Osaka 2-hour Genuine Kendo / Samurai Experience In Japan

Five Stars are not enough for this experience! The Sensei was an amazingly gregarious, kind, talented and patient guide through the Kendo experience! Enough great things cannot be said of this man. The Sensei meet me at the street as he was helping an elderly lady into the cab I was exiting. So by design or accident he was attentive and committed to the experience. Again, not sure if by design or luck in my booking, but my experience was completely one on one. I had the complete attention and benefit of the Sensei’s knowledge, experience, humor, kindness and skills for the entire time. It was absolutely incredible. And the Sensei’s patience with the lack of skill was fantastic. With forty years studying Kendo he was not even slightly annoyed at the fumblings of an older not quite in shape person. If you have ever wanted to try Kendo, this is the place to do it! Amazing! Note, this is a bit of a workout!

Five stars does not do this experience justice! The Sensei greeted me at the street, perhaps not by design as he helped an elderly lady into the cab I arrived in, but it set the tone for the entire experience. In my case the experience was completely one on one. The Sensei gave me his complete attention and patience for the entire time. This truly was an immersive dive into Kendo. The Sensei was gregarious, kind, understanding and above all patient. My obvious lack of coordination, balance or anything resembling skill did not phase or give him pause. His 40 plus years of experience in the art was a wonder to behold when he let it shine. But he went out of his way to try and nurture and encourage my learning. This experience may lead me to taking up the art back at home. Words come with great difficulty to describe what a wonderful experience this was! One thing to note is this is a workout and be prepared to sweat!

Great exercise and fantastic fun! Our group was small 3 people + sensei) but that meant we each got a lot of focus. Very educational, and very fun. The armour fit perfectly, and though the gloves were a tight fit for me - it's worth noting I'm 6'3" with large hands anyway. I definitely recommend it! Just bring some water/juice, you'll get thirsty!

I’ve seen a lot of references to kendo and sword fighting in anime but it was really fun to be able to experience it first hand. We did some warm ups, then learns the stances. Then we practiced different swings and had a quick sparring session. Maeda-san was an excellent host. He is very skilled with kendo. I can barely keep up with his movements when we sparred.

Brilliant experience- our teacher was very passionate about his sport and taught our small group very well. He helped us get correctly dresses, taught us etiquette and Japanese stretching before a well paced lesson in the basic movements. We went on to do trial strikes before playing a few games. Overall it was a brilliant experience and I would highly recommend for anyone wanting to experience a local sport with a long history.

Instructor was very nice and well informed. The class was very informative and fun. It was a great experience learning more about the history of kendo and being taught how to perform kendo.

Kosei was a fantastic Kendo teacher. He was very encouraging and patient and built everything up in an easy to understand way. He took photos and videos of us along the way. It was a great experience although hard work!

On this SAMURAI TRIP, my friends and I had a great time, and I gained a lot from it. The teacher was very kind and patient, and often encouraged us. There are basically no communication barriers, and the teacher's English is fluent and easy to understand. The price is slightly expensive, but the experience is very good.

Super fun and instructive! It requires some phisical effort, though not very intense. The sensei was very nice and patient. I loved the experience!

Great experience. The instructor was very attentive and he introduced Kendo through a masterful step-by-step process. Would recommend. I went solo but a tourist family also attended which made the experience a lot more enjoyable.

We had an excellent experience learning the basics of Kendo. Our instructor was knowledgeable and enthusiastic. It was a great way to learn about the culture and get a good workout.

Best hands on experience ever (and I’ve done Samuri, ninja). Really appreciate Sensai 前田. I particularly enjoyed the real sparring I had with a teacher. Truly a memorable time for me and my 8yo son. Awesome workout with alot of culture. 10/10

Amazing experience, they made it fun and enjoyable. Gave a bunch of encouragement to make us feel comfortable experiencing something new. It was our first time taking a kendo class and this was a great introduction to the sport!

Such an awesome experience! It was just my friend and I which made it like our own personal lesson! I’m a bit of a nerd so I always wanted to try kendo since one of my fave characters also does kendo

Enjoyable experience for self, wife and our boys (10 yrs & 7 yrs). Get to learn and practice a few of the movements in the first hour. Nothing too strenuous, and it's cool to don the clothing and armor. The second half of the experience includes striking the instructor, and eventually competing against others in the class. Very amenable with respect to us capturing photos and videos to show friends. Also very patient with kiddos. The provider was accommodating and flexible in scheduling our session over the end of year holiday. While tourist oriented, this (clearly 'beginner' experience) is more genuine / less kitsch than some 'playing dress-up' we did at other times during our trip. Had a great time.

The 2 hour kendo training at Kenseidojyo was an incredible experience for myself and my 13 year old son. The master taught us step by step at a perfect pace. We were having short battles in full gear by the end and it was a great workout. Definitely will remember this authentic experience- a highlight of our Japan trip. It also sparked an interest in kendo for ongoing practise/health and fitness. A huge thank you to the Master!!

We we're the only people present for our class, so we had 2 hours of private instruction by the most amazing and enthousiastic sensei. Lots of fun but be prepared to sweat!

The experience was great! I learnt about Japanese History and Culture at the same time as learning the basic kendo movements. The instructor modified the class for my abilities and we finished with full sparring which was really fun! The level of English was great and the team were able to answer all of my questions. We had a lot of fun and I would definitely recommend it as a great cultural experience - and a good work out!

I booked this class for my ywo sons 15 & 12 they both loved the class. My 15yo is experienced in other martial arts but my 12yo is quite gentle so I worried one will be bored and the other overwhelmed. Our sensai was fantastic he was kind and reassuring to my 12yo and he really challenged my 15yo. I loved how they both got an insight into Japanese tradition.

It’s really an amusing lesson. Sensei is very good, and provides a very professional class. I highly recommend if you want to have a real Kendo experience.

Highly recommend! Our instructor was extremely skilled, kind, and patient. Able to teach us fundamental in a fun and easy to learn way. Bring a friend for double the fun! I enjoyed being able to sparing with our instructor and my friend by the end of the class.

This was a lot of fun. It was hot in August and if i did it again id probably pick cooler weather, but it was still worth doing. Our instructor spoke excellent English and made the experience worthwhile. It was easy to get to by train.

This was so much fun, my friend and I did this for my birthday, it was a blast! Our instructor was so lovely and made the experience excellent

Excellent teacher/instructor. We were well received. Studio was clean and equipment was well fitting. Both my boys enjoyed the 2 hours. They had lot of fun. Very interactive and encouraging instructor.

Overall satisfied. Instructor gave a lot of freedom to spar each other and the training equipment was complete. However, the actual active time we got for sparring and technique drilling did not take up the entire 2 hours we booked and was closer to an hour so the instructor could have been more clear about the time of our experience.

Good times learning some basic kendo! Warm up. Technique. Then mini, low stakes “tournament.” We all had a blast and loved learning about this sport

Very unique Japanese experience with a great instructor. My 20 and 17 year old boys loved it. Get ready for a workout too!

Sensai had a positive attitude and was very motivational. He taught us basics of Kendo (men (head) / kote (wrist) / do (body)), as well as importance of footwork.

Excellent lesson and insight to japanese martial art. Very experienced sensei with a lot of humour and energy. Highly recommended to all ages. Arigato gozaimasu!

We loved training the art of Kendo with senseis Taka (a bronze medalist) & Yama! The experience was a 10 out of 10! We learned the basics of Kendo and got to fight each other and the instructors. It was a lot of fun! It truly added something special to my 12 yr old son’s first trip to Japan! Definitely something he will never forget or something we can get in the USA! Highly recommend this experience to anyone looking to do something different, fun and very unique to Japan during their stay!

Great experience. Highly recommend as a fun morning or afternoon activity - definitely something unique to Japan you’ll remember forever

My son and I really enjoyed our Kendo Experience with Yamazaki in Osaka. We went through drills for footwork and striking with lots of humour and fun games all in English. One thing to double-check is the address. We went to an address (the wrong one, it turns out) where a lovely man recognised our confusion and escorted us to the community hall where it was held. All good! We’d definitely do it again!

Big fun! My son claims it as the highlight of his Japanese holiday. The instructors were patient and super kind. The one-on-one sparring was exhilarating. Such a great experience not to be missed.

We enjoyed learning about Kendo and how it was integrates with Japanese history and culture. We found our experience to be very enriching and enjoyable. Hiroki, our instructor, provided very good instructions and history of Kendo. We learned etiquette as well as some of the core moves. The best part was definitely the sparring!

Great Kendo experience. I have always wanted to try it since I was young and now finally got a chance over a vacation to Osaka. Coach Yamasaki was great and fun. Luckily my wife and I were the only two students in the class so it feels just like a private lesson! He is taught us the basic 3 attack moves in the first hour or so and we ended up dueling each other at the end of the class. Had a lot of fun!

The kendo experience was amazing. Our whole family does Martial Arts and we had a very fun time learning the Kendo basics, dressing in the kendo gii and fighting each other. Our littlest 9yo was a little scared at first but the Kendo master was inviting and friendly and the whole family had a very good time.

This was such an incredible experience. Our class was a group of 4, so it was nice and small. Our teacher was amazing and was really incredible at both the sport and teaching. This was an experience that was worth every penny.

Amazing experience! The instructor was kind and informative. We learned techniques, etiquette and some light sparring in a fun atmosphere. Highly recommended this experience.

The experience was very fun. Our instructor was very patient with us as beginners and a very supportive, encouraging, and enthusiastic teacher! And in one on one sparring with the instructor, he was very fast. You have to stay focused if you're gonna score a point! 10/10 Would absolutely recommend!

Our sensei for the day, Yama-san, was fantastic; a kendo champion practicing for 36 years. He was very lively and did a great job of taking us through basic kendo exercises and forms. A little outside of the tourist parts of Osaka but well worth the trip for anyone looking for a hands on experience (who want to try a bit of sword fighting), and it's very accessible from the Osaka loop line.

This was a blast! My son and I learned some of the basics of Kendo, practiced, then geared up and were able to spar against each other.

Yama was an excellent and knowledgeable instructor. He made our Ōsaka kendo experience a lot of fun for a pair of compete beginners. He made sure that everyone was comfortable and able to learn at their own pace. I recommend this class for folks interested in experiencing Japan’s sporting culture.

We met in community center. Instructor was fun, with good humor. Our lesson lasted only a bit over an hour, but it was the perfect length. It was memorable for my kids to use the gear and learn some basic terms and movements. Overall gave us insight into the sport and a good time interacting with a skilled local!

interesting and easy to learn. very good experience for kendo. Coach Matsu is enthusiastic and take good care of us. overall very good

I was going to say “wonderful experience” but it would be an understatement. This is the experience that you will remember for a long time - it’s both cultural and fun . I strongly recommend for groups and families. My family of five had a great day, thanks to Yamazaki-sensei. His professional approach and friendly attitude truly made a difference. Learning how devoted he is to Kendo, is inspirational. Among my three boys, two of them outright said that they would love to start learning Kendo. We hope that someday Kendo can make it to the Olympics.

"The experience" Kendo was a birthday present to my husband. We were welcomed by Kenshi the professor. He was very kind and nice. My husband who is already pationate of martial arts and who also practices Karate was impressed by the progression of the course and the final application by small fights. That day the course was a private lesson that my husband told me all along our stay in Japan! Kenshi has adapt his course to the level of his trainee. Thank you Kenshi for your kindness and profesionalism.

My favorite part about the experience is his great attitude! He’s super friendly, approachable, and answered all my questions about kendo. The class encompasses a lot of different aspects of kendo sparring that made it engaging and fun within the given amount of time.

Certainly, Japan has numerous fascinating and remarkably beautiful places and tourist attractions. However, incorporating Kendo training into tourism activities in Japan is indeed an excellent choice. Practicing the fundamentals of Kendo with Yamazaki Sensei in Osaka was a valuable and fun experience. We received two hours of basic Kendo lessons, covering everything from basic stances to "free fighting simulations." If you are seeking a distinctive, unforgettable, and fun experience during your tourist trip, then this Kendo experience is an absolute must.

Very good course, attentive provider, my kids had enjoyed it! Well worth it! Highly recommended in JP