Free Cancellation
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Cancellation Policy
Free Cancellation
February 05100% refund
February 06No refund
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experienceās start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experienceās start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experienceās start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experienceās local time.
This experience requires good weather. If itās canceled due to poor weather, youāll be offered a different date or a full refund.
Takayama Full-Day Private Tour with Government Licensed Guide
2 Adults x $285.60
$571.20
Approx Total
$571.20
Pickup included
Inclusions / Exclusions
Mobile ticket
Offered in: Japanese, English
Meet up with guide on foot within designated area of Takayama
Licensed Local English Speaking Guide
Customizable Tour of your choice of 3-4 sites from 'What to expect' list
Transportation fees, Entrance fees, Lunch, and Other personal expenses
Private transportation
You cannot combine multiple tour groups.
Guide Entry fees are only covered for sights listed under What to Expect.
Overview
This value-packed trip with a government-licensed and experienced multilingual tour guide is a fantastic and efficient way to explore Takayama!
Takayama features an atmospheric townscape, with Meiji-era inns and hillside shrines in a riverside setting. In addition, many museums, galleries and temples make their home in the city's 17th century layout. Be sure to come see the Takayama Festival, held once in spring and once in autumn, but be prepared for the crowds as the festivals attract hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Let us know what you would like to experience and we will customize a six-hour tour that's best for you!
Note*1: Please select your must-see spots from a list in the tour information to create your customized itinerary.
Note*2: National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter certification is issued by the Japanese government requires a good knowledge and understanding of Japanese culture and history.
This private tour is a walking day tour. A private vehicle is not included. Public transportation or local taxis maybe used to transfer between sites. Exact transportation costs can be discussed with the guide after a reservation is finalized. Please have Japanese Yen on hand for your transportation costs. If ...
you wish to arrange for a private vehicle, please contact us directly. All Private vehicles must be booked 5 days in advance. Maximum number of passengers: 7. Read more ā¼
Itinerary
Sanmachi Suji
Sanmachi Street is a popular sightseeing area in Hida-Takayama. As an old town, the area has houses and stores from the Edo period (1603 - 1868). The area is lined with shops carrying local specialties such as Japanese sake, senbei (rice crackers), barbecue yakiniku Hida beef, and croquettes. The area has a lively atmosphere with people shopping and eating.
Sanmachi Street is a five-minute walk from JR Takayama Station. Be sure to stop by when you visit Takayama.
30 minutes
Hida no Sato
Hida Folk Village (é£éØØć®é, Hida no Sato) is an open air museum exhibiting over 30 traditional houses from the Hida region, the mountainous district of Gifu Prefecture around Takayama. The houses were built during the Edo Period (1603 - 1867) and were relocated from their original locations to create the museum in 1971.
In a village-like atmosphere, the museum features buildings such as the former village head's house, logging huts, storehouses and a number of gassho-zukuri farmhouses. These massive farmhouses are named after their steep thatched roofs which resemble a pair of hands joined in prayer ("gassho"). They were moved here from nearby Shirakawago, where gassho-zukuri houses are the reason for the region's World Heritage status.
Admission
700 yen (parking: 300 yen)
30 minutes
Takayama Jinya
Because of its valuable timber resources, the Hida Region around Takayama was put under direct control of the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1692. The Takayama Jinya (é«å±±é£å±) served as the local government office headed by the officials dispatched from Edo (present day Tokyo).
The building complex was in official use until 1969, and is now open to the public as a museum. It includes various nicely maintained tatami mat rooms that once served as offices, conference rooms, guest rooms and residential space. There is also an interesting interrogation room.
Beside the main building stands a large storehouse built in the 1600s. Known as the biggest traditional rice storehouse in Japan, it now functions as a museum, showcasing belongings and official documents of past feudal lords, old maps of the Hida Region and historic town plans.
Admission
440 yen
30 minutes
Hida Takayama Art and Festa Forest
Located outside of Takayama's city center, the Matsuri no Mori (ć¾ć¤ćć®ę£®, lit. "Festival Forest") showcases the key aspects of the Takayama Festival, which takes place for two days each spring and autumn. The festival is known as one of Japan's three most beautiful, along with Kyoto's Gion Matsuri and the Chichibu Yomatsuri.
From the museum's entrance, an approximately 50 meter long hallway leads to the main exhibition space which is located underground, giving it a cave-like atmosphere. The hallway is lined on the left by eleven miniature festival floats, one third the size of those used in the autumn festival. On the right are ostentatious golden-lacquered folding screens which depict famous floats from festivals in Kyoto and other cities.
Takayama Festival Floats Exhibition Hall(é«å±±ē„å±å°ä¼é¤Ø).
The Takayama Festival, held in spring (April 14 and 15) and autumn (October 9 and 10), is ranked as one of Japan's three most beautiful festivals (the other two are Kyoto's Gion Matsuri and the Chichibu Matsuri).
Four of the autumn festival's eleven floats (yatai) are exhibited at the Takayama Matsuri Yatai Kaikan (é«å±±ē„å±å°ä¼é¤Ø), a hall next to Sakurayama Hachiman Shrine. The elaborately decorated floats are several hundred years old and beautiful examples of Takayama's legendary craftsmanship.
Adjacent to the Matsuri Yatai Kaikan lies the Nikkokan, a spacious hall containing impressive models of the different precincts of Toshogu Shrine in Nikko, one of the most ornate and celebrated shrines in the country. The miniature models are beautifully intricate and are accompanied by short explanations in Japanese and English. Photos are permitted inside both halls.
30 minutes
Hida-Takayama Miyagawa Morning Market
Two morning markets (ęåø, Asaichi) are held in Takayama on a daily basis from around 7:00 (8:00 in winter) to noon: the Miyagawa Market along the Miyagawa River in the old town, and the Jinya-mae Market in front of the Takayama Jinya.
The stands sell local crafts, snacks and farm products such as vegetables, pickles and flowers. There is typically a pleasant atmosphere around the markets, as tourists and locals alike saunter from stall to stall purchasing goods and food and talking.
30 minutes
Hida Kokubun-ji Temple
Hida Kokubunji Temple, about a five-minute walk from JR Takayama Station, is a well-known Buddhist temple in Takayama. Its iconic three-storied pagoda was constructed in 1820. A Buddhist statue thought to have been made in the Heian period is enshrined in the main building. Be sure to take notice of the huge gingko tree on the grounds. It is over 1,260 years of age.
30 minutes
Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine
Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine in Takayama is the venue for the Takayama Festival in the autumn. Next to the shrine is the Takayama Festival Floats Exhibition Hall, or Yatai Kaikan, where four of the actual floats used in the festival are on display. The shrine is 15 minutes by Machinami Bus (clockwise) or a 20 minute walk from JR Takayama Station.
30 minutes
Kusakabe Folk Museum
The Kusakabe Folk Museum is a historic private residence that was opened to the public. The building was constructed during the Meiji period in Edo architectural style. It is due to its splendid architectural technique, the entire building is designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan. The museum is thirteen minutes by Machinami Bus (counterclockwise) or a fifteen-minute walk from JR Takayama Station.
30 minutes
Yoshijima Heritage House
Yoshijima Heritage House was built in Meiji 41 (1908). Because it has been a Sake brewery since olden times, a huge sakabayashi (sign of a shop dealing in sake, made of Japanese ceder leaves) is hung under the eaves. In contrast to the masculine style of the Kusakabe house, it can be said that this Yoshijima house is a structure possessing subtlety and feminine beauty.
10 minutes
Takayama Showakan
Takayama Showa-kan Museum, The retro streets of 1950 are reconstructed inside the museum, and the lifestyle and culture of that time period are nostalgically revived. There is Midget Alley, a barbershop, a photo studio and a general store. Many nostalgic items are on display, and visitors can see and feel the good old days.
10 minutes
Hida Takayama Retro Museum
There is old good atmosphere with a set of Showa movies at Hida Takayama retro museum. You can actually āSee itā,āSnap itā and āPlay itā a figure, magazine, poster, toy, game, showa retro pachinko, etc. It is an experience-type of museum that you can feel the life and culture of Showa.
10 minutes
Sample Menu
Additional Info
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
Wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
This is a walking tour. Pick up is on foot.
Free Cancellation
February 05100% refund
February 06No refund
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experienceās start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experienceās start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experienceās start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experienceās local time.
This experience requires good weather. If itās canceled due to poor weather, youāll be offered a different date or a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.3
8 reviews
Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
5 stars
6
4 stars
0
3 stars
1
2 stars
0
1 star
1
We perform checks on reviews
We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her
Reviews by TravelOne travelers
Showing 1-5 of 6 reviews with 5 stars
Clear filter
The best way to see and understand Takayama
Published on Nov, 2024
Elvis was a lovely man who took us on a journey of discovery through the streets of Takayama where we were introduced to the fascinating life and history of Takayama.
What a great day, with Enlish speaking guide
Published on Jun, 2024
Did a full day trip to, Takayama and Shirkawago, our guide was Akira Hishida, he was so informative, and just a great guy to spend the day with, I would highly recommend any tour with Akira.
Excellent option for one day in Takayama
Published on Dec, 2023
This tour was an excellent option to enjoy the town and learn about its history, culture, crafts and gastronomy. Akane Ito was an excellent guide, very knowledgeable of the town's history and the best places to visit. We visited Takayama for one day.
Excellent tour of Takayama Autumn Festival with Yoko
Published on Oct, 2022
One of the highlights of our trip to Japan has been our tour of Takayama with Yoko. Yokoās command of English is excellent. Not only was she flexible in building our customized tour around our interests, but it was a pleasure to discuss topics of interest to us like language and culture, and she has a fun sense of humor. Yokoās pleasant demeanor greatly enhanced our enjoyment of the Autumn Takayama Festival (é«å±±ē„, Takayama Matsuri). We definitely recommend JGA for personalized tours, and in particular we recommend Yoko Tabata.
Great experience at own leisure
Published on Feb, 2020
We have a good tour guide and her name is Satomi. She speak well in English and very polite. She is very knowledgeable and accommodate to our needs throughout the walking tour. We enjoy having her with us as she takes us around to a few nice places. Glad to have her, we can be worry free and get to enjoy the full day tour at our own leisure.
We guarantee the lowest price on all 200,000+ experiences we sell. If you find the same product cheaper within three days of booking or while you're in your destination, we'll refund the difference.It's Easy To Do
Gather your information
Assemble your Viator Booking Number or Itinerary Reference Number and the proof of the lower price you found.
Send it to us
Email connect@travelone.io with the documents, your name, and your home address.
We'll review
We'll examine your materials and get in touch as soon as we can.
Receive your refund
If everything checks out, we'll refund you the difference between the two prices.
TravelOne uses cookies to give you the best possible service. If you continue browsing, you agree to the use of cookies. More details can be found in ourĀ privacy policy.
Free Cancellation
