A day tour includes visiting Okayama castle (where you might like to try your hand at making a ceramic or get a photo of yourself in a kimono) and the elegant Korakuen gardens followed by a visit to Kurashiki and the old preserved quarter there. There is an option for a lovely cycling experience across the Kibi plain along riversides, past temples, and shrines.
Okayama Station or your hotel in Okayama
The black lacquer Okayama Castle and classic Korakuen considered one of the top three gardens in Japan
Visit the picturesque preserved historic quarter with its feudal age architecture and willow-lined canal.
A relaxed cycling excursion following the ancient trade route Kibi Plain flanked by expansive rice fields and orchards, along riversides visits to ancient monarch's burial mounds, temples and shrines,
Okayama Station or your hotel in Okayama
We will meet at Okayama Station and take a short tram ride for you to enjoy my guided tour of feudal age Okayama Castle and adjacent classically landscaped Korakuen Gardens. We will lunch transit to Kurashiki for lunch and stroll the Bikan Preserved Historical Quarter.
guide fee
fares and admissions (you and the guide)
Okayama Castel and Korakuen admission: ¥560
Tram to the castle: ¥100
fares (you and guide)
***My fares to Okayama and return ¥6230 each way = a total of ¥12, 460
Okayama to Kurashiki ¥320
Kurashiki to Soja ¥240
Bitch-Ichinomiya to Okayama ¥310
Cycle hire: ¥1000
Comfortable shoes.
I am based in Hiroshima and ask the guest to cover the cost of my fares including round trip transport to Okayama and return ¥6230 each way = a total of ¥14, 000
***Once I send a requested tour offer I hold that date for 36 hours. Please note that I supply tours for several companies and I will close that date to enquiries via other providers for that period; if a booking is not made I reopen my availability. I am contractually obliged to accept bookings made for dates open on a provider site calendar; as such, I cannot guarantee availability until a booking is set. Thanks for your understanding.
Hugh e’ stato una guida molto preparata, efficiente e simpatica. Grazie ai suoi racconti e alle sue spiegazioni siamo riusciti a immergerci nella cultura, anche culinaria, della città. Lo consiglio!
grazie mille Marinella! È stato un grande piacere condividere la giornata con tutti voi.
Hugh provided a wonderful tour for our small group of 4. It was both very informative and a lot of fun. He is extremely knowledgeable about the locations we toured, providing great depth and insights into their details, history and significance. He was also able to answer all our other questions about Japan in general. He clearly has a deep love and understanding of all things Japanese. Thanks Hugh for a wonderful tour!
Thanks Rob!
Hugh was incredible! He is a Japanese soul with an Aussie accent. His deep love and respect for Japan was immediately evident and he generously shared his take on history, culture, and language on our day-long adventure. He was easy to contact by email pre-trip to work out some details and was on time at our hotel starting point. We spent a full day on foot, train, and ferry to significant locations in and around Hiroshima. We especially enjoyed our lunch stop for okonomiyaki (savory pancake) at a wonderful location we never would have found on our own. Our group of 3 finished the day 10 times smarter than when we started.
Hugh is very knowledgeable and flexible to tailor our tour day due to changing circumstances. For example, when the trains to Mijiima were not available because of heavy rains and mud slide risks, we started out in the reverse order and started with the atomic bomb dome and museum. When became clear that the trains would still be out for a few more hours. We took a cab, tram and two boats to get to and from Miyajima and had a great time. He is a wealth of knowledge for history buffs like myself. His fluency in Japanese was flawless and great to have as a guide.
Thanks Barry! It was a great pleasure sharing the day as your guide.