an inhibiting factor, as was the groups indecision about what to eat! Kenya coped well and the Wagyu BBQ/ grill he recommended proved to be a hit. Following dinner he was exceptionally accommodating in providing an extended walking tour to the upper part of Gion for the more mobile members of the group. Well done.

This experience was incredible! Axel is an extremely knowledgeable guide studying Japanese culture and language. We walked all over Kyoto, drank at small local meet-up bars and were even lucky enough to see Geisha. Getting to learn about the history and culture of such a vibrant city, while out on the town was truly a delight! Cannot recommend this tour enough!

Brenda was a fantastic guide. Extremely knowledgeable and very entertaining. From walking Gion district to eating and drinking on old Pontocho it was as if I had a friend teaching me things rather than just a rigid guide. Thank you so much Brenda for the wonderful time!

Sasha was a great guide - his knowledge and experience were extensive, and he was glad to share what he knew; he took us to places we would never have found on our own.

Our tour guide’s name was Taiga. This night tour in Kyoto was absolutely enchanting. Taiga was incredibly knowledgeable about the city and its hidden gems and also passionate about sharing the rich history of the temples and shrines. He took us to breathtaking spots, shared fascinating stories and historical insights along the way. It was a truly immersive experience, and I highly recommend this night tour with Taiga for an unforgettable adventure in Japan (Kyoto) 🇯🇵😊 You will not regret this! Thank you Taiga for this amazing tour.

Engaging, personable, and thoroughly knowledgeable, my tour of Gion and Kyoto with Axel was outstanding! I like to mix up my travel experiences but still really learn about the local culture as well as history. Axel not only was able to answer a ton of my esoteric questions about Japanese history and religion, but also explained current culture and the scene to me. I feel my trip to Kyoto was the better for this your and I do not say this lightly. Axel also really listened to what I wanted to do and know and made sure I had a great experience. This was my first booking with this company but def will not be my last!

This was one of the best walking tours we've been on. Our host, Taiga, was absolutely brilliant - he took us through a number of hidden back streets and alleys of Gion that were off the tourist path, and was a wealth of information about the history of the area. We visited a local Shrine and Taiga told us about the difference between a shrine and a temple, and really personalised the information to our interests. He also took us to a local restaurant and bar where we samples some local dishes. He was great fun and we thoroughly enjoyed walking around Gion with him, learning about the history, culture and traditions of the area. We'd recommend this tour to anyone looking to uncover some hidden gems in one of the world's most magical cities.

Gion area and the other part of the city center in the night time is so different. Although this night tour is more for the bar-hopping, but guide Kenya has adjusted the itinerary to show us various aspects of night Kyoto where only locals know.

Alex our guide had fantastic knowledge about the area and the history. He showed us some hidden gems. Great tour to do at night as the streets were not crowded

Hanako was such a fun tour guide!!! She showed us so many amazing sights and gave us a lot of information! Highly recommend this tour :)

This tour was excellent way to see Kyoto at night. It’s beautiful with all the lights etc. our tour guide Kento was awesome and he followed all our interests and took us to great places and off beaten paths which we had requested. Highly recommend this tour to see the Gion district at night

I had a great time at the Fushimi Inari shrine! The guide showed a genuine interest in providing a great experience.

Tour guide was very knowledgeable about the area and even the history; not just of Kyoto but of different parts of Japan as well. He was also very flexible in what you want to do, and he was easy to talk to; he'll answer any question you ask

We had mentioned that we wanted to try Okonomiyaki and Kenya did not rest until he found a spot that served it. He also introduced us to Sparkling Sake which we really enjoyed. He is a knowledgeable and personable guide and we all really enjoyed our evening with him.

Chai was a wonderful guide. She made it fun and engaging, and she has an amazing ability to capture the perfect picture in the night of Gion. Her knowledge of the city, areas and history is exceptional. Her personality is warm and friendly. The night flew by as we felt we were in the company of a long time friend. I highly recommend Chai.

Highly recommend and thoroughly enjoyed our private tour. We ventured into areas we wouldn’t have seen otherwise and our guide was absolutely fantastic!

It pains me to write a bad review but this tour was an entire waste of $255 so I would like to save another family this money and tell them to do another tour through a licensed company like ToursbyLocals. We thought this would be a cool night tour walking through Gion District and learning about the history as well as stopping at some fun places for food and drinks. In my survey request, I asked for history, culture, place for great coffee or cocktails and then taste local fare. This was not the case. We went to visit a Shrine (that was fine although the history could have been better described) but then after that we just walked around a highly dense area with little information given. We ended up at a cheesy Ice Cream shop and a mediocre dinner. We spent 4 hours with our guide and it felt more like, "walk around, get your steps in and bring a stranger to dinner". Our guide wasn't local and his level of knowledge of Kyoto was not of a true guide. We took other amazing tours in Kyoto through TourswithLocals with a licensed Japanese guide and learned so much. This was not the case on this tour although I am hard pressed to call this a tour. Everyone was so greatly disappointed.

Axel was the absolute best! I took my nephew to Japan as his college graduate gift and before we took our tour, we were sent a questionnaire so Axel could tailor our experience to our desires. He also communicated with us prior to the tour to make sure we would be comfortable and assured we were in his great hands. Highly recommend Axel as a tour guide and this tour, in particular. We got to see a side of Kyoto nightlife that we would have never have been able to discover on our own. From the most delicious gyoza at a 7-seat restaurant down a hidden alley to the neighborhood bars where we had the pleasure of meeting and making friends with several super friendly and fun locals, to the bits of history & local info sprinkled in along the way. By far, our best experience in Japan thus far! Axel even followed up with us the next day to give us suggestions on sites and ramen restaurants we had asked about it. Wish we could take Axel to Osaka with us which is our last stop in Japan before heading back to the US! Axel, thank you, thank you for your hospitality and the best night of our trip!!!

The entire evening was enchanted. Chai had thoughtfully planned an itinerary based on our requests. We enjoyed ourselves so much. Thank you Chai.

Our guide knew the best spots to see cherry blossom still in bloom and where to spot Geisha in the evening. We saw quite a few in the deserted streets going between appointments. He was able to answer all of our questions and planned a lovely route taking in all the shrines and temples as well as little shopping streets and food stalls. A great mix of cultural experiences!

Justin was a fantastic guide! He was very knowledgeable and had lots of insider information and recommendations for us! Thank you so much 💓

A great personalise experience with a knowledgeable and flexible guide. Would happily arrange another tour.

Haruka is a very pleasant young man who is relaxed and eager to hear what his clients wish to visit. A good introduction to the city and its social activities.

We greatly enjoyed the Night in Kyoto tour with our guide Fauzi. He met us at our hotel and introduced us eagerly to numerous interesting places. We were listened to and all our questions were answered expertly. We definitely would not have been able to do this on our own. A fun experience.

This was one of the best trips I have done. The walk around Gion itself is awe-inspiring whilst our guide was 1st class in terms of knowledge, explanation & interest. It is a must-do event for everyone.

This tour was a lot of fun and my guide Taibi did a great job in making me feel like a local. I was shown many great places that would be easy to overlook otherwise.

Thoroughly enjoyed our night time walk through Kyoto. Our guide Airi was helpful and informative and found a great little restaurant with views over the river. Definitely worth the money!

<p>We had a great time and enjoyed to see more of the Kyoto after dark. A big thank you for Taibi our local guide who was very knowledgeable and informative.</p>