Kyoto

10 Must-see Spots in Kyoto One Day Private Tour (up to 7 people)

Name: 10 Must-see Spots in Kyoto One Day Private Tour (up to 7 people)
Brand: EE tour
SKU: 285124P1
Price: 325.27 USD
Rating: 5.0 (379 reviews)

Kyoto, Japan

The 10 must see spots in Kyoto one day private tour

Likely to Sell Out

From $325.27

per group (up to 3)

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

8 hours
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

If your time in Kyoto is limited and you want to see lots of its famous sights in a day, then this private guided tour is an excellent choice. Explore the city with a private guide to take care of navigating. Along the way, tick off 10 top sights, including the beautiful temple of Kiyomizu-dera, the geisha district of Gion, the lush bamboo groves, and plenty more scenic surprises.

Great for time-tight travelers: See 10 must-see Kyoto sights in a day
Enjoy beautiful stories from your guide as you travel between sites
Swap crowded group tours for a private experience for just your party
Magnificent photo opportunities—such as Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine

What's Included

Selected Local Professional Guide

Lunch (you will visit Japanese restaurant) 1000～2000yen per person
＊This tour uses both cab and public transportation
Cab fee: about 6000〜8000 yen per one cab for all cab rides
＊If your group is 4 or more people, you need two cabs
Public transportation fee: About 1000 yen per person
Admission fee: around 1400yen per person for all temples
Pick up service: not included

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Kitaoji Station
Koyamakitakamifusacho, Kita Ward, Kyoto, 603-8142, Japan
Kita-oji station on Kyoto City Subway Karasuma Line. Your guide meets you at the south (NOT north) ticket gate of this station. The subway station number is K04.

Start time

09:00 AM

End point

571 Gionmachi Minamigawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto, 605-0074, Japan
Gion area. Your guide informs you how to get to your next spot after the tour.

What To Expect

Your day begins with a pickup from Kitaoji Station in northern Kyoto. After meeting your guide, head first for Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion)
Admire the temple’s gleaming golden pavilion and learn how it used to be the political center of the shogun.

Next stop is Arashiyama Bamboo Grove followed by Tenryu-ji Temple, which is known for its traditional Japanese landscaped garden. Next stop is Togetsu-kyo Bridge from where you can enjoy one of Kyoto’s best views. The next stop is a little unusual: Arashiyama Kimono Forest Kyoto is an art installation of 600 cylinders adorned with kimono designs.

Fushimi Inari Shrine (Fushimi Inari Taisha), one of Kyoto’s best-known attractions is next, followed by Kiyomizu-dera Temple, then Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka, which you have time to explore independently.

After a quick stop, your tour ends in the Gion district.

Kinkakuji Temple

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Bamboo Forest Street

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Tenryuji Temple

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Togetsukyo Bridge

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Arashiyama Kimono Forest

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Kiyomizu-dera Temple

1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included

Sannenzaka Ninenzaka

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Yasakanoto

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Gion

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Most travelers can participate
You will visit so many places only one day so you can not change the itinerary, lunch place and starting point.

If you have some food you can not eat, please inform us when you book this tour
This tour will take you to not only tourist attractions, but also to nice Japanese-style streets and back alleys. Please wear comfortable shoes.
Many places in Kyoto such as temples and taxis do not accept credit cards. Please be sure to have some Japanese yen ready before joining the tour.
＊On very hot summer days, it is recommended to change to Plan B course, which requires fewer steps and takes you to Chishakuin Temple( a hidden gem indoor temple) and Sanjusangendo Temple(famous for a forest of Buddhist statues).
The cab can accommodate four people. 3 guests + a guide, so if there are 4 guests, two taxis are required.
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

379 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 379 reviews

Excellent

Donna_S, Apr 2024

Thank you Mutsumi for a wonderful day tour of Kyoto. Your insights into the meaning and significance of the places made it so much more than sight seeing. It was a truly wonderful experience. どうもありがとう

Best trip to kyoto

Gabriel_L, Apr 2024

Fantastic guidance from Naoko; friendly, great insights, pretty good English. Had enough time to visit key spots, eat great and she is quite patience with photos/shopping. Greatly recommended tour for lovely Kyoto. Gracias querida Nao!

rain did not deter our enjoyment

amy_p, Apr 2024

Mutsumi was a delight. She was energetic and ready to answer all our questions. A few she even reached out to me about the next day with answers. It is obvious she enjoys this job and easily imparts her love of Japan to visitors. We had a very full day, be ready to walk a lot and get your steps in. The taxis and trams worked just fine for moving around the city until about 4pm. Traffic jams galore. But we easily walked to our next stop. It was nice having the private tour bc we could take our time, enjoy the many temples and shrines and take lots of pictures. Musumi was willing to shift the agenda if there was someplace in particular we wanted to visit. Lunch was very good with plenty of selection. We were staying in the Gion and had alrady walked around much of the area and visited several temples/shrines. So we ended our tour after Kiyomizu-dera Temple and Yasakanoto as it was getting close to 6pm and raining harder. it worked out well bc we had spend more time at other temples on the tour. Since we were staying realivtely close, we did walk back the next day to take our time at both places and to walk up and down the streets. Very lovely tour.

Best. Guide. EVER.

JeanMarie_N, Apr 2024

We felt like the luckiest tourists in Kyoto with Kumi as our guide! We started the day as planned, and she was brilliant in teaching us about what we were seeing and the larger cultural significance of each site. At lunch knowing one of us was a vegetarian and one had allergies, she went out of her way to ensure that we went to a place that had plenty of options and helped select a great spot. We ended up having a rainy day, so she offered an opportunity to change a few plans on the fly and brought us to places we didn't expect but felt grateful we got to see. Could not possibly recommend this tour (and especially Kumi!) more for anyone visiting Kyoto!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Thank you so much for this amazing feedback. I had a brilliant and memorable time with you both! I hope you come back to Japan and see you again someday! Kumi

Perfect day

Mary_D, Apr 2024

This was a fabulous day with KK and a perfect introduction to our 2 1/2 weeks in Japan. KK was so knowledgeable and shared her insights and experiences. Although we saw many sites, we never felt rushed. The restaurant chosen for lunch was great and the food was delicious. She gave us information that helped us to enjoy our remaining days in Kyoto. It could not have been more perfect.

Best way to see Kyoto sites!

David_L, Apr 2024

Kyoto’s sites can be difficult to see using public transportation and being a tourist. They are spread out across the city with buses being the best way to use public transportation. We opted for this tour so a guide familiar with the city and the history would make the experience much easier. Taka was a great guide, very informative, and gave us additional tips to shop for gifts. Highly recommend!

Best trip I have ever been on.

gavin_P, Apr 2024

One of the best organised trips I have ever been on. We had the absolute pleasure of being looked after by the lovely Mie Takei who took us around alll the sights in Kyoto and explained everything to us in perfect English. She even came back with us to Kyoto station and helped us change our bullet train tickets going back to Tokyo. She was an absolute pleasure and we had a lot of laughs with her. Book the trip - you won’t be disappointed.

Great experience

Kurt_F, Apr 2024

Wonderful opportunity to see so much of Kyoto in a day. Our tour guide Miwako (Olive) was knowledgeable and very friendly. She took lots of photos for us and led us through the highlights of this beautiful city efficiently. Highly recommended.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Thank you so much for your kind and wonderful comment. I am very happy to have shown you around Kyoto. I had a fun time with all of you as well. In addition, thank you so much for such tasty chocolates as a souvenir. They are the best chocolates that I’ve had. I am so impressed by your kindness. Thank you. Thank you. I hope you will come back to Kyoto in another season. Colored leaves are so beautiful in autumn. I hope to see you again. Miwako (Olive)

Great tour made special by our tour guide Mr. Taka

Prashant_A, Apr 2024

We had a really great time. Kyoto is beautiful and what made this trip special was our Tour Guide Mr. Taka. He was very knowledgeable and patient. He showed us all the great spots, provided history and context for each of those spots. Last but not the least, he know all the best spots for pictures and took some great snaps of us.

Great tour of Kyoto

Sherry_C, Apr 2024

My family and I had a great tour with Akiko yesterday. We are only in Kyoto for 3 nights so it was important to see the key sites. Akiko was so knowledgeable and had very interesting facts. The most memorable parts for us were the golden palace, the bamboo forest, zen garden and shopping in the old town district. The restaurant where she took us for lunch was also excellent. What we appreciated most about Akiko was her flexibility. My 10 year old was getting tired so we needed to adjust and she was fine with that. Also my daughter had a custom ring made and Akiko worked with the shop to have it ready sooner. She really went above and beyond. She was very easy going and kind. I highly recommend her.

Highlights of Kyoto with KK

Robert_F, Apr 2024

From beginning to end. Met by tour guide (KK) at bullet train in Kyoto. Local transit to Golden Pavilion. Taxi to bamboo forest and temple. Cherry blossoms and gardens spectacular. Fabulous authentic sushi restaurant. 10000 red gates of fushimi and local shopping area. KK makes the tour to your liking. For us a busy and most enjoyable day. KK’s knowledge of English is very very good and her knowledge and stories of Kyoto make the excursion very memorable. Well done KK!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Thank you so much for the wonderful review. It has made me feel very elated. I pray that your memories of Kyoto will remain a treasure in your heart forever. Kyoto is a very profound city, so please come back. See you again!

Wow! Full day to see it all!

Corinne, Apr 2024

Wow! Very full day of all Kyoto’s must see sights! Our guide lead us from one sight to the next via bus, train, subway and taxi. We would never have been able to manage this on our own. My only suggestion to Viator would be to offer this tour in two segments. First half one day, and then second half the next as it was a lot for one day! Didn’t have much time for browsing through the myriad of shops.

Top notch.

Eric_E, Apr 2024

Naomi was great. We went all over the city. Kyoto is much diffrent than a city like tokyo. It was a fast paced day throughtthecitu. We loved it

Incredible tour guide!

Rebekah_D, Apr 2024

Naomi was an amazing guide! She gave us so much history and background to each site. She showed us little known gems and knew the perfect place for the best photos. She answered all of our questions. Because of some physical limitations of our ground, we were not able to compete the entire tour. But even then, Naomi was incredible! She was kind and compassionate. For the few sites we had to skip because of our groups limits, Naomi’s provided perfect instructions for visiting the sites the next day. Naomi was incredible!

All of the must-see places in Kyoto in one day!

Nora_T, Apr 2024

I had a wonderful day exploring Kyoto with my guide Mikie. She filled me in on the history of the places we visited and answered all my questions. Additionally, when she realized that I had visited one of the places that was on her list, she replaced it with another amazing place that I would not have found on my own. This was a stellar experience and I highly recommend this tour and this guide!

Awesome Kyoto cultural experience

tony_n, Apr 2024

We had the most memorable time seeing the culture of Kyoto. Our very knowledgeable guide KK made the entire experience fun and effortless. Hearing stories of the history of Kyoto and of Japan in general made the entire experience more rich and memorable. This tour is a must do and it’s very easy with children, we had our 10 and 12 y/o with us. Taxis and metro trains let you get around Kyoto and KK made that happen easily. She showed us a sushi/sukiyaki restaurant that was amazing, delicious and reasonable. We even treated her to lunch. Thank you again KK and EE tours.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

I truly appreciate your kind and warm review and want to make our EE tour better continuously. Your words are my nourishment and energy for the next guide. I hope something in Japan touches your lovely young hearts leave something precious in the future! Many thanks KK😃

Visiting Kyoto in a day

Paula_B, Apr 2024

Thank God we had booked this tour. Our guide Yuko made a raining day in Kyoto to be the most enjoyable possible. We visited 9 out 10 spots announced because of the rain, but she was able to include another one, of which we hadn’t been aware and that resulted to be one of the most interesting one!

History in Bloom!

JAMES_H, Apr 2024

From the moment we met Akima we were marched. She customized our route and sequence (not itinerary) to fit our day and ensured we saw everything. In addition, her preparation and thorough explanations of the history, symbolism and importance of places and objects were essential to our appreciation and understanding of each site. Wrapped in the blooms of Sakura (cherry blossoms), we enjoyed a perfect day.

A busy day but ideal if you want to see main Kyoto sites in a day.

Terence_B, Apr 2024

Only in Kyoto for one full day so this tour got us to see a lot of the key sites. Particularly liked the golden palace and guide went out of his way to find some cherry blossom for us to see. The section where we had to travel by bus was tedious but the bad traffic not the guides fault.

We had a great time...

Aleksandra_M, Mar 2024

We had a great time visiting Kyoto with Kaori (KK). She was very knowledgeable and a lot of fun. Kaori explained the history and religious importance of each site, and intoduced us to local customs and traditions troughout the whole visit. If you plan to spend only a few days in Kyoto, this trip is definitely worth it to visit a maximum of must-see sights in a day.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Thank you so much for your review which made me so happy to know I could convey the charm of Kyoto and the uniqueness of Japan. Please come back to Kyoto and see me again. KK

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