Kitakanto Area

We went on the tour of Kyoto with Thea. Our group was around 10 people and lasted.for about 2.5 hours. What a great way to get to see and understand the history of Kyoto. Both my 9 & 12 year old loved the tour as well, even more than the kitsunge workshop that we took earlier today. Thea was great in how she gave the group time to take photos, pray at different shrines if we wanted to, and helped capture nice family photos. Tip: Book a time about an hour before sunset so you can see some of the temples in daylight but also see Gion at night with lanterns.

When planning our trip to Tokyo with the kids, I was very careful in choosing a tour. My choice turned out to be absolutely excellent. Meeting our guide, Kanazawa Seiga, was also incredibly fortunate. Our meeting point was Tokyo Station at 8 AM, and since our accommodation was in the Ariake area, I was worried about being late even though we woke up early to prepare and took the bus. However, I was so grateful that the guide kept in touch via KakaoTalk, providing updates, and even came to pick us up from the bus stop to the meeting point. Thankfully, we made it onto the bus right at 8 AM. During the journey, the guide smiled brightly and shared many interesting stories. I thought our second child wasn't paying attention, but it turned out they listened to everything the guide said and even recounted it to me, which made me proud. I thought we wouldn't be able to see Mount Fuji, but it was incredibly clear and visible, making this a truly satisfying tour. The guide also took many enthusiastic photos and provided excellent information, which was wonderful. I will definitely book this tour again next time! Thanks to you, it was a very happy tour.

A refreshing escape from Tokyo as it offers a perfect mix of nature, culture and great food.The local seafood was fresh and delicious. Seaside park was a bit disappointing as now is the season for the flower hills but since the park is big so still a nice walk in the green forest. There is fun fair and play ground for children but no time to play. Overall, exploring scenic parks, visiting temples and shrines, taking in the ocean views, Ibaraki offers a different side of Japan that's well worth discovering.

Since it was nemophila season at Hitachi Seaside Park, and traveling there independently from Tokyo would be quite inconvenient, I decided to book a Klook day tour. Our guide was Elsa, a soft-spoken Chinese girl. The journey from Tokyo took about two hours, and our first stop was Oarai Isosaki Shrine and its torii gate by the sea. The shrine has over a thousand years of history, and its outer courtyard offers a serene view. A long staircase leads down to the sea, where you can see the torii gate. Elsa helped us take some beautiful photos! Afterwards, we went to Nakaminato Fish Market for lunch. The market isn't very big, but even though it was a weekday, there were many tourists, and we waited a long time in line for lunch! We almost missed our meeting time, so we asked Elsa to help us communicate, and she even assisted us with picking up our food. We were very grateful to her! The last stop was the main event: the nemophila flower fields. Hitachi Seaside Park is vast, so we paid extra to take the park tram to the flower fields, where we took many photos and explored. It was truly spectacular and beautiful! We were fortunate to have a wonderful guide and fellow tour members. Everyone gathered on time, and we all rested quietly on the bus, enjoying a pleasant day together!

The tour leader was great and emphasized the importance of being on time, mentioning that the bus would leave otherwise. This reminder was very helpful, and everyone was on time today, February 2nd. Lunch was delicious. The snow tubing and sledding in the morning were a lot of fun. The weather was great, with light, fine snow falling. We had a lot of fun. The strawberries were delicious, and we ate so many we were stuffed. The tofu skin making experience in the afternoon was fantastic. It was my first time making tofu skin myself, and it was a lot of fun. Today's itinerary was wonderful. We were constantly eating and on our way to eat, haha. It was an excellent trip. The tour leader and guide were Taiwanese, very helpful, and helped me take photos. They were very nice. This trip was great, and I recommend it to anyone who wants to play in the snow.

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.

Many thanks to Mr. Gao Hongmiao for his meticulous and patient care. He made every part of our itinerary today incredibly smooth! ♥️ Although we didn't go to the waterfall, we saw the cherry blossoms in full bloom and caught the tail end of winter. In one day, we experienced the spring of blooming cherry blossoms, enjoyed all-you-can-eat freshly picked strawberries, and saw the pure white snow that only appears in winter. Plus, we were back in Tokyo by 6 PM, with time to shop at the mall. We did so much in one day; it was truly great value for money, and I highly recommend it.

I almost wanted to cancel this trip because the flower season was over, but then I thought a suburban tour would also give my feet a rest. The date was the Friday after Golden Week, so there were far fewer tourists, and we hardly had to wait in line for anything. The three stops on the itinerary weren't far apart. Initially, it was just 'get on the bus - sleep - attraction - eat - attraction - go back.' It took over two hours to get to the first attraction, even without much traffic. At Oarai Isosaki Shrine, I think the main point is to go down the stairs to the beach. For the fish market, you really need to do your research beforehand and decide immediately which restaurant you want to eat at, otherwise, you definitely won't have enough time. The last stop was a park. I initially thought it was just a nature park, but it actually had playground equipment, so it's a great place for those with kids. Since the flowers had already withered this time, we took the guided tour bus that circles the park. One loop took about 40-50 minutes. The park is truly enormous; if you don't take the bus, you'd need to rent a bicycle, or you'd be exhausted from walking. In summary, this tour isn't one where the guide takes you around the attractions; it's all free time, so it's essential to do your homework beforehand.

Our guide was incredibly kind, and when we asked for recommendations for good restaurants around Tokyo, they meticulously found some for us, which allowed us to enjoy delicious meals. However, the travel time was longer than expected, so the time we could spend at our destination felt a bit short. This was the case even on a weekday, which made me think that travel times could be even longer on weekends.