This is a one-day shore excursion for those who visit Yokohama port during your cruise overseas. During the limited time see the must-see sites and experience some attractions of your interest. Yokohama is the second largest city in Japan with a population of about 3.8 million. It is the first port which opened to the world after a long seclusion policy by the last Samurai government (Tokugawa Shogunate). Enjoy both historical sites and newly developed seafront center.
At Osanbashi Yokohama International Passenger Terminal or your designated place
Meeting Point is either Osanbashi Pier or Shinko Pier depending on which pier your cruiser will dock. Both piers are the sea entrances of Japan opened 130 years ago. Or any place you designate.
The third tallest building standing 296m high. Enjoy birds' eyed view from Sky Garden Observatory.
Walk on the boardwalk along the bay from Yokohama Landmark Tower to Yamashita Park. See the memorial remains of the historical port as well as visiting a museum of your interests.
Visit the oldest and largest Chinatown in Japan and have lunch. There are approximately 250 restaurants of Chinese cuisines. Strolling along the busy streets for shopping and experiencing Chinese culture.
Visit Sankeien Garden (named after a successful businessman named Hara Sankei), a traditional Japanese-style garden with important cultural properties. Enjoy tranquil natural beauty and traditional Japanese architectures collected by Sankei from all over Japan.
At Osanbashi Yokohama International Passenger Terminal or your designated place
1. Yokohama Landmark Tower
Highlights: See 360-degree views including Yokohama, Tokyo, and even Mt. Fuji on a clear day / Enjoy shopping and dining at the large shopping mall inside
2. Seaside Boardwalk
Highlights: See historical sites along the bay, such as the remain of railroad track, Red Brick Warehouse and a pier shaped like an elephant's nose etc. / Visit museums of your choice from below (Nippon Maru, an old sailboat, Memorial Museum / Cup Noodles Museum / Hikawamaru, a historical ocean liner / Yokohama Archives of History etc.)
3. Yokohama Chinatown
Highlights: Stroll around the town to enjoy lunch and shopping /Learn the culture and history of the Chinese people who have settled in Japan /
4. Sankeien Garden
Highlights: Stroll around a Japanese landscape garden with beautiful ponds and streams, enjoying seasonal natural beauty, such as cherry blossoms in spring, changing the color of leaves in fall and so on. / See the traditional cultural assets like a three-story pagoda of a temple, old residences of historical figures, a tea house etc. to learn about the Japanese history and culture
guide fee
guide transportation fee
guide entrance fee
your transportation fee
your entrance fee
your lunch
I have changed the day when I am available.
*Meeting place is either Osanbashi pier or Shinko pier depending on your cruiser.
*Nippon Maru, an old sailboat, Memorial Museum / Hikawamaru, a historical ocean liner / Yokohama Archives of History are closed on Mondays.
*Cup Noodles Museum is closed on Tuesdays.
*Sky Garden Observatory of Landmark is closed on Saturdays
*If you would like to visit other places instead of Yokohama, it is possible to go to Kamakura or Tokyo. Please see my other tours.
Although one member of our Family is able to speak a basic level of Japanese, he had never been to Tokyo before. So having a private guide was the top reason why we booked this tour. Haruo was very responsive, both before and during the tour. Before our arrival, contacting us and confirming the sites we wanted to see. The morning of, we confused our start time to an earlier time and Haruo left his home early to get to us. He picked us up at the train station by our accommodations, which we greatly appreciated. We chose Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, Tokyo Tower, lunch in the Shopping Mall at Ginza, Asakusa Sensoji Temple and Sumida river cruise. Unfortunately, the Garden was closed the day of our tour, so we went to see the giant Shinjuku 3D cat billboard! Since we chose attractions that were not close to each other, Haruo had to navigate the trains and subways for us, which even for a local can be confusing. Our Family has food issues - and Haruo spoke with the staff at the restaurant we chose on our behalf to ensure we could eat there without issue. And we did and it was a lovely lunch! One recommendation would be to select attractions that are closer to each other than we did. Especially if you haven't recovered from jet lag! I would highly recommend Haruo and this tour!
Dear Sharon Thank you for heartwarming review though I made some mistakes and confused you during the tour. This encourages me to improve my future tour. Take care of yourselves and enjoy the rest of summer. Haruo
We really enjoyed traveling to Kamakura and Yokosuka with Horuo. It was generally overcast (with a bit of rain) so we were often alone at some of the most popular tourist destinations in the area, and we were able to generally avoid the crowds with Haruo. Travel was very easy for us, and we learned a lot about Japan's history while on our adventures with him. Haruo is very knowledgeable about about the locations he took us to, and was able to bring each bridge and path to life with background we would have otherwise been oblivious to - stories of royalty, faith, assassination plot, wars, peace, and daily life for residents throughout history. There is so much we would have otherwise missed without Haruo, and we are deeply appreciative that we were able to share our travels with him.
Dear Trevis Thank you very much for your heartwarming review. This encourages me to improve my guiding. I was also very happy to have a tour with you. Please take care of yourselves. Best Regards Haruo
Haruo is a fantastic guide and educator who helped us get our bearings on our first day in Tokyo. While on an amazing tour of the imperial gardens (and an indoor 'open air' style Edo museum) we learned about the history of Tokyo and its people, we learned about basic etiquette (tipping, bowing, etc), and how to find what we would need during our 2 week stay. We learned the basics about Shintoism, a few important phrases, we got to try some really unique (and tasty) food, and he took some really great photos of us!
I'm sure you had spent a great time in your whole tour in Japan. Please take care of yourselves. Thank you again. Haruo
Haruo was a great choice for our first day in Tokyo. We knew we'd be wiped from the prior day of flying mentally, so setting up a tour with Haruo explaining all the ins and outs of shrines and how to use the subway was so helpful to get us started, plus we hit up a bunch of the big sites. Lots of history and info, more than happy to be flexible for the sights we wanted to see vs what we were not as interested in. Great guy, great tour, highly recommend!
Dear Elisa and Charles Thank you so much for your kind review. That encourages me to improve my tour from now on. It is not you but me that learned a lot about the culture of your country. Especially, talking about your hometown Seatle made me remember sweet memories of my trip and want to come back there. I believe you had a great time after our tour. Thank you again and take care of yourselves. Best Regards, Haruo