Kyoto Private Customizable Day Trip With English chauffeur
Recommended by 98% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Kyoto, Japan
- 8 to 10 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
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Overview
Kyoto offers countless attractions, but navigating public transportation can be time-consuming. Skip the language barriers and the train confusion with this hassle-free private car tour. Travel comfortably in a private vehicle and follow a carefully crafted itinerary tailored to your interests, with possible stops including Arashiyama Bamboo Forest and Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine.
- Swap busy subway trains and buses for a private car tour
- Enjoy the perk of included hotel pickup and drop-off
- Seamless way to explore lots of Kyoto highlights in a day
- A private trip means a more personalized service
What's Included
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- English Speaking Driver
- Parking Fees
- Fuel surcharge
- Pick-up and Drop-off to Hotel
- LunchAll food not included
- Entry tickets
- Any Special Ride or Cruise not Included in this Package
- We will charge to Pick up from Osaka port and Kobe port¥25,000.00 per booking
Meeting and Pickup
You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup
Operating hours.8:00 am
Itinerary
1
Arashiyama
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Kinkakuji Temple
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
3
Kyoto Imperial Palace
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
4
Nishiki Market Shopping District
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
5
Sanjusangendo Temple
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
6
Ginkakuji Temple
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
7
Kiyomizu-dera Temple
1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included
8
Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Infant seats available
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
JAYAKRISHNAKAMAL_K
Totally customized for us, based on our interests even with last minute requests for change in itinerary by us, and perfectly executed tour. Dhanush, our driver and our guide, went above and beyond and made sure we were taken care of and we learned a lot from him. Will absolutely utilize him again.
Reviews
4.9
based on 60 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Debby_S, Jul 2026
Sam picked us up at the ship terminal and provided a complete day of touring Kyoto! We visited many sites and Sam stayed with us at each one and shared interesting facts! Sam is a “ natural photographer “ and took many creative photos of us. He also took us to a wonderful local restaurant for lunch. It is our hope to return to Kyoto again in the future and be guided by Sam!
Ernie_W, Jul 2026
Our driver, Dhanu, while quite pleasant, was quite unprepared for our visit. As compared to a Viator trip with two additional guests in Tokyo earlier in the week (and all of the other Viator tours we have taken over the years), the was a vast disappointment.
Granted it was very hot in Kyoto, but our guide was not able to reasonably answer questions related to some of the areas that we were visiting. In particular, we specifically wanted to see the snow monkeys, but his description of the climb up the large hill did not begin to describe how arduous it was. And this was at the beginning of the day.
In addition, there was holiday activity in the center of town which precluded vehicle traffic. It meant that one of the activities proposed in the Viator description was not possible. The problem was not going to the market precluded any shopping during the day.
It is not that we did not see a lot of interesting monuments and locations. However, our guide seemed oblivious to our discomfort. The vehicle’s air conditioning was insufficient in the heat. And we were frequently in a burning sun without protection (we had traveled for the day from Tokyo arriving at 8:00 am). The guide did not provide umbrellas for protection (we were suncreened but reapplication is difficult if one is overheated). There appeared to be little recognition of our needs.
Towards lunchtime, and then as Dhanu left us at the train station, he could only provide us with vague suggestions for places to eat a meal.
We are not saying that we did not enjoy what we did, our guide provided little benefit.
Jim_K, Jul 2026
This is a great tour that hits all the highlights of Kyoto and it is very flexible, so you can modify it as you wish. Our guide was friendly and knowledgeable. Highly recommend this tour.
Erin_R, Jul 2026
We had such a wonderful day with Yash! We took a customized tour to Kyoto and Yash was very knowledgeable. Not only would I recommend this tour, but I would recommend requesting Yash as your guide. Sweltering over 100° we got into a beautifully air-conditioned vehicle. Yash was also a highly skilled photographer and our photos came out great.
Irma_B, Jul 2026
It was a great experience! The itinerary had plenty of time to spend at each location and recommended lunch location was very enjoyable.
KISHA_M, Jul 2026
The excursion was absolutely amazing. Our tour guide, Shaun, was very warm, pleasant, and informative. He was very knowledgeable about the sites and we felt right at home with him. The tour is well worth it as it highlights the main points of Kyoto especially if you’re on a time crunch.
belinda_d, Jun 2026
The traveling is very smooth since Sanca takes care of the driving and parking. Each seat is air conditioned. Sanca explains the history and importance of each temple. He walks with you so you have a photographer and guide all the time!
Mike_H, Jun 2026
We didn't have much time but managed to see the highlights in one day. Our guide was knowledgeable and efficient even managing to find a great stop for lunch.
Eamon_W, Jun 2026
We had an awesome time with Shan. He was so knowledgeable about the areas we told him the kind of shops and presents. We wanted to get our friends and family and the type of things we wanted to get and he brought us to those types of stores he always looked after our young children and showed us all the great spots. We appreciate him and we would recommend him to anybody else that we would like to come to Kyoto.
crossdb, May 2026
This was The Best use of our time and money to enjoy Kyoto highlights on a short (any!) visit. Our driver/guide, Shaan, was extremely kind, flexible and helpful. We were able to access many of our stops at less crowded areas/times. Shaan noted excellent vantage points & took family photos for us at many locations. We enjoyed great peace of mind with him handling the transport/traffic/parking. Shaan also shared insights & history that added to our happy memories in Kyoto. We couldn’t have done/seen/appreciated near as much without him.
Larry_M, Mar 2026
Djano is a nice young man, with passable english skills, he drove a close to brand new minivan which was quite nice, and his recommendations as to what to see and where to eat lunch were excellent. Note that Djano is NOT a licensed guide, but we found his comments informative and we actually liked that he did not talk constantly bombarding us with facts that we would soon forget.
Alicia_D, Feb 2026
Amazing guide! Sam really was knowledgeable and tailored the tour to us! We would recommend this if you want to see a lot in one day!
JAYAKRISHNAKAMAL_K, Jan 2026
Totally customized for us, based on our interests even with last minute requests for change in itinerary by us, and perfectly executed tour. Dhanush, our driver and our guide, went above and beyond and made sure we were taken care of and we learned a lot from him. Will absolutely utilize him again.
Jordan_T, Dec 2025
We had a great experience touring around Kyoto with our tour guide, Shan! He was very punctual picking us up in the morning and made sure we were able to see everything we wanted to visit during the 8-hour day. As we visited during the shoulder season, we were luckily able to avoid huge crowds and Shan made sure to give us a ton of information about each of the sites we saw and took amazing photos for us! There is so much to see in Kyoto and having Shan drive us throughout the city (bigger than we thought!) was the perfect way to see it all as we couldn’t have done it all in one day without him! We highly recommend this tour and specifically Shan as a tour guide - thank you so much!
Gerardo_A, Dec 2025
Amazing Kyoto Experience. Does a great Job knowing the History of Every location we visited. relating stories accordingly.
Melanie_D, Nov 2025
Dhanesh took us on a fast-paced tour of Kyoto. We had limited time and wanted to see as much as possible and Dhanesh definitely delivered on this. He packed out day full of things we would have otherwise missed or had to choose between. He gave us great insight into local customs and historical perspective. He also took great photos of our family along the way! We would definitely tour with Dhanesh in the future!
Elizabeth_L, Nov 2025
This was an excellent tour and our tour guide Dhanu treated us very well. He was courteous and informative. He made every effort to make us comfortable and to ensure we saw all the attractions on the itinerary. We enjoyed the day with him.
Lisa_R, Oct 2025
The driver was very knowledgeable and took us to see several sites we didn’t even know about. The temple was one of the most amazing ones I have ever been to.
Josh_A, Aug 2025
My partner and I had a great day with Ravindu. He expertly showed us around Kyoto and shared with us the historical and cultural significance of each site we visited. He also tailored the sites to our interests and requests, as we had seen a couple of the most popular Kyoto sites on our own the day prior to our tour. We also had a couple of special requests to see specific sites that Ravindu accommodated without hesitation. We enjoyed Ravindu’s insight to contemporary Japanese life from the comfort of the well appointed and air conditioned van as we traveled from site to site. This is a great way to see a lot of Kyoto’s remote sites in a quick, inexpensive way. Highly, highly recommended.
maria_v, May 2025
We had a wonderful experience. Ganesh was punctual, thoughtful, and had already planned a great sightseeing route for the day. He was extremely kind, and the car was very comfortable and spotless. At each stop, he would park conveniently close, escort us to the entrance, explain what we were about to see, and then patiently wait for us to return. At Arashiyama Forest, he walked with us the entire way, pointing out beautiful spots we might have missed on our own. He also took amazing photos of our group, which we truly appreciated. Highly recommended!
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$408.00
per group (up to 6)Was $480.00
up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Kyoto Private Customizable Day Trip With English chauffeur
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