Excursão de um dia ao Castelo de Wakayama, Mercado Kuroshio, Parque dos Cervos de Nara e Templo Todai-ji (partida de Osaka)

The tour guide and driver were very friendly and took us to amazing spots! We were given enough time to explore each place for about 1.5 hours so I recommend picking 2 things to do at each place so you have time. The van was air-conditioned and our group was small so we could easily make friends. I definitely will take this tour again!

First, we went to Wakayama Castle; then to Kuroshio Market to watch the tuna cutting show, and had grilled seafood for lunch. It was truly amazing to enjoy such a beautiful environment. After that, we bought some cheap and fragrant peaches; finally, we went to Nara to see the deer. There were so many deer, and this time I was even ambushed by them, almost having a whole box of biscuits snatched away – it was terrifying. I must commend our tour guide, Alan, who was witty, humorous, and spoke Chinese, English, and Japanese. He explained everything very clearly, shared historical insights, and introduced us to good deals and beautiful things 👍

Although this itinerary involves a fair bit of travel, being able to visit both Wakayama and Nara in one day is truly excellent! The tour guide's explanations were clear, and they were very attentive.

The entire trip involved more time on the tour bus than at the attractions. In the morning, we spent some time finding the meeting point in Umeda, then took a 1.5-hour ride to Wakayama. You can eat and drink on the bus, so I recommend buying breakfast to eat there. We parked at the foot of Wakayama Castle, and tour members could choose to go up to Wakayama Castle or explore nearby. Since the elderly person with us found it a bit strenuous to walk up to Wakayama Castle, we opted to visit the free zoo at the foot of the mountain. Then, we took a half-hour drive to the second attraction, Kuroshio Market, which is an indoor seafood market. There was a tuna cutting show at 12:30 PM that day, and people started waiting at 12:00 PM. My family and I also stood for 25 minutes beforehand; otherwise, we wouldn't have gotten a good spot because so many people came to watch. After watching, we had lunch in the market. Since my family doesn't eat raw food, there weren't many options in the market, so we ordered ramen, but it was incredibly salty and terrible! The tempura udon was just average. You can also buy fruit at the fruit market opposite the seafood market. Then, we took a two-hour drive to Nara. The parking spot was about a 10-minute walk from Nara Todai-ji Temple. You can buy deer crackers for 200 yen to feed the deer, but I was bitten on the thigh by an eager deer, which shows they were really hungry. On the way back to the meeting point, I saw a few fawns, so I suggest saving one or two crackers for them. Finally, we took about a 1.5-hour ride back to Umeda. The whole trip was very relaxed, with plenty of time to sleep on the bus. The tour guide could speak Mandarin and English. Besides introducing the attractions, it would have been more engaging if they could have shared more about Japanese culture and interesting facts.

Thanks to Nancy, we enjoyed our trip today! The trip covers three places, and we don't think it's too tiring to walk or explore. While the temperature is cold, especially when there's wind, it's manageable as long as you come with a jacket in January.

Our tour guide Nancy is very kind and friendly. We were lucky as the group size was not too big and there was no traffic jam that day. Everything went smoothly. Highly recommended. Just note that some deer can be quite persistent/aggressive.

This is a tour with a relatively long journey, involving more than 2 hours of driving. A van will be used because the entrance to Wakayama Castle is narrow, so the group size should probably be limited to no more than six people. The return time from Nara city should be 4:30 PM, and we can reduce the time spent at the fish market to an hour and a half, which should be sufficient.

For friends who haven't visited Wakayama and Nara, this one-day tour is excellent. We happened to catch the autumn foliage season, and the scenery was incredibly beautiful. My family was very happy and satisfied with this trip. Our guide, Marco, was thoughtful in his arrangements and provided friendly explanations.

The day before, someone contacted me via WhatsApp to confirm. It was very convenient to visit multiple places in one day, see Wakayama Castle, coincidentally catch a local event, and then go to Nara to see the deer.

The itinerary was ample, Wakayama's scenery was beautiful, the sashimi at Kuroshio Market was incredibly fresh, and the deer in Nara were absolutely adorable. Our tour guide, Joe, was very thoughtful, sending a warm reminder the day before departure. Thank you!