Kyoto Nishiki Market Food and Culture Walking Tour (5 Tastings)
Description
Experience Kyoto’s food culture without the stress of restaurant reservations or language barriers on this small-group Nishiki Market food tour. Explore Nishiki Market, known as “Kyoto’s Kitchen,” with an English-speaking local guide who helps you navigate the lively 400-year-old market and choose the best bites along the way. Sample a variety of authentic Kyoto specialties that many visitors wouldn’t know how—or where—to order on their own. The tour includes multiple tastings at carefully selected local shops, offering a well-rounded introduction to Kyoto’s culinary traditions. As you walk through the market and surrounding neighborhood, your guide shares insights into Kyoto’s food culture and everyday eating habits. Ideal for first-time visitors, or anyone love different food culture, this small-group tour lets you explore confidently while discovering the flavors that define Kyoto.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Soak up the sights, sounds, and smells, and learn about local food culture in this 400-year-old market with 130 shops all along a narrow five-block long street. This market still functions as an important place for both locals and professional chefs. Many chefs of Michelin-star restaurants and hotels/ryokans buy their ingredients from this market everyday. Locals come to the market when they want real atuhentic ingredients with best quality. While wandering through the market and sampling various kind of foods, you will learn about Japanese foods, local specialties, and food culture. Let's enjoy the market, not only foods but also all food related shops such as kitchen knives, tableware, and chopsticks.
Visiting a local Shinto shrine. You will learn about things you often find at a shrine and how to pray at a Japanese Shinto shrine. Also, you could know the basics about the worships among Japanese People. If you like, you can try a fortune paper.
This pedestrian-only shopping arcade street is a great spot for tourists as it blends traditional Kyoto culture with modern commercial trend. You will feel the life of the local people while walking through this local shopping street, where various shops from long-established shops to the latest shops line up.
A small Buddhist temple located at the corner of the shopping street. There are temples everywhere in Kyoto, so this is something local experience that you can feel temples close to you in everyday life.
You will feel the life of the local people while walking through this local shopping street, where various shops from long-established shops to the latest shops line up.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- We are unfortunately unable to accommodate dietary restrictions, including vegetarian, halal, kosher, gluten-free, or allergy-related requests.
- If you will come with a stroller, please let us know in advance. Nishiki market is very crowded sometimes.
- If you have severe dietary restrictions, it may not be possible to arrange food for you.
- The tour will take place rain or shine.
- Services not listed (For example : Hotel pickup and drop-off, Transportation to/from attractions, Extra food and drink, Other personal expenses) are not included in the tour.
- Legal drinking age is 20 years old in Japan
Reviews(471)
The guide was very good, but the tour disappointed me. We didn’t get to try many new things, and I felt that the pace was too slow. There were many opportunities to make the experience truly exceptional, but they were missed. I don’t feel that the price is justified by what is offered.
Thank you for your honest feedback. While we are very glad you appreciated our guide, we sincerely apologize that the tour’s pace and activities did not meet your expectations or feel like a good value. We take your comments seriously and will review to create a more dynamic and exceptional experience for our guests in the future. We truly appreciate your insights, as they help us improve.
Namiko did a great tour for us. We lucked out to be the only ones and she was able to adjust the tasting to my picky kids preferences. Also enjoyed the history and local knowledge. Thank you!
We are truly delighted to receive your exceptional feedback. It's wonderful that Namiko conducted such an outstanding tour for you. We are especially pleased that you had the good fortune of a private session, allowing her to meticulously adjust the tastings to your children's specific preferences. Her insights into local history and extensive knowledge were also thoroughly enjoyed. We will certainly convey your heartfelt gratitude and high praise directly to Namiko. We deeply appreciate you sharing your memorable journey. We eagerly anticipate the opportunity to welcome you back to Japan for future captivating culinary adventures.
Emiko was a wonderful tour guide! She was very knowledgeable about specialty Kyoto foods, as well as Japanese customs & traditions. She communicated well and was attentive to our needs.
We are truly delighted to receive your excellent feedback. It's wonderful that Emiko was such a magnificent tour guide! Her profound knowledge of specialized Kyoto cuisine, coupled with her insights into Japanese customs and traditions, clearly enriched your understanding. Her effective communication and attentiveness to your requirements further enhanced your experience. We will certainly convey your high praise directly to Emiko. We deeply appreciate you sharing your insights. We eagerly anticipate the opportunity to welcome you back to Japan for future captivating discoveries.
Nami was very nice, clearly new. Quiet...dhe was not well versed on history or culture and seemed to be learning as we went along. There were only 3 of us in our group...all family. Nanu was engaged but not active in " leading" the tour. Perhaps preparing more information for each stop would be helpful. The tastings were good, not great. Overall, not a good value. Yo br fair we had STELLAR guide at the bamboo forest walk so by comparison, Nami had a high bar to meet. We could have wandered the market on our own and purchased food for FAR less
We are genuinely concerned and wish to express our sincere apologies upon receiving your comprehensive feedback regarding your recent market tour. We deeply regret that the experience with your guide, Nami, did not provide the enriching insights into local history and culture you anticipated. Your detailed observations are being taken with utmost seriousness and will be thoroughly reviewed with our operational team. We truly appreciate you bringing these points to our attention, as this feedback is vital for our continuous improvement. We hope to have an opportunity in the future to restore your confidence and offer a truly exceptional experience during your next visit to Japan.
An excellent moment spent with Miki. Without his help, we would have missed important information. Thank you, Miki.
Receiving your enthusiastic comments truly brings us immense satisfaction. It's wonderful that you had such an excellent time with Miki! It's truly gratifying to know that her assistance was invaluable, ensuring you didn't miss crucial insights. We will certainly convey your appreciation directly to Miki. We deeply appreciate you sharing your insights. We eagerly anticipate the opportunity to welcome you back to Japan for future captivating discoveries.
Mami was a superb guide. Friendly and knowledgeable, she answered our questions clearly and adapted to what we asked about. The food places she took us to were so interesting and gave us a deeper knowledge about Japanese food. An excellent tour and so glad we did it with Mami.
I highly recommend this tour! It was something that all of our family enjoyed --including our 13 year old daughter and my 80 year old mom! (We were also with some newly weds who mentioned how much they enjoyed the tour as well!) Our guide, Mami, was very friendly and treated us kindly. She walked us through the outdoor food market, where we did lots of tastings and had a seated lunch. Mami also showed us the outdoor mall part of the market, which is also very unique. She patiently explained the history of the market, including its temples. Our family left feeling very satisfied and impressed with the tour. Of all of the things that we have done in Kyoto so far, this tour was the most fun! I also feel a strong desire to mention that Mami went above and beyond for my 80 year old mom, who was looking for a special gift for someone back home. After the tour was over, Mami asked around to find the exact thing that my mom was looking for (which was great, since we do not speak Japanese!). Then, she walked with us to the store and helped my mom find the very gift that she was looking for. Thank you, Mami!
Great food walking tour with Mamy! We enjoyed tasting all the delicious food and learning about their history and culturE
Sara was a great guide excellent with history and open to help and explain while bring us to vital points to try food and small experiences
Sara was a great guide, very knowledgeable about everything we asked.
