Private walking tours in Aomori

We have traveled far and wide but rarely have had a tour that was so meaningful for us. This is highly recommended! Yamiko and Fumiho met us at the cruise port terminal and greeted us right as we got off the boat. They gave us a map showing what we would tour for the next 3 hrs as well as recommendations on other sights to visit after the tour. We really learned a lot about Aomori (and are glad we did not visit in their snowy winters! - they took us to places in town and showed us pictures of the exact same location in winter). We walked thru downtown and visited a Japanese sweet shop (and sampled) and learned that the shop keeper went to Vienna to learn more about European treats and brought them to the shop. We visited a department store and it’s gourmet grocery where we learned about what the Japanese ate and also sampled some green teas (and acquired taste 😉). We went to a Lacquered shop to see the lacquered style that makes Aomori famous. A visit to a Japanese tea house was a nice touch - everything is so respectful and carefully presented everywhere. A big highlight was visits to Shrines and Temples where they explained the meanings of the various parts (eg Turtles represent long life), the highlight was visiting a Temple, where we met the Monk’s wife, and toured the massive temple to see how Japanese culture is practiced - it is quite moving and impressive. Rarely do you get a tour where the guides are so thoughtful and focused on making your experience special.

We have traveled far and wide but rarely have had a tour that was so meaningful for us. This is highly recommended! Yamiko and Fumiho met us at the cruise port terminal and greeted us right as we got off the boat. They gave us a map showing what we would tour for the next 3 hrs as well as recommendations on other sights to visit after the tour. We really learned a lot about Aomori (and are glad we did not visit in their snowy winters! - they took us to places in town and showed us pictures of the exact same location in winter). We walked thru downtown and visited a Japanese sweet shop (and sampled) and learned that the shop keeper went to Vienna to learn more about European treats and brought them to the shop. We visited a department store and it’s gourmet grocery where we learned about what the Japanese ate and also sampled some green teas (and acquired taste 😉). We went to a Lacquered shop to see the lacquered style that makes Aomori famous. A visit to a Japanese tea house was a nice touch - everything is so respectful and carefully presented everywhere. A big highlight was visits to Shrines and Temples where they explained the meanings of the various parts (eg Turtles represent long life), the highlight was visiting a Temple, where we met the Monk’s wife, and toured the massive temple to see how Japanese culture is practiced - it is quite moving and impressive. Rarely do you get a tour where the guides are so thoughtful and focused on making your experience special. Yamiko had even gone to the UK to study English so we were able to communicate well enough. It made Aomori special to us and we will never forget this spectacular tour! You can not understand Aomori without a local yo explain it

A truly enjoyable tour! We felt so well taken care of and our time was well utilized! Our guides, Michiko and Fumiho, were awesome, helpful, incredibly organized and spoke excellent English. It was their mission to ensure their guests have the best tour experience. They also provided helpful tips for our own exploration after the tour. Local knowledge that enriches our time in Aomori. Would highly recommend this tour!

I booked this tour rather than an over priced excursion on the Royal Caribbean cruise port stop. We were on the 14 day crossing from Tokyo to Vancouver BC. I thought the excursions were priced very high so I searched alternatives and found this little gem! It was private, just me and my husband with guides Hiro and Fuhimo. It was very intimate and an easy 3 hours seeing Aomori downtown core. We had a delightful coffee stop at a local shop where we visited and had a very nice relaxing start! The highlights for us were the very insightful walk thru the fish market that has become a very unique walk thru restaurant! If you are a foodie and adventurous I would highly recommend making this a highlight of your tour and actually eat - bring cash. I’m not that adventurous so it was a fabulous walk thru experience for me, but would be outstanding for those who can eat raw fish! Second highlight was the private time in the temple with the Monk, that was incredible and so very special! We were allowed inside a “no tourist” temple and were given a talk by the Monk with the help of interpreter Hiro! It was very special, we were just shocked we were allowed inside and able to have that experience! Our guides were so personable and knowledgeable, this was a great tour, I highly recommend and would do it again if was to come back, and my husband would eat in the fish market restaurant!!

Our guides offered expert knowledge of places we visited that we most likely would not have discovered on our own excellent English which helped as well

Fabulous tour of the city. A great intimate experience to allow a tour of the city and understanding of the local life. Hosts Mika and Fumiho were gracious and spoke excellent English.

One of the best tours I did in my two months in Japan. my guides Hiro and Fukuoka were awesome, helpful and took care of everything. Checking out some local shops, sights, sake shops and izakayas! I would do this tour again in a heartbeat!!!