One-Day Tour to Oarai Isosaki Shrine and Hitachi Seaside Park in Tokyo

I’ve joined quite a few tours labeled as “small group,” but they often end up being larger than expected but this one truly delivered. The group was genuinely small, which made the whole experience feel more relaxed and enjoyable. We visited three locations, and I really appreciated how the guide gave us the freedom to explore each place at our own pace. As a solo traveler, I loved being able to wander around and discover things on my own while still getting helpful recommendations from the guide on where to go. One tip: make sure to check the flower calendar for Hitachi Seaside Park before booking, as different flowers bloom throughout the year. I was hoping to catch the nemophila, but during my visit, only the daffodils were in bloom, which were still beautiful in their own way. Overall, this is a great tour if you enjoy a balance of guidance and independence. I highly recommend it, especially for solo travelers who value flexibility.

This was such a beautiful day! I've been meaning to visit Ibaraki prefecture for a while and this was the perfect way to see several things at once at a relaxed pace. The fish market and shrine were even better than expected, I ate very well.

I participated alone, but there were many Instagrammable spots. The sushi restaurant where you can eat freshly caught seafood is so delicious that you wouldn't think it's a conveyor belt sushi restaurant! Above all, it's incredibly affordable. The fatty tuna was so thick it overflowed from my mouth, but it melted in an instant. I can't believe I ate 14 pieces including sea urchin and salmon roe and it cost less than ¥2700. The Chinese guide, Ms. Chou, is a skilled driver and speaks both Japanese and English. At Hitachi Seaside Park, there is an adjacent shopping mall, and she kindly accommodated my request to go shopping. I was also given information about other tourist attractions during the trip, and I was very satisfied with the tour. I highly recommend it!!

Although it was cloudy and rainy on the day of the tour, all the itinerary items were successfully completed. The tour itinerary included must-visit attractions in Ibaraki Prefecture, including Oarai Isosaki Shrine (torii gate on the coast), Nakaminato Seafood Market, and Hitachi Seaside Park (October: Kochia / Kochia scoparia). For a day trip, three attractions were just right. The itinerary wasn't too rushed, and we weren't just skimming over things. We were able to take plenty of photos, especially since the weather had just turned cool, and 70% of the Kochia were turning red. We also encountered ginkgo trees just starting to turn yellow and maple trees turning red, which made up for the regret of not being able to see the autumn leaves and ginkgo in deep autumn this year. The tour leader, Ms. Fung, was very responsible and enthusiastically promoted the characteristics and history of Ibaraki Prefecture on the bus. Moreover, her Chinese-English translation was very detailed and worthy of praise. The driver was a handsome young man, very enthusiastic, hospitable, and polite. He reminded guests to be careful and check their belongings and luggage every time they got on and off the bus, which was ideal. I highly recommend this tour.

Yoyo is a responsible guide. We have a great time at the seafood market and enjoy the nice seafood. And at Hitachi Seaside Park, we get to see the seasonal flower which is Kochia, only open mid Oct to middle of Nov.

amazing itinerary, the locations are great, all panoramic, specially the Hitachi seaside park - red kochias is totally out of this world and the temple/tori gate near the ocean is also amazing. the duration for each location is just right, not rushed, although there’s a bit of delay and change of schedule, its still a memorable tour. thanks to our guide Bob for being helpful, he did everything to make his customers happy.

It was such a varied day tour and worth the time and money! I got to see the shrine with Pacific Ocean view and pebble beach, then a bustling fish market with dried seafood stuffs to buy home, and the freshest sushi and best raw oysters ever! (must eat)!! After that a great walk in the huge garden with so many beautiful flowers and overlooking the pacific! the Kochia (burning bush) still looks cute n beautiful despite off season! The driver is professional and safe! My guide YangYang is friendly, organised, gave good advice, clear instructions/guidance!

It was nice to see the Oarai shrine at coastal sea, and visit to fish market was interesting with queues for fresh oysters. Hitachi seasode park is big and hosts many different flowers blooms at different time od the year.

It was a relaxing day with our tour guide Kai. He was very lovely. My favourite part of this trip was definitely the seafood market. The giant fresh oyster was delicious. It’s currently the last week of May, the flowers at the park weren’t too exciting but there are still some beautiful display of roses and other small flowers. The shrine was cool. it was interesting to see a Japanese beach.

we weren’t able to see the flowers because during this time the oark was clearing up the flowers already but we were able to enjoy the cycling course instead.