Discover Ancient Nara: Private Car Tour from Kyoto or Osaka
Description
After enjoying sightseeing in Kyoto or Osaka, why not visit Nara? This ancient city, rich in nature and history, offers a unique kind of charm. For a smooth and comfortable tour, you’ll be accompanied by two staff members: a dedicated driver and a friendly guide. Depart from your hotel in Kyoto or Osaka ↓ Visit Todai-ji Temple to see the Great Buddha ↓ Stroll through Nara Park, feed the deer, and take photos ↓ Enjoy lunch at a lovely local Japanese restaurant Other dining options available on request ↓ Explore the Naramachi area Walk through traditional townhouses and browse local shops ↓ Visit Kasuga Taisha Shrine A historic shrine set in a sacred forest preserved for over 1,000 years ↓ Drive to Mount Wakakusa summit Enjoy panoramic views and photos with the deer ↓ Return to your hotel in Kyoto or Osaka ★ Optional experiences if time allows: Afternoon tea at the historic Nara Hotel Casual matcha experience Local Nara sake tasting Seasonal activities like strawberry picking
Tour Options
Itinerary
You can take commemorative photos with the deer and feed them to build a friendly connection.
When visiting Nara, you’ll definitely want to see the Great Buddha. Our guide will provide an explanation of the history of Todai-ji Temple.
Naramachi is a historic district in Nara. You can enjoy lunch, shopping, and even watch mochi-pounding at Nakatanidou. At Nigiwa-i-no-ie, you can explore the interior of a traditional townhouse.
Kasuga Taisha is the most famous shrine in Nara, attracting many visitors from all over Japan. A guide will accompany you during your visit.
Wakakusa Mountain offers a panoramic view of the cities of Nara and Osaka. It’s a perfect spot to capture stunning photos, especially with the deer and the breathtaking sunset. This is definitely a must-visit location, and you can even drive all the way to the top.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Let's meet at the hotel front desk. We will send the guide's WhatsApp contact before the tour day, so please feel free to reach out if you have trouble finding the guide.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(59)
Ami was a great guide, very professional and knowledgeable. She knew all the best tips to manage the deer :) and took us to some amazing stops. We really enjoyed the shrine, the Nara townhouse tour and the special local souvenir shops she showed us. Our shabu shabu lunch was also the most amazing. Thank you, Ami!
We had a great time with Sho our tour guide. It was a very laid back and comfortable experience. Nara gets crowded with tourists but having a private experience helps with understanding more of the area and what locations we are seeing. Sho was fun to talk with and kept things moving for us at a good and relaxed pace. We had a nice lunch at a favorite restaurant of his that we really enjoyed. Appreciated the view from the mountain top overlooking Nara to finish the day. Deer were up there too and the experience was more intimate compared to at deer park. Thank you Sho!!
Sho was the best tour guide! Very kind and knowledgeable about Japan. He was easy to talk to and showed us the best spots in Nara. It was so beautiful! Thank you so much for the amazing adventure
This was our 7th Viator tour and like all the others I have only good things to say. Our guide Sho was very accommodating, and professional. We loved our tour to Nara and had a wonderful lunch there. Thank you Viator for making our trip outstanding.
Tour guide Ami was a fantastic guide. She had such knowledge and expertise in getting us in and out of the sights so efficiently. She picked an amazing lunch spot out for us and was genuine with her interactions. Was the best guide we had in Japan.
A wonderful day with best guide and transport. We enjoyed the deer so much. Also the restaurant at lunch was so good and the owners were so nice.
Hello Karen, Thank you so much for your incredibly kind review. It was truly a pleasure to meet you. I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed the restaurant selection! I will continue to do my best to refine my guiding services and provide even better experiences in the future. I look forward to the day we can meet again in Japan. 💗Ami
Our day trip to Nara was excellent. We had an excellent guide Ami and. Very pleasant car driver, who took us to many places in Nara. Ami explained the special features of every place we visited. It was a very enjoyable and fulfilling day trip with the weather being nice too
Hello Mr. Subhash, I hope you made it back home safely. Thank you so much for your heartwarming review. It was truly a pleasure for us to meet such a wonderful couple like you. We are also very grateful for all the kindness and thoughtfulness you showed us during the day. Please come back and visit Japan again together sometime! Ami
Our guide Sho and driver Riki took amazing care of us during our day in Nara. Sho was kind, personable and shared a lot of interesting information with our family. He encouraged us to try new things and connected with our teenage son over a shared love of anime. Thank you so much for creating such a memorable experience!
We had a wonderful time on this private car tour of Nara, and it ended up being one of the best days of our trip. Everything was smooth and comfortable, and the pacing felt just right. We were able to see the main highlights without feeling rushed, and having a private car made the day so much easier. Our guide, Sho, was fantastic. He was very friendly, easy to talk to, and flexible based on what we wanted to do. Most importantly, Sho was amazing with our very active 5-year-old. He was patient, kind, and genuinely engaged with our child, which made the whole experience much more enjoyable for our family. He helped keep our kid interested and happy throughout the day, and that made a huge difference. Highly recommend this tour, especially for families traveling with young kids.
We had the pleasure of traveling with Sho-san. He was very pleasant, knowledgeable and flexible on what interested us. It was like traveling with a good friend.
