Experience Old and Nostalgic Tokyo: Yanaka Walking Tour

based on 415 reviews

Duration:3 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Location: Tokyo, Kanto

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Leave Tokyo's skyscrapers behind for a taste of daily life in historic Japan on this 3.5-hour walking tour through the Yanaka district. Developed as a temple town during the Edo period, people have long visited Yanaka for worship and sightseeing. Together with a small group of no more than 10 people, follow in their footsteps and admire the area's charming temples and cherry blossom trees.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

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Discover the different side of the sprawling Japanese capital that dates back to its Edo period of the 17th through 19th centuries, admiring the area’s charming mix of temples, springtime cherry blossoms and timeless ‘reien’ (cemetery). A included guide will accompany you on your visit, providing additional details about Japanese history and local culture.
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This Buddhist Temple sits on the edge of the Yanaka Cemetery and dates back to 1274. It is located in a pleasant garden behind an old wooden gate. In its grounds, there is a bronze Buddhist statue that dates back to 1690 and was beloved by locals as "Tennoji no Daibutsu". Well worth to stop by.
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This is an impressive cemetery and worth a look even though that is not a common route for the tour for tourists. It covers 100,000 square meters and has over 7,000 graves. It also has history more than 100 years after the Meji Restoration, the era that the government wanted to separate Buddhism and Shinto graves. However, most of the graves in this cemetery were owned by Buddhist so they established a public burial ground in Yanaka in 1871.
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【Optional】 There's a place to experience Japanese Tea ceremony on Tatami mats! It's on 2nd floor of the building of Gallery Okubo. The price of the tea (￥1,000) is not included into our tour cost, but you can actually try the authentic Japanese tea with the help of professional.
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【Afternoon tour only】 SCAI The Bathhouse is a contemporary art gallery located in Yanaka, with a town ambiance reminiscent of Old Tokyo.The gallery is housed in a venerable public bath imbued with a 200-year history.
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【Optional】 Shitamachi museum was established to teach future generations about the culture of the Shitamachi or "Down Town". Most of the objects on display are things that were actually used at one time, and you can see the houses with furniture and goods which are placed in the location where they would have been used and you can even touch some of the displays. Display items are changed in accordance with the season, so that repeat visitors also get to enjoy how life in the Shitamachi varied over the year.
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【Afternoon tour only】 In the middle of traditional old town Tokyo surrounded by Buddhist temples, you can find this studio of Alan West which was once an auto body garage and is now the only operating traditional Japanese painting studio open to the public. He was born in US but ever since he graduated from Carnegie-Melon University, he moved to Tokyo and continued his study and got a bachelor degree in department of Japanese painting at Tokyo University of the Arts, and even took master degree there.
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One of Japan’s oldest shrine and perhaps most striking, set amidst huge trees and flowering azalea or つつじ shrubs with ponds, pathways and iconic colored charming wooden structures reflecting Japanese traditional culture and beauty including succession of small Torii gates colored in vermillon beautifully.
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One of best local shopping streets in Tokyo, with the well-remained old town “Shitamachi” atmosphere. Explore the nostalgic side of Tokyo through Yanaka Ginza Shopping Street and don't forget to eat some local snacks!

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Posted By : carrietink
We really liked touring old Tokyo! It was just what we wanted to see in Tokyo. Hide provided a lot of historical information about the Temples, Shrines and cemeteries we visited. It was all absolutely beautiful. Hide made the tour fun and we learned a lot. He even took a bunch of photos and sent them to us in an email. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone but ask for Hide as your guide!
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Posted On : 2024-06-30 06:30:44

Posted By : henris276
Very nice walk in Yanaka, the guide was super friendly and informative,without overloading is with details. He answered very well any questions about history, culture and religion.
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Posted On : 2024-06-24 23:02:08

Posted By : AKM92
Michiko was our guide and was a very lovely person. She gave us some detail about Japanese culture and history during our tour of the Yanaka and helped us get on the train back to our hotel. Unfortunately for us, the day of the tour, it was raining very hard so I'm not certain we did everything that was initially planned for the tour, but overall it was a good experience. thanks!
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Posted On : 2024-06-24 17:43:22

Posted By : W6851YLdeborahs
This was THE BEST tour we took during our week in Tokyo! Emico our guide did a fantastic job of helping us to understand a beautiful, older side of the city that we would not have been able to appreciate nearly as well on our own. Emico also documented our tour by taking frequent photos of us and emailing them to us the next day. Thank you!
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Posted On : 2024-06-21 02:34:01

Posted By : R614DLjoannek
We had a fantastic day with Emiko. A well worth experience seeing some of Tokyo’s hidden treasures. Definitely recommend
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Posted On : 2024-06-18 05:07:13

Posted By : Xine14
What a lovely tour of small temples. Ryan was an exceptional guide. Knowledgeable. Kind. Even though I was a solo traveler, it wasn’t weird in any way. I got to try some delicious treats. Visited Tokugawa’s resting place (Shogun’s Lord Toronaga) and an uncrowded Shinto shrine ⛩️. Had an egg sando at the OG shop. Had a delicious bean cake, deep fried. Stand up sake. Famous stairs. Highly recommend this tour. 10/10!!!
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Posted On : 2024-06-17 16:09:45

Posted By : Raquel_M
Muchan was a wonderful guide. She was truly very well educated on the history and also had great recommendations for food and cafes. One memorable place she took us was this cafe in an old bathhouse that has preserved the history of the building and had delicious matcha. We would have never even know about this cafe if it wasn’t for her. She also took us to many hot places for the locals, allowing us to immerse ourselves into the culture of Japan. She came with us when we got distracted by all the shops along our tour and even recommended other stores when she knew how much we loved the different shops. She was also just such a genuine kind woman who was so easy to talk to and such a sweetheart. We really enjoyed having her as our guide and strongly recommend for those looking for not only someone to teach them the history and culture of Japan but to introduce them to local hotspots and cool locations that are hard to find as a tourist.
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Posted On : 2024-06-16 22:25:18

Posted By : Michael_T
Tokyo is an enormous metropolis. Finding Yanaka was a surprise. While Tokyo's enterprise is still evident, Yanaka's shrines, temples and shops [the French pastries were wonderful!]. Eriko was a great guide, even with the hot and humid weather.
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Posted On : 2024-06-15 23:23:46

Posted By : nancyn571
We had the best time with Kaori as our tour guide. She gave clear instructions on where to meet her and was very well prepared. She gave us historical information of all the places we visited. She was warm and kind. We had great conversations and the weather was perfect. We went to places I would have not considered and so happy we did this. They are wonderful places to see and definitely recommend.
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Posted On : 2024-06-13 21:14:38

Posted By : RachelMckn
Muchas was so good we really enjoyed our time and will recommend the tour. She knows so much about the history and we had a great time!
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Posted On : 2024-06-12 20:14:59