Essential Japan

Traveler Reviews

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  D.A5.0•September 2025
  My wife and I took this tour with friends, and we did not expect how great it would be. Our original plan was to...
  My wife and I took this tour with friends, and we did not expect how great it would be. Our original plan was to traverse the country alone and figure things out as we went, but we would not have seen or experienced all the places Travel Talk took us to. Our guide, Sonny Cormack, was great too, as he took us to every destination and left us to explore on our own. We felt safe and empowered to try new things. His understanding of the culture and language made the experience one to remember. We're already making plans to return.Show more
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  Traveled in September 2025
  

  Reply from: Travel Talk

  Hi, thank you for sharing such wonderful feedback. We’re so pleased to hear that joining the tour exceeded your expectations and allowed you to experience so much more than travelling alone. It’s great that Sonny’s knowledge, guidance, and support made you feel both safe and free to explore at your own pace. We’re delighted the journey left such a lasting impression, and we look forward to welcoming you back on another adventure soon. All the best, Travel Talk Team

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• AB

  Ashley5.0•February 2025
  Best trip I have ever taken! Loved our tour guide and group. The accommodations were amazing and beautiful. We...
  Best trip I have ever taken! Loved our tour guide and group. The accommodations were amazing and beautiful. We especially loved the private Onsen. Would do again 10/10 no notes!Show more
  Traveled in April 2023
  

  Reply from: Travel Talk

  Hi Ashley, thank you for the wonderful review! We're thrilled to hear that you had such an amazing experience in Japan. It sounds like you truly enjoyed the beautiful accommodations and the relaxing private Onsen! We’d love to welcome you on another adventure soon. All the best, Travel Talk Team

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• LV

  Leonard4.0•June 2024
  Tour guide was very knowledgeable
  Traveled in May 2024
  

  Reply from: Travel Talk

  Hi Leonard, thank you for your review! We're glad to hear that you enjoyed your Highlights of Japan tour with your guide. We hope to see you on another adventure with us soon!

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  Irene4.0•May 2024
  The tour was great but the communication from Travel Talk was very poor. 1. We had a difficult time learning the...
  The tour was great but the communication from Travel Talk was very poor. 1. We had a difficult time learning the booked hotels and only learned the final location a day or two in advance after multiple emails. 2. The tour incorrectly listed the departure time as 12 noon when the actual departure was 8:30am. 3. Details about luggage was not specified. That being said, the cities, sites and tour guide, Kay, were great and we had a fabulous time. This was our first Public Transportation Tour. We loved trains and were looking forward to using public transportation. We decided to bring one medium sized suitcase and a backpack to make walking with luggage easier. It would have been too cumbersome to have a carry-on, medium suitcase and backpack. To our surprise, we learned that our luggage would be sent from our current location to the destination we would be at in the future. This made train travel easier, but the only caveat is that you have to live out of your backpack for 1-2 days for two different portions of the journey. This was fine, but it was communicated to us by the tour company. Some people had to pay extra for luggage transport as only one piece per person was included in the tour price.Show more
  Traveled in May 2024
• AP

  Anita1.0•April 2024
  This “tour” ended up being a poor method of transport from one city to another. Any hope of being guided and seeing...
  This “tour” ended up being a poor method of transport from one city to another. Any hope of being guided and seeing places listed in the written summary were quickly dashed with the guide’s comment: “no we won’t see that/do that- the plan has changed.” The tour guide, while I’m sure a nice human being, was not at all prepared to keep ten people following him. No umbrella or flag to see him in a crowd of people. Tour member gave him a bright colored hat to find him. Without that, he would have lost us. Especially worrisome was his not good grasp of English. He said left when he meant right (a big problem in a busy train station) and several times led the exhausted group up and down stairs at stations only to realize it was the wrong way. One pair of the group had to go back to USA due to sudden death in family. He could not help them arrange for their baggage, and he would not )as in, REFUSED) to give them a manager phone number to call. Unbelievable!! Other times the tour didn’t allow for any time to buy food - if you didn’t have snacks you were out of luck for as long as twelve (yes, 12!!) hours. All in all, hotel cost and transportation cost could have been done on our own for less than half the “discount” price. Would not recommend TourRadar Japan tours AT ALL. Luggage handling was farcical - send away your luggage for 2 days between stops, no hauling of backpacks and carryons like other tour companies provide. Use of public buses where you may end up squished and standing for an hour or two. This is not a tour.Show more
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  Traveled in March 2024
  

  Reply from: Travel Talk

  Dear Anita, thank you very much for taking the time to share your experience. Firstly, can you kindly share with us the sights that you should have seen, but haven’t? We are investigating your points with our local partners and any further feedback on this would be much appreciated. We are sorry to hear you have not been happy with our tour leader. Even though our guides are consistently rated above 4.5 in Japan, we will ensure such a case won’t be repeated. Regarding your point about the pair on the tour, they have not preferred to inform us of the loss directly, instead another reason was given for their departure. Nonetheless, as they provided this information only to our tour guide in Japan, we have been indirectly informed. As a result, we have covered the pair’s additional costs required to return their luggage to their country at our expense. We would have hoped our gesture to be appreciated on this matter. Please also keep in mind that our emergency contact and customer service numbers are available in any email you have received from us regarding your trip. Your comments about the tour tempo are noted, we are in contact with our local partners to resolve this issue for a better experience for all our future guests. Finally, please note that information about luggage transfers is detailed on the Tour Inclusions, in the Trip Notes, as well as in a reminder email sent to you prior to your tour. As bullet trains are the most efficient and comfortable form of transport between sights, all tour companies who use trains provide luggage transfers either as free of charge, like we do, or at an extra cost. It is clearly listed on which days and for how long guests will be without their large luggage. Similarly, despite the itinerary and the inclusions sections state that we use public bus on one day of your tour, we are sorry to hear it has been a poor experience for you. We sincerely thank for all your comments as we strive to improve our services day by day to provide you with the most unforgettable travel experiences. We hope to see you again on future adventures together.

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• EM

  Emma5.0•January 2024
  Our 8 day trip was amazing - the destinations were perfect (especially Takayama - where it snowed). The accom was...
  Our 8 day trip was amazing - the destinations were perfect (especially Takayama - where it snowed). The accom was great & the other people in the tour were really friendly - turned out to be a great combination. Above all, our tour guide Yoshi was sensational - great English, great knowledge & always got us everywhere on time. Highly recommend this tour (as long as Yoshi is your guide)Show more
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  Traveled in January 2024
  

  Reply from: Travel Talk

  Hi Emma, thank you for your wonderful review! We're so glad to hear that you had a great time on your tour through Japan with your group and guide. We really appreciate you sharing your experience, and hope to welcome you on another adventure with us soon! All the best, Travel Talk Team

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• AD

  Antonela3.0•December 2023
  Japan is a fascinating country, and this tour has a great itinerary, covering many must-see places. However, my...
  Japan is a fascinating country, and this tour has a great itinerary, covering many must-see places. However, my experience with Travel Talk was not great. The tour guide had zero experience as a travel guide, it was actually his first time leading a group tour. I believe that Travel Talk only started tours in Japan in 2023, so that should have been a red flag already. But I was hopeful that by March when I went on the tour, they would haven gained a bit of experience and everything would be OK. However, that was not the case. For example, the hotels that we were supposed to stay in got changed at the last minute. This caused me much frustration both in Tokyo as well as Kyoto, because I had booked my pre and post tour accommodations based on the original hotels we were supposed to stay at. For example, in Tokyo I had to check out and travel to the other side of town to join the tour at the newly chosen hotel, wasting 2 hours of my precious time there. The itinerary was not going according to plan either. For example, in Tokyo we were supposed to go to the famous fish market. That never happened. Other items on the itinerary were removed as well, and even the guide felt bad for us and said the only thing we can do is write a review and complain to Travel Talk. Highly recommend going to Japan but not with Travel Talk.Show more
  Traveled in March 2023
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  Anita3.0•December 2023
  The food and hotel was five stars. We did everything on the list. The guide at best was a three star.
  Traveled in December 2023
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  Jennifer5.0•November 2023
  The 8 day "Highlights of Japan" tour run by Travel Talk was really a 6 day tour as we met for a briefing and optional...
  The 8 day "Highlights of Japan" tour run by Travel Talk was really a 6 day tour as we met for a briefing and optional diner meeting which counted as Day 1 and then Day 8 was a farewell at Breakfast. Mariko Takehana-our guide, was excellent. She was patient, knowledgeable and made our tour extremely pleasant . Tour Radar was good with pre tour communication. Travel talk was extremely poor regarding hotels and most tour participants had issues with knowing hotels and having ability to plan their trips. this puts extra unnecessary stress on travel. I would recommend Tour Radar but would hesitate to recommend Travel TalkShow more
  Traveled in November 2023
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  Elion5.0•October 2023
  Guide was top notch; we did not the same guide as the less positive reviews below. There is so much to see and do in...
  Guide was top notch; we did not the same guide as the less positive reviews below. There is so much to see and do in each of the places on the tour that it really feels like you need someone who knows what they're doing every step of the way to point you in the right direction. The stuff in the itinerary is great too. Day one is fantastic and sets the tone for the rest of the trip - active, interesting, and tiring (in a good way). I run regular 5Ks and the leg work here is no joke; my calves were worked stiff most every day. It made for a very rewarding vacation and I was sad to leave by the end.Show more
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  Traveled in September 2023