Nara Early Morning Tour Kyoto or Osaka Departure Available
Recommended by 98% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Nara, Japan
+31
- 4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Nara is one of Japan's most-visited destinations, which means it gets crowded during the day. Dodge the biggest crowds and enjoy a more intimate experience of the ancient Japanese capital on this early-morning, small-group tour. Admire landmarks including Kofuku-ji Temple and Nara Park, home to free-roaming deer, while learning about the long history of this sacred place.
- Explore Nara at its best, before the biggest crowds get there
- Option to include pickup at Kyoto Station
- Small-group tour (maximum 12 people): A more personal experience
- Learn about the ancient capital of Nara from your guide
What's Included
- English-Speaking guide
- Transportation Fee from Kyoto/Osaka to Nara (Only if you select the option)
- Food and Drinks
- Transportation Fee for returning from Nara to Kyoto/Osaka
- Entrance fee - Todai-ji Temple¥800.00 per person
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
Type to search
End point
- Nara ParkNara, Japan
Itinerary
1
Kofuku-ji Temple
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Kasuga Grand Shrine
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
3
Nara Park
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
Todai-ji Temple
1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- We will walk about 10,000 steps during this tour.
- Not recommended for guests over 75.
- Guests under the age of 6 cannot join.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 1,263 reviews
Review summary
Last 12 months
449 reviews
Select a theme to learn more
Travelers praise Nara’s points of interest, especially Tōdai-ji Temple and its Great Buddha, alongside serene shrines and interactive deer in Nara Park. Guides are consistently noted for deep knowledge, excellent English, and patient, engaging delivery that supports family-friendly, educational experiences. Communication and tour logistics receive high marks for clarity and smooth coordination. The well-paced, half-day itinerary balances ample sightseeing with manageable walking, though some flag the terrain and heat as challenging.
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Very relaxing tour. Joshua our guide met us at the train station, rode with us to Nara, and allowed our group to set the pace, visiting everything on the list, walking leisurely, stopping for rest room and ice cream breaks. He is very knowledgeable about the history of the city.
Koh was an amazing tour guide! It was an amazing experience seeing Nara and going to see the temples. Koh was also very knowledgeable and helpful throughout the whole experience! It was awesome very fun experience getting to feed and pet the deer and learn the history about Nara as well!
This was a wonderful half day tour to see beautiful Nara from Kyoto and I highly recommend it. We had a lovely young Japanese guide who was very informative and looked after us all. We travelled there via train and visited the Nara Deer Park to see, feed and experience the 'bowing deer' - a definate must-do! We then visited the Kofuku-ji Temple, the Kasuga Grand Shrine and Todai-ji Temple. Amazing, loved it and highly recommend this tour.
Lots of walking and no time to shop at the shops at the end of the tour, but our guide was fantastic!
Intersting tour. good overall view of Nara. Visiting Shrines and Buddhist temple. Easy walking. Using public transport. Our guide Koh was informative and helpful with good English.
Momoka did an excellent job. She patiently took pictures at the places she knew were the best sights. She walked at a reasonable pace. She explained all about the temples and shrines we saw and was very knowledgeable. I would definitely recommend taking a tour with her!
Nara is steeped in culture and history…a very interesting tour, aside from the adorable deer! Great!
Ayame was a phenomenal tour guide. She was knowledgeable and friendly, easy to talk to. The tour itself was incredible, we love the deer and beautiful scenery.
Great tour! Our guide Chihiro was very knowledgeable and friendly . The tour was at a perfect pace and we learned so much about the area.
Nara was a great place to experience. The deer were fun to feed but beware they can be a bit wild especially the big males! The shrine and temples were amazing too and the massive Buddha statue was outstanding to see. Our guide Ayana was friendly and knowledgeable too!
Toshiki was an excellent guide, we really enjoyed our half day trip in Nara. He was really educational and gave us plenty of time to roam and explore the park.
Haruku was a wonderful guide for our Nara walking tour. She helped us navigate the hungry deer and explained the different shrines and temples. Nara has so many beautiful sites and interacting with the deer is icing on the top.
We thoroughly enjoyed our morning tour to Nara lead by our guide Ayame. .Loved seeing the dear and the awesome temple.with the amazing statues. Ayame.made it a smooth and stressless experience as we were being lead along the way by an expert in the area with wonderful knowledge of the sites. It was a small walking tour 8 nice people and it was easy to interact and ask questions. Ayame was sweet, knowledgeable, and a clear animal lover. She even went out of her way to look up vegetarian restaurant options for me (not any easy task 😊). Highly recommend the tour
This was a wonderful experience! Our guide, Tomo, was very friendly and knowledgeable. He explained to us the cultural significance of each site, and we got much more from our visit to Nara than we otherwise would have. 100% would recommend!
A terrific tour icluding the deer and 3 great temples .Our guide Daiki spoke excellent English - ran things very smoothly.
We loved this tour! Chihiro was a wonderful guide and was very knowledgeable about Nara history. She shared a lot of history, fun facts, and was a great tour guide! Highly recommended!
We went by train to Nara. We didn’t know we were coming back on our own, without the guide. Mei was terrific. It is a continuous 4-5 mile walk In our 70’s and it was both a surprise. We endured and loved it otherwise.
We had such a wonderful time exploring Nara! This tour was the perfect way to experience the city, and we felt like we got to see all the highlights while learning so much along the way. Visiting Tōdai-ji Temple and seeing the enormous Great Buddha was especially impressive, and of course, spending time with the famous Nara deer was a highlight!
Our guide, Ayame, was absolutely fantastic! She was incredibly knowledgeable, kind, and patient with our two kids, taking the time to answer all their questions. She also helped us interact with the deer and was quick to step in whenever they got a little too pushy! Her guidance made the entire experience fun, educational, and easy to enjoy. We learned so much, made wonderful memories, and had an amazing time. We would absolutely recommend this tour to anyone wanting to experience the best of Nara! Hopefully you get Ayame as your guide since she was fantastic!
We had a fantastic guide named Toshiki on our trip. He was 5 stars! Loved the deer and the temples. Toshiki was very helpful and explained the history well. He also helped us with railway tickets and other suggestions of things to do in Kyoto.
This was a fabulous tour! Moe was the sweetest and best tour guide! She pointed out all kinds of cool places starting right when we met up, not just in Nara. She got some absolutely wonderful photos of us throughout the tour. At the end of the tour she made sure we got back to the station and knew exactly which train to take back to Kyoto. I cannot recommend her highly enough! If I could give this a million stars I would!
AyameF made this tour very interesting and enjoyable. She had good knowledge and was able to answer all my questions. I had a really great time on this tour!
I enjoyed visiting the shrine and seeing the huge Buddha. My guide did an exception job. She was very informative and friendly to talk too.
Logan was a great tour guide. We had an amazing time esp at the Nijo castle. Thank you for the memorable experience.
This was a wonderful time! Toshiki was not only kind and informative, but also extra helpful in navigating the transportation and working around the busier crowds. Definitely recommend this tour for anyone with an interest in Nara.
Áyame F was a fantastic guide. She was very knowledgeable about the history of Nara and gave us lots of opportunities to interact with the deer as well as take many photos throughout our experience. She also was a great guide for the different temples at our tour.
It is really amazing to be able to walk with deer that bow to you, and climb through Buddha s nostril all in a partial day!
Our guide Momoka was excellent, so fun and informative, and her apprentice also very helpful, English spoken was great too.
Chihiro was an excellent communicator with the meeting point and plan for the tour. She was kind and patient and did a great job at explaining key points about Nara, the shrines and temples.
We were the only party of the group so it was like a personal guide. The pick up point was relatively easy to find and having had a previous WhatsApp message made life really easy. Our guide Moe was a lovely young lady passionate about Nara park and the wider Japanese culture and traditions. She provided excellent detail for each temple and shrine and clearly had an affinity with the whole area. Her caring nature for the narure was clearly demonstrated when she spotted a deer trying to eat a coffee cup. She went across and quickly grabbed it off the deer to prevent any issues.
We had a truly marvelous morning and Moe just made it that much more memorable.
Great tour. The guide was helpful and friendly. She made sure to explain each place we visited and its historical background and answered all our questions.
Haruki was amazing. His english was superb and his knowledge of the area was complete. We had a great day.
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$63.85
per personWas $67.21(-5%)
up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Nara Early Morning Tour Kyoto or Osaka Departure Available
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