Japan · Tokyo · Hakone · Kyoto · Nara · Osaka
A private English-speaking guide who travels with you on the bullet train, 4★ hotels in central locations, one night in a hot-spring ryokan, and one team in Hanoi that can add Vietnam or Korea to the same trip.
In short
A private 10-day tour of Japan with Metta Voyage starts at US$2,500 per person for 10 days on Japan's Golden Route: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka in 10 Days: Tokyo, a ryokan night in Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka, with 4★ hotels, a private English-speaking guide on every sightseeing day and private airport transfers. The price is based on 2 travellers sharing, excludes international flights and is confirmed in your written tailor-made quote. As a rule of thumb, a well-planned private trip in Japan at this level costs around US$250 per person per day.
Metta Voyage is an Asia destination management company (DMC) based in Hanoi. In Japan your trip is run on the ground by a local partner team we have selected (guides, hotel and rail bookings), while our Hanoi office plans the itinerary, holds the contract and stays your one point of contact, 24/7, before and during the trip. Your guide speaks English (guide confirmed at quote stage, subject to availability in peak weeks).
If you would like to see more than Japan, we can add Vietnam in the same journey, as on Japan and Vietnam: Tokyo, Kyoto, Hanoi, Halong Bay and Hoi An in 13 Days from US$2,480 for 13 days, or South Korea on Japan and South Korea in 13 Days: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Seoul and Busan.
Updated 28 October 2026 · Metta Voyage, Asia DMC based in Hanoi
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Every programme below is a private tour with an English-speaking guide, run for your group only and adjusted to your dates, pace and hotel choice. Prices are per person, 2 travellers sharing in 4★ hotels, excluding international flights, and confirmed in your written quote.
| Trip | Days | Route | From (per person) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan's Golden Route: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka in 10 Days | 10 | Tokyo – Hakone – Kyoto – Arashiyama – Nara – Osaka | US$2,500 |
| Japan Cherry Blossom Tour: Tokyo, Mount Fuji, Kyoto, Nara and Himeji in 11 Days | 11 | Tokyo – Lake Kawaguchiko – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Himeji | US$2,750 |
| Japan in Autumn: Tokyo, Takayama, Shirakawa-go, Kanazawa and Kyoto in 11 Days | 11 | Tokyo – Takayama – Shirakawa-go – Kanazawa – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka | US$2,750 |
| Japan and Vietnam: Tokyo, Kyoto, Hanoi, Halong Bay and Hoi An in 13 Days | 13 | Tokyo – Hakone – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Hanoi – Halong Bay – Hoi An | US$2,480 |
| Japan and South Korea in 13 Days: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Seoul and Busan | 13 | Tokyo – Hakone – Kyoto – Nara – Osaka – Seoul – Gyeongju – Busan | US$3,250 |
| China and Japan in 13 Days: Beijing, Shanghai, Kyoto and Tokyo | 13 | Beijing – Great Wall (Mutianyu) – Shanghai – Zhujiajiao – Kyoto – Nara – Hakone – Tokyo | US$3,250 |
"From" prices are per person, based on 2 travellers sharing a twin or double room in 4★ hotels, excluding international flights. Every price is confirmed in your written tailor-made quote before you pay anything.
| Days | Typical route | From (per person) |
|---|---|---|
| 7 to 8 days | Tokyo, Hakone and Kyoto only, quoted on request | Around US$250 per day |
| 10 days | Golden Route: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara, Osaka | US$2,500 |
| 11 days | Cherry blossom or autumn colours, with Mount Fuji or Takayama | US$2,750 |
| 13 days | Japan and Vietnam, or Japan and South Korea | US$2,480 to US$3,250 |
| 3 weeks | Japan, Korea and Vietnam, quoted individually | On request |
Our most requested programme for a first visit, at a pace that suits travellers who prefer not to rush: three nights in Tokyo, a ryokan night in Hakone, three nights in Kyoto with a day trip to Nara on the way, and two nights in Osaka.
| Day | Programme | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive in Tokyo | Tokyo |
| 2 | Tokyo: Asakusa, Meiji Shrine and Shibuya | Tokyo |
| 3 | Tokyo: Tsukiji, gardens and the Imperial Palace | Tokyo |
| 4 | Hakone: ropeway, Lake Ashi and a ryokan night | Hakone |
| 5 | Bullet train to Kyoto and Fushimi Inari | Kyoto |
| 6 | Kyoto: Golden Pavilion and Arashiyama | Kyoto |
| 7 | Kyoto: Kiyomizu-dera, Higashiyama and Nishiki Market | Kyoto |
| 8 | Nara and on to Osaka | Osaka |
| 9 | Osaka: castle, markets and Shinsekai | Osaka |
| 10 | Depart Osaka | — |
Japan is the most expensive country we work in, and it is worth knowing where the money goes before comparing quotes. Four things make up most of the price:
That is why Japan's Golden Route: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka in 10 Days starts at US$2,500, while our seasonal programmes, Japan Cherry Blossom Tour: Tokyo, Mount Fuji, Kyoto, Nara and Himeji in 11 Days and Japan in Autumn: Tokyo, Takayama, Shirakawa-go, Kanazawa and Kyoto in 11 Days, start at US$2,750 for 11 days. Upgrading to 5★ hotels or a ryokan room with a private open-air bath is possible in every city; we price it line by line so you can choose where it is worth spending more.
Many travellers ask whether they really need a guide in Japan, a country famous for running smoothly. For a first visit, especially if you are over fifty and want to enjoy the trip rather than navigate it, we think the answer is yes. Station signage is excellent, but Tokyo and Kyoto stations are vast, temple opening hours vary and restaurant menus are often in Japanese only.
On our programmes your English-speaking guide travels with you by train and subway on sightseeing days. That is the normal way to move around Japanese cities: faster and more pleasant than sitting in traffic. Arrival and departure transfers are by private car, and you are never asked to manage your own luggage on a crowded train between cities; your guide can help you arrange luggage forwarding so the suitcases go ahead to the next hotel.
We confirm the guide for each city when we send your quote. In cherry-blossom and autumn-colour weeks, good English-speaking guides are booked early, which is one more reason to plan six to nine months ahead. Outside those weeks there is usually wide choice. Evenings and some afternoons are left free on purpose, so you can explore at your own pace.
A growing number of our guests fly a long way to reach Asia and want to see two very different countries on the same ticket. Japan and Vietnam work well together: Japan’s precision and gardens, then Vietnam’s warmth, street food and landscapes, with a direct flight from Osaka or Tokyo to Hanoi of around five to six hours.
Japan and Vietnam: Tokyo, Kyoto, Hanoi, Halong Bay and Hoi An in 13 Days starts at US$2,480 per person for 13 days. You spend six days on the Golden Route (Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara, Osaka), then fly to Hanoi for the Old Quarter, a night on a 4★ cruise boat in Halong Bay and three nights in Hoi An. Vietnam is our home ground: we run it with our own English-speaking guides and private vehicles.
Because one company handles the whole journey, you sign one contract, pay one 30% deposit and have one consultant to call. We book the flight between the two countries and time it so you do not lose a day. Other combinations we organise regularly:
Spring and autumn are the most beautiful seasons and also the busiest. Cherry blossoms usually open in Tokyo and Kyoto in the last week of March and last about a week; Japan Cherry Blossom Tour: Tokyo, Mount Fuji, Kyoto, Nara and Himeji in 11 Days is built around those dates. Autumn colours reach Takayama and Shirakawa-go from late October and Kyoto from mid-November, the timing used on Japan in Autumn: Tokyo, Takayama, Shirakawa-go, Kanazawa and Kyoto in 11 Days.
Japanese national holidays, especially Golden Week in early May and the New Year period, fill trains and hotels; we tell you in the quote if your dates overlap one.
Entry rules for Japan depend on your nationality and can change, so please check the official information before you book flights. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan lists visa requirements by country. Travellers from the UK can also read the UK government’s travel advice for Japan, and US citizens the US Department of State.
If you add Vietnam, Korea or another country, each one has its own rules, and some require an electronic authorisation before you fly. We include a short checklist with your quote, but the responsibility for visas stays with each traveller, and the official sites are the reference. Travel insurance is required on all our trips.
Metta Voyage is an Asia destination management company (DMC) based in Hanoi, licensed for international travel in Vietnam under licence 01-1167/2023/CDLQGVN-GP LHQT. Since late 2019 we have handled more than 2,000 bookings for over 10,100 international travellers, with a Tripadvisor rating of 4.9/5. We work with 869 partners across Asia: hotels, local guide teams, cruise operators and transport companies. Outside Vietnam, your trip is run on the ground by local partner teams we have selected and coordinated by our Hanoi office, so you have one point of contact, one contract and one written quote for the whole journey, with 24/7 support while you travel. You pay a 30% deposit and the balance 45 days before departure, and nothing before you have confirmed your quote. Hotline and WhatsApp: +84 812 247 572 · US +1 929 491 2828 · UK +44 7520 660929.
Our 10-day Golden Route, Japan's Golden Route: Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka in 10 Days, starts at US$2,500 per person, based on 2 travellers sharing in 4★ hotels with a ryokan night, a private English-speaking guide on sightseeing days and trains between cities. International flights are extra. Cherry-blossom and autumn versions of 11 days start at US$2,750, and 5★ upgrades are quoted city by city.
Yes. Every sightseeing day includes a private English-speaking guide who travels with you by train and subway, from day 2 to day 9 on the 10-day route. We confirm the guide when we send your quote; for late March, early April and November, booking six to nine months ahead gives the widest choice.
Yes, we do. Japan and Vietnam: Tokyo, Kyoto, Hanoi, Halong Bay and Hoi An in 13 Days combines Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto and Osaka with Hanoi, Halong Bay and Hoi An in 13 days, from US$2,480 per person. You have one contract, one quote, one 30% deposit and one consultant for both countries, and we book the flight from Osaka to Hanoi for you.
If you are only visiting Japan for a week, a Japanese agency is a sensible choice. Our strength is the longer trip: Japan plus Vietnam, Korea, China or Thailand with one contract and one contact, private guides throughout, and a team that knows the whole region. In Japan we work through a selected local partner team, coordinated from Hanoi, and we say so clearly in the quote.
For cherry blossom (late March to early April) and autumn colours (mid to late November), 6 to 9 months ahead. For other dates, 3 to 4 months is usually enough. You receive a programme and quote within 24 hours, pay nothing until you approve it, then 30% on confirmation and the balance 45 days before departure.
Yes, that is who most of our programmes are designed for. We keep hotels for two or three nights in a row, plan one main visit in the morning and a lighter one after lunch, and use private cars for arrivals and departures. Tell us about any mobility concerns and we adjust the walking, for example by using taxis instead of the subway in Kyoto.
Page updated on 28 October 2026. Prices and itineraries are taken from the tour pages linked above; entry rules change, so always check the official sites below before you travel.
Your private Japan trip, tailor-made
Tell us when you would like to travel, how many of you there are and what interests you most. A consultant sends you a programme and a written quote within 24 hours, with no obligation.
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WhatsApp / Tel: +84 812 247 572 · US +1 929 491 2828 · UK +44 7520 660929