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View all Nara toursNara First, Then Kyoto: Customisable Private Day Tour
A private Kyoto-based day tour that visits Nara Park and Todai-ji first, then Arashiyama, Kinkaku-ji and Fushimi Inari.
Highlights
- Reach Nara Park early, before the busiest hours
- See the 752 CE Great Buddha inside Todai-ji's Daibutsuden
- Free time built into the Nara stops, not just guided walking
- Afternoon in Arashiyama, Kinkaku-ji and Fushimi Inari Taisha
- Private guide and vehicle, with the order adjustable on the day
- Pickup and drop-off in Kyoto
Nara First, Then Kyoto: Customisable Private Day Tour: Key Facts
| Price | From $519.48 per person |
|---|---|
| Duration | 10 hours |
| Languages | English |
| Tour type | Guided Tour |
| Booking | Direct with the local operator — no OTA markup |
Choose from 1 available option
Customisable Private Nara & Kyoto Day Tour
Full description
Most Kyoto-and-Nara day tours run the same fixed sequence. This one is built the other way round: it leaves Kyoto and drives straight to Nara first, roughly 50 minutes by private van, then works back north through Kyoto in the afternoon. Going to Nara early matters more than it sounds, because Nara Park and the Daibutsuden fill steadily through the day and the first hours there are the calmest.
Nara Park takes the opening hour, with free time built in rather than a marched itinerary. The park holds well over a thousand wild sika deer, protected since ancient times as messengers of the deity Takemikazuchi and given National Natural Treasure status in 1957; the shika senbei crackers sold from stalls around the park are the reason they approach visitors at all. Todai-ji follows, where the seated bronze Daibutsu dedicated in 752 CE sits beneath a hall rebuilt in 1709 at two-thirds the original width and still counted among the largest wooden structures on earth. Nara was Japan's first permanent capital from 710 CE, and both sites date from that founding era.
The afternoon is Kyoto: Arashiyama, the gold pavilion at Kinkaku-ji, and Fushimi Inari Taisha with its torii corridors, each given about an hour. Because the vehicle and guide are private, the running order and the length of each stop can be adjusted while you are on the road, which is useful if a site turns out busier than expected or if you would rather spend longer somewhere. Pickup and drop-off are in Kyoto, so travellers based in Osaka should confirm arrangements before booking.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Pickup in Kyoto
Your private guide and van collect you in Kyoto to begin the day.
Drive to Nara
About 50 minutes by van south from Kyoto to Nara.
Nara Park
An hour among the free-roaming sika deer, with free time for photographs and deer crackers.
Todai-ji
A guided hour at the Daibutsuden and the Great Buddha, with free time inside the precinct.
Arashiyama
An hour in Kyoto's western district, including the bamboo groves and riverside.
Kinkaku-ji
An hour at the Golden Pavilion and its garden pond.
Fushimi Inari Taisha
An hour walking the vermilion torii gates on Mount Inari's lower slopes.
Return to Kyoto
Drop-off back in Kyoto at the end of the tour.
Detailed Itinerary
Around ten hours in total, with about five hours at the five stops and the rest spent driving, including the roughly 50-minute run between Kyoto and Nara. The itinerary is customisable, so tell your guide early if you want to trade time between stops. Fushimi Inari and Arashiyama both involve extended walking on uneven ground.
Includes
- Private licensed guide, private van with driver, Kyoto pickup and drop-off, all transport between Nara and Kyoto stops
Excludes
- Entrance fees, lunch and drinks, gratuities, personal expenses, travel insurance
Important information
Meeting point
Pickup in Kyoto
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
Taimoor was friendly and organized. We had a great conversation in the beginning of the tour of the expectation and he was kind enough to walk with us and get us set up for all the attractions first, so we did not feel lost. He also reached out prior to the date and suggested picking us up earlier so we can enjoy the attractions with less crowds. We end up not going earlier, but I suggest if you have the opportunity to do so. This was fully private and custom tour of our family enjoy.
Our last day in Osaka ended with one of the best tour experiences. Taimoor, our host for the day, was simply amazing. He took us to Kyoto and Nara, effortlessly planning all the best spots at the right time to avoid heavy crowd. He taught us about the culture and took us to the perfect food spots. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. 1000% recommended!
Our wonderful guide didn't hover! He briefly explained the history of the sites, explained logistics of pick up from the sites, and allowed us to explore on our own, which was what we wanted! Private tour worth every penny! He even dropped us off at Kyoto where we spent the night, and returned my parents back to our cruise ship. We loved it so much, we arranged our transport back with him back to our cruise ship the following day! Highly recommend!
Haseeb was very friendly and informative, He has shown us places an informed to be back from the places so that we could everything in a day.
Very well led tour. Our tour guide Hasseb was very polite and knowledgeable about the area. He spoke Hindi,English and Japanese well. he arrived promptly at 9 30am. We were not ready to come down and he waited for us. He coordinated me the pick up time the night before via what’s app. He was knowledgeable about the area . Great value for the money and time as well.HATS OFF TO HASEEB FOR THE GREAT EXPERIENCE.
Very good guide Bibi gave us space and got us there despite the challenges of time and traffic
Very well led tour. Our tour guide Hasseb was very polite and knowledgeable about the area. He spoke English and Japanese well. Hecarrived promptly at 9 am. We were not ready to come down and he waited for us. He coordinated me the pick up time the night before via what’s app. He was knowledgeable about the area and suggested a great place for us to eat lunch. Great value for the money and time as well.
My wife and I had a great day on the Nara and Kyoto tour. Our driver Haseeb was great in showing us what we wanted to see. He was very nice and accommodating to our needs. This tour saved us so much time as to do everything that we did today would have taken us quite awhile to do on our own, and we just didn’t have the time.